Trump Tech Aide Calls for ‘Creative’ R&D Push After Budget Cuts

White House science and technology director Michael Kratsios said the US will need to make “smart choices” with public research funding to stay competitive in areas like artificial intelligence as the Trump administration’s sweeping budget cuts spread to research organizations.

“We must be more creative in our use of public research and development money and shape a funding environment that makes clear what our national priorities are,” Kratsios told technology leaders on Monday at the Endless Frontiers retreat in Austin, his first public remarks since his Senate confirmation in March. Kratsios added that federal dollars for research proposals should be deployed “more rapidly” and said similar approaches proved valuable during the Covid pandemic.