Pentagon official overseeing military AI sold millions worth of stock in AI firm
Exclusive: financial disclosures from Emil Michael – who also reaped millions from xAI stock earlier this year – show he sold his Perplexity stock for up to $25m
TL;DR
- Emil Michael, overseeing military AI policy at the Pentagon, sold stock in the AI company Perplexity for up to $25 million.
- Michael previously profited up to $24 million from selling his investment in Elon Musk's AI company, xAI.
- Financial disclosures also show Michael received a personal loan from Perplexity and joined its advisory board before entering federal service.
- Ethics experts suggest Michael should have divested all interests before starting his government role, citing appearance concerns.
- The Pentagon stated Michael is in full compliance with ethics laws and regulations.
- Michael also sold holdings in the financial software company Brex LLC for at least $5 million, realizing significant gains.
- Michael was previously chief business officer at Uber and his past comments about digging up dirt on journalists resurfaced.