The White House this morning announced that Google (GOOG) executive Megan Smith will become the nation’s third Chief Technology Officer, following Todd Park’s recent decision to shift to a Silicon Valley-based role. Former Twitter (TWTR) general counsel Alex Macgillivray – who also once worked at Google — will serve as Deputy CTO, succeeding Nicole Wong.
Coins2Day had previously reported on the White House’s interest in Smith and Macgillivray.
“Megan has spent her career leading talented teams and taking cutting-edge technology and innovation initiatives from concept to design to deployment,” said President Obama in a statement. “I am confident that… she will put her long record of leadership and exceptional skills to work on behalf of the American people. I am grateful for her commitment to serve, and I look forward to working with her and with our new Deputy U.S. CTO, Alexander Macgillivray, in the weeks and months ahead.”
Smith has been with Google since 2003, and most recently oversaw the company’s quasi-secret R&D lab called GoogleX. She She previously led business development and the company’s Google.org philanthropic arm.
Macgillivray served as Twitter’s general counsel between 2009 and 2013, where he was known for being very supportive of the company’s pro-free speech position.