America Just Got A Chief Design Officer—And Tesla's Involved

A member of the Tesla Inc TSLA Board of Directors is reportedly heading back to the White House in the newly created "Chief Design Officer" role.

Trump Creates America By Design

President Donald Trump signed another Executive Order on Thursday, adding to the list of signed proclamations since taking office in January.

This Executive Order creates the America by Design initiative and the newly created Chief Design Officer role.

"America has long led the world in innovation, technological advancement, and design. But with a sprawling ecosystem of digital services offered to Americans, the Government has lagged behind in usability and aesthetics," the order says.

Trump's order hopes to improve the nation with better design.

The national initiative takes aim at government-owned websites and physical locations in an effort to make them "usable and beautiful."

"This effort will be facilitated by a new National Design Studio and by a new Chief Design Officer. The Chief Design Officer will help recruit top creative talent, coordinate with executive departments and agencies, and devise innovative solutions."

There are around 26,000 federal websites in the U.S., which are said to be costly to maintain and difficult for people to navigate. A fact sheet on the order said only 6% of federal websites are rated "good" for mobile performance and 45% of federal websites are not mobile friendly.

The National Design Studio will be headquartered at the White House with the Chief Design Officer reporting to the White House Chief of Staff.

The order says websites and physical sties that have a "major impact" on the everyday lives of Americans should be prioritized.

Initial results will have a deadline of July 4, 2026 with the temporary organization terminating three years from the creation date.

Read Also: Airbnb’s Founders Sold $30,000 In Cereal Boxes Inspired By Obama And McCain During Company’s Early Funding Days

Who's Being Put in Charge?

Trump did not officially name the new Chief Design Officer, but all signs point to Airbnb Inc ABNB co-founder Joe Gebbia.

Gebbia recently served as a team member on the Department of Government Efficiency helping the White House find waste and will now transition to making physical and digital federal property more usable and better looking, as reported by Bloomberg.

Along with being a co-founder of Airbnb, Gebbia has served on the Tesla Board of Directors since 2022. Earlier this year, Gebbia bought 4,000 Tesla shares, marking a rare insider purchase by a Board member.

Gebbia has a close relationship with Tesla CEO Elon Musk, thanks to being on Tesla's Board and working with the D.O.G.E. team. This connection may have helped Gebbia build a closer relationship with Trump through Musk's friendship.

The Airbnb co-founder owns around 7% of the vacation rental company he helped create and remains a member of the company's Board of Directors.

Gebbia is worth $8.14 billion according to estimates from Bloomberg, making him the 430^th richest person in the world.

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