Trump taps DOGE-aligned tech leader to overhaul federal websites
Airbnb co-founder Joe Gebbia, the new chief design office of the United States, is the latest Silicon Valley technology leader to join the Trump administration.
The Trump administration is tapping a private-sector tech leader with ties to the Department of Government Efficiency to overhaul federal websites.
Airbnb co-founder Joe Gebbia said on Saturday that Trump appointed him to serve as the chief design officer of the United States.
Gebbia, who also serves on Tesla’s board of directors, will lead the newly created National Design Studio within the White House. An executive order signed by President Donald Trump last week directed the studio with “breathing new life into the design of sites where people interface with their government.”
“My directive is to update today’s government services to be as satisfying to use as the Apple Store: beautifully designed, great user experience, run on modern software,” Gebbia wrote on X. “I will do my best to make the U.S. the most beautiful, and useable, country in the digital world.”
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Gebbia joins a growing number of Silicon Valley technology leaders who are taking jobs within the Trump administration. Earlier this year, he led DOGE’s work on launching a fully online retirement application system for federal employees at the Office of Personnel Management.
OPM rolled out the completed project in May. The agency has been working on digitizing the federal retirement system for more than 20 years. The project focused on digitizing millions of federal employees’ retirement records stored in a mine in western Pennsylvania.
Gebbia has also worked closely with leaders at the General Services Administration. Federal News Network reported in April that Gebbia’s name — along with DOGE officials deployed to nearly two dozen agencies — appeared on a list of vetted personnel approved to meet with Stephen Ehikian, who served as GSA’s acting director. Ehikian now serves as the agency’s deputy administrator.
A new “America by Design” website outlines the mission of the National Design Studio. Among its goals, the studio plans to improve the services that “touch every American” — including paying off student loans, renewing a passport, visiting national parks, applying for a small business loan, applying for a green card, managing Social Security benefits and filing taxes.
“We’ve been conditioned to accept that mediocre in government is normal,” the new website states. “It’s not normal. It’s time to upgrade, and fix the nation’s digital potholes.”
The State Department launched its online passport renewal last year. The team behind the project received a Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medal in June. The platform now handles about half of all passport renewal applications.
Social Security Administration Commissioner Frank Bisignano told staff in May that the agency will drive call wait times down to “single digits,” using artificial intelligence tools.
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A newly launched website for the National Design Studio says it will “improve how Americans experience their government — online, in person, and the spaces in between.”
According to the America by Design website, the White House is drawing inspiration from the Nixon administration’s beautification project in the 1970s. That project led to the creation of NASA’s iconic logo, branding for national parks and signage for the national highway system.
“It’s time to continue what he started … for the digital age,” the America by Design website states.
The website says the administration will “attract the best talent of our time” to complete this work. According to the executive order, that talent will largely come from the private sector. Many experts who worked on customer experience and design projects left the government or were fired under the Trump administration.
The White House estimates there are more than 26,000 federal websites, and that only 6% of federal websites are rated “good” for use on mobile devices. About 45% of federal websites are not mobile-friendly.
Federal News Network first reported that the 24 largest federal agencies are preparing to eliminate more than 330 websites — about 5% of the more than 7,200 websites they maintain.
If you would like to contact this reporter about recent changes in the federal government, please email jheckman@federalnewsnetwork.com, or reach out on Signal at jheckman.29
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