An unpaid group of billionaires, tech executives and some disciples of Peter Thiel, a powerful Republican donor, are preparing to take unofficial positions in the US government in the name of cost-cutting.
As President-elect Donald J. Trump's so-called Department of Government Efficiency works to combat “wasteful” spending, it is preparing to send individuals linked to its co-leaders, Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, to agencies in the federal direct government. .
After Inauguration Day, Silicon Valley's group of wide-eyed recruits will be deployed to Washington's alphabet soup of agencies. The goal is for most major agencies to eventually have two DOGE representatives as they try to reduce costs, as Mr. Musk did at X, his social media platform.
This story is based on interviews with about a dozen people who have insight into DOGE's activities. They spoke to The Times on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.
On the eve of Trump's presidency, DOGE's structure is still amorphous and tightly knit. People involved in the operation say secrecy and avoiding leaks are paramount, and much of the communication takes place via Signal, the encrypted messaging app.
Mr Trump has said the effort would bring about “drastic change” and that the entity would provide outside advice on how to cut wasteful spending. DOGE itself will not have the power to make cuts – that power lies with Congress. Instead, it is expected to make recommendations for programs and other areas that need cuts.
But parts of the operation are becoming clear: Many of the executives involved expect a six-month voluntary stint within the federal government before returning to their high-paying jobs. Mr Musk has said they will not be paid – a non-starter for some originally interested tech executives – and that he has been asked by him to work 80-hour weeks. Some, including possibly Mr. Musk, will be so-called special government employees, a specific category of temporary workers who can work for the federal government for only 130 days or fewer in a 365-day period.
The representatives will be largely based within federal agencies. After some deliberation by top officials, it is now unlikely that DOGE itself will be incorporated as an organized third-party entity or non-profit organization. Instead, it will likely exist more as a brand for an interconnected group of ambitious leaders who are part of joint group chats and share an allegiance to Mr. Musk or Mr. Ramaswamy.
“The cynics among us will say, 'Oh, it's naive billionaires joining the fray.' But the other side will say this is a service to the nation that we saw more often around the founding of the nation,” said Trevor Traina, an entrepreneur who worked in the first Trump administration with employees who were considering joining DOGE close.
“The friends I know have huge lives,” Mr. Traina said, “and they agree to work for free for six months, leave their families behind and roll up their sleeves in an effort to really change things. You can look at it both ways.”
DOGE leaders have told others that the minority of people not assigned to agencies would be housed in the Executive Office of the President of the US Digital Service, which was created in 2014 by former President Barack Obama to “change the approach to technology by changing our government.”
DOGE is also expected to have an office in the Office of Management and Budget, and officials have also considered establishing a think tank outside of government in the future.
Mr. Musk's friends have been closely involved in choosing people who will be assigned to various agencies. Those who have conducted interviews for DOGE include Silicon Valley investors Marc Andreessen, Shaun Maguire, Baris Akis and others with a personal connection to Mr. Musk. Some who have received the Thiel Fellowship, a prestigious grant funded by Mr. Thiel given to those who pledge to skip or drop out of college to become entrepreneurs, are involved in programming and activities for DOGE. Brokering an introduction to Mr. Musk or Mr. Ramaswamy, or their inner circles, has been a key way for leaders to get singled out for deployment.
That's how Loom co-founder Vinay Hiremath said he got involved with DOGE in a rare public statement from someone who worked with the entity. In a post this month on his personal blog, Mr. Hiremath described the work DOGE employees did before he decided not to move to Washington to join the entity.
“After 8 phone calls with people who all talked fast and sounded very smart, I was added to some Signal groups and put to work right away,” he wrote. “The next four weeks of my life consisted of hundreds of phone calls recruiting the smartest people I've ever spoken to, working on various projects I absolutely can't talk about, and learning how completely dysfunctional the government was. It was great.”
These recruits are assigned to specific agencies that are believed to have expertise. Some other DOGE registrants came to the attention of Mr. Musk and Mr. Ramaswamy through X. In recent weeks, DOGE's account has posted on office functions such as human resources.
The DOGE team, including its paid engineers, works largely from a glass building in SpaceX's downtown office, a few blocks from the White House. Some people close to Mr. Ramaswamy and Mr. Musk hope that these DOGE engineers can use artificial intelligence to find cost-saving opportunities.
The broader effort is being led by two people with very different backgrounds: One is Brad Smith, a healthcare entrepreneur and former top health official in Trump's first White House, who is close to Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law. . Mr. Smith has effectively led DOGE during the transition period, with a particular emphasis on employee recruitment, especially those who will be assigned to the staffing agencies.
Mr. Smith has worked closely with Steve Davis, an associate of Mr. Musk's for 20 years, who is widely seen as Mr. Musk's representative on all matters. Mr. Davis has joined Mr. Musk in calling experts with questions about issues such as the federal budget.
Others involved include Matt Luby, Mr. Ramaswamy's chief of staff and childhood friend; Joanna Wischer, a Trump campaign official; and Rachel Riley, a McKinsey partner who works closely with Mr. Smith.
Mr Musk's personal lawyer – Chris Gober – and Mr Ramaswamy's personal lawyer – Steve Roberts – have been exploring various legal issues regarding DOGE's structure. James Burnham, a former Justice Department official, also helps DOGE with legal matters. Bill McGinley, Trump's first choice for White House counsel who was instead appointed legal counsel for DOGE, has played a more minimal role.
“DOGE will be a cornerstone of the new administration and help President Trump realize his vision of a new golden era,” said James Fishback, the founder of Azoria, an investment firm, and confidante of Mr. Ramaswamy, who will provide outside advice to DOGE.
Despite all this firepower, many budget experts are deeply skeptical of this effort and its cost-saving ambitions. Mr. Musk initially said the effort could result in “at least $2 trillion” in cuts to the $6.75 trillion federal budget. But budget experts say that goal would be difficult to achieve without cutting popular programs like Social Security and Medicare, which Trump has vowed not to cut.
Both Mr Musk and Mr Ramaswamy have also rewritten what success could mean. Mr. Ramaswamy last month highlighted the DOGE-led deregulation on
And in an interview last week with Mark Penn, the chairman and CEO of Stagwell, a marketing firm, Mr. Musk downplayed the overall potential savings.
“We'll try for $2 trillion – I think that's the best outcome,” Musk said. 'You have to have a bit of surplus. I think if we try to make two trillion, we have a good chance of getting one.”
