Senate confirms former Uber executive as Pentagon’s chief technology officer

The Senate on Wednesday voted 54-43 to confirm businessman Emil Michael as undersecretary of defense for research and engineering and the Pentagon’s chief technology officer.

In that position, Michael will serve as the primary advisor to the secretary of defense and other Defense Department leaders on tech development and transition, prototyping, experimentation, and management of testing ranges and activities. He’ll also be in charge of synchronizing science and technology efforts across the DOD.

Michael comes to the job from the private sector, where he’s been a business executive, advisor and investor. He told members of the Senate Armed Services Committee that he’s been involved with more than 50 different tech companies during his career. Perhaps most notable, from 2013 to 2017, he was chief business officer at Uber.

In government, he previously served as special assistant to the secretary of defense when Robert Gates was Pentagon chief.

Michael was born in Egypt and his family moved to the United States when he was a child to escape what he described as hostility to Christians.

“Emil has lived the American Dream by building several successful Tech companies, including Uber,” then President-elect Donald Trump said in a statement in December when he announced his pick for Pentagon R&E chief, adding that Michael will “ensure that our Military has the most technologically sophisticated weapons in the World, while saving A LOT of money for our Taxpayers.”

Michael touted his business background during his confirmation hearing in March and in responses to written questions from senators. He noted that he previously served on the Defense Business Board, which provides independent advice to Pentagon leaders on business management issues.

“I am a firm believer that bringing best practices from the private sector into the Department is a top priority because, if adopted effectively, they will streamline operation and allocate resources more appropriately,” Michael told lawmakers.

He suggested that some research and development programs could end up on the chopping block under his watch, saying Pentagon officials need to have the discipline to “stop projects that are failing” and focus S&T investments on “only those things that are aligned on our ‘peace through strength’ mission.”

“Time must be a factor in all of our decisions as we confront an increasingly sophisticated adversary in China, which not only has lower labor costs, but is notorious for intellectual property theft, making its research and development … even faster and less expensive than we could have imagined only a decade ago,” he said.

Michael also told senators that he would work to “recast” the relationship between the Defense Department and the emerging tech sector.

“The DOD needs to foster a more robust and competitive defense industrial base by providing more realistic requirements, inviting smaller and innovative companies with less burdensome processes, becoming more agile in how and when we grant contracts. The private sector too should bear some more responsibility for the risks of their own failure. A healthy ecosystem will provide for weapons that are better, cheaper and faster,” he said at his confirmation hearing.

He suggested venture capitalists could play an even larger role in supporting the defense industrial base, particularly for small businesses that need additional funding to thrive in that marketplace. For example, he told lawmakers that, if confirmed, he would look for opportunities under Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer (SBIR/STTR) programs for small businesses to leverage VC investment.

The Pentagon’s R&E chief plays a key role in fostering next-generation military capabilities and overseeing work on the “critical technology areas” that the Pentagon has identified. Those areas currently include trusted AI and autonomy; space; integrated sensing and cyber; integrated network systems of systems; renewable energy generation and storage; microelectronics; human-machine interfaces; advanced materials; directed energy; advanced computing and software; hypersonics; biotech; quantum; and FutureG wireless tech.

“If confirmed, I look forward to reviewing the work being done in all 14 Critical Technology Areas and ensuring the Department’s resources are focused on our most critical challenges with the right amount of weight behind each area,” Michael told lawmakers.

He highlighted AI, autonomous systems, quantum computing, directed energy and hypersonics as some of his top priorities, if confirmed.

The R&E directorate is also expected to play a major role in Trump’s Golden Dome missile defense initiative.

Michael noted that Golden Dome will require systems engineers across the DOD to collaborate on architecture and software, in partnership with the development and acquisition communities.

After he’s sworn in, Michael will take over for James Mazol, who has been performing the duties of undersecretary for R&E during the early months of the second Trump administration. Heidi Shyu was the last person to hold the role in a Senate-confirmed capacity during the Biden administration.