Emil Michael

Michael was sworn in as under secretary of defense for research and engineering in May 2025. In recent months he became the face of the Pentagon’s highly public dispute with the AI contractor Anthropic after the firm insisted its technology could not be used for domestic surveillance or for autonomous killing. December, seven months into running the Pentagon’s research and engineering efforts, Michael received a divestiture certificate from the OGE that said he would sell his xAI stock to comply with conflict of interest laws. On 22 December, the defense department, which now refers to itself as the Department of War, announced a new agreement with xAI. Michael did not ultimately sell his position in xAI until 9 January. Michael built three successful companies: Tellme Networks (sold to Microsoft in 2007), Klout (sold to Lithium Technologies in 2014), and Uber. He has also been the President of Technology and Management Consulting Services of M8 Enterprises LLC.