Odd Lots25 Dec 2025

Scott Kupor's New Plan to Bring Tech Workers Into the Federal Government

If you're a high-skilled tech worker, then potentially huge fortunes await you working for a startup or one of our booming AI giants. But the government needs these types of workers too. And the government is not set up to pay commensurate salaries with the private sector -- particularly for these types of roles. This challenge has long been understood, and there have been numerous efforts over the years to infuse the government with high-tech talent. Scott Kupor is the director of the US Office of Personnel Management, which manages and coordinates recruiting of new government employees across the federal workforce. Scott was also previously one of the top partners at the famed VC firm Andreessen Horowitz. So he has a mind for bringing the recruiting practices of the tech world into DC. But of course, that's easier said than done. On this episode, we talk about how federal hiring works and doesn't work, and also his new endeavor called the US Tech Force, which aims to bring in top talent for a two-year stint of solving problems across the bureaus. We also talk about the DOGE initiative, and how he thinks about recruiting top talent at a time when the administration has been aggressive about shrinking the size of the overall federal workforce.

Read More: Federal Workforce’s Toll After a Year of DOGE and Trump: 317,000
USDA Lost a Third of DC Staff Even Before Relocation Effort

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