US: Obama appoints lesbian Google exec as chief technical officer
Out Google executive Megan Smith has been appointed as the White House’s new chief technical officer.
The Obama administration announced the appointment of the Google engineer to the role yesterday, making her the most senior lesbian in the administration.
Ms Smith, who has two children with partner Kara Swisher, was vice president of business development at Google for nine years, and worked on Google Maps and Google Earth.
The high-profile role puts her in charge of overseeing the White House’s technological policies, replacing Todd Park, who oversaw the much-criticized launch of Healthcare.gov.
Obama said in a statement: “Megan has spent her career leading talented teams and taking cutting-edge technology and innovation initiatives from concept to design to deployment.
“I am confident that in her new role as America’s Chief Technology Officer, 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 US CTO, Alexander Macgillivray, in the weeks and months ahead.”
Google co-founder Sergey Brin said: “Megan has inspired so many people through her commitment to inclusion and innovation.
“We’ll miss her at Google and are excited to see what the future holds for her in Washington.”
