Why One Startup CEO Is Excited About the White House’s New AI Czar Role

This month, President-elect Donald Trump appointed former Paypal executive and Silicon Valley-based venture capitalist David Sacks as the White House’s first-ever czar for AI and cryptocurrency. Sacks will be in charge of guiding policy for AI and cryptocurrency, which are “two areas critical to the future of American competitiveness,” Trump recently wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform.

There are still many unknowns about how the incoming Trump administration will affect the country’s AI regulation, but analysts think restrictions will probably loosen. Just last month, Trump promised to dismantle Biden’s AI safeguards once in office. 

It is likely that Sacks will employ a looser approach to AI regulation, as he has been an outspoken critic of regulation in the tech industry throughout his career. 

One healthcare tech expert — Ryan Tarzy, CEO of Avandra Imaging, a federated network for de-identified imaging data — thinks that this appointment will ultimately benefit the healthcare industry.

“While both campaigns spoke to the importance of AI and innovation, there is much more evidence that the Trump administration understands the significance of AI innovation and the consequences of falling behind — especially in healthcare. While there is a need for common sense regulations, if we lean towards regulation over innovation, we are actually costing more lives,” Tarzy declared.

For example, if it takes three years instead of one for a new AI model that improves cancer detection to be approved, all the patients who could have been saved over those two extra years of lag become “literally casualties” of that regulation, he explained.

To Tarzy, the pace of healthcare’s technological revolution is simply too slow. He pointed out that he recently heard a NVIDIA representative say that healthcare is about three technological generations behind other industries. 

“This is very credible, given that a lot of the industry still uses fax machines. It is a human tragedy. We need to ensure we leverage all the technology available to improve lives,” Tarzy stated.

He said he is optimistic that Sacks’ appointment will create a “more innovation-friendly environment.” 

Tarzy noted that this belief was shaped by comments Sacks has made on his podcast, in which he has voiced support for reducing regulations that make it harder for startups to compete with established tech giants.

“Though his influence as AI czar is still uncertain, his background as an investor suggests he will take a results-driven approach, particularly when it comes to supporting AI solutions that demonstrate direct improvements to patient outcomes. Because of this, I think he is well-positioned to make healthcare AI regulation more efficient, encouraging compliance and innovation while bridging industry and government together,” Tarzy stated.

He added that he thinks the U.S. is about to enter a “golden age” for medical AI.

In Tarzy’s view, looser AI regulation could help the U.S. healthcare system to catch up to its counterparts. More specifically, relaxed regulations would enable innovators to accelerate the availability of tools that directly improve patient outcomes, such as early disease detection, he said.

“For example, in Taiwan, technology exists for early-stage pancreatic cancer detection, but it is unavailable in the U.S. because of the current regulatory environment. It is not a matter of having the tools available — but establishing proper guidelines that support innovation,” he declared.

While he understands people’s concerns surrounding reduced regulations, Tarzy thinks it’s essential to balance fostering innovation and ensuring safety. 

“We are still in the early stages of AI development, and often, regulators do not fully grasp the nuances of the technology. We should allow tech companies to explore and truly understand what is possible with this technology,” he declared.

Photo: Eva Almqvist, Getty Images