US President Donald Trump, on Sunday, announced that Sriram Krishnan, a founding member of Microsoft Azure, the company’s public cloud computing platform, has been appointed to a new role.
Trump shared that Krishnan will serve as the Senior Policy Advisor for AI at the White House Office of Science & Technology Policy. He will work closely with David Sacks, the “White House A.I. & Crypto Czar”, focusing on ensuring “continued American leadership in AI” and helping to shape and coordinate AI policy across the government, including working with the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.
“I’m honored to be able to serve our country and ensure continued American leadership in AI working closely with DavidSacks. Thank you Donald Trump for this opportunity,” he posted to X.
Born in Chennai, Krishnan has held roles at major tech companies, including Microsoft, Meta, Snapchat, and Twitter. He is currently a General Partner at Andreessen Horowitz, a venture capital firm that has backed companies like Airbnb, GitHub, Instagram, Lyft, and Roblox. He earned his B.Tech from SRM Engineering College, Anna University, Chennai.
Congratulating Krishnan on X, Sridhar Vembu, the CEO and co-founder of Zoho shared that in 2004, when Sriram was graduating from SRM University, he had come across his blog, which was among the early programming blogs in the country.
“I was so impressed I wanted to recruit him, but Microsoft already had recruited him. We have been in touch on and off as he later moved to Silicon Valley and became an entrepreneur. President Trump has found a great talent for his technology team! “ he said.
The Trump admin has signaled it will go full speed on accelerating American leadership in AI without regulatory hurdles, explained Kashyap Kompella, an AI industry analyst.
“Elon Musk is also playing a key role in the Trump transition team in the run-up to Trump’s second term in January 2025. The appointment of entrepreneur/VC David Sacks as AI and crypto czar and now, Sriram Krishnan, who has been a technology executive and VC himself, is expected to bring a deep understanding of industry issues to AI policy,“ he said.
Prof C Muthamizhchelvan, Vice-Chancellor, SRM Institute of Science & Technology, said: “Sriram’s extraordinary journey, from a promising student at SRM to a key figure in shaping global AI policy, fills the university with immense pride. This achievement reflects his intellectual acumen and the transformative impact of SRM University in bringing out leaders who shape the future of technology. Our pedagogical approach at SRM is designed to empower students to think critically, embrace emerging technologies, and lead in a rapidly changing world. Our teaching methodologies focus not only on theoretical knowledge but also on the application of that knowledge to real-world challenges. I wish him all the very best for his new innings!”.
With inputs from TE Raja Simhan, Chennai
