The White House recently announced that DJ Patil will become the first ever US Chief Data Scientist.
The speculation is over! The White House has named DJ Patil its first ever ‘Chief Data Scientist and Deputy Chief Technology Officer for Data Policy.’ Jessi Hempel of Wired explains some of the reasons why Patil was appointed.
Hempel believes that “there is arguably no one better suited to help the country better embrace the relatively new discipline of data science than Patil.” Often credited with coining the term ‘data scientist,’ he is certainly responsible for calling it ‘the sexiest job of the 21st century.’
His extensive experience in data science clearly stood out, with President Obama personally recruiting Patil for the role. Patil comes into the role with “two decades of work in the private and public sectors and in academia.” Perhaps most notable is that his experience spreads across some of Silicon Valley most infamous big tech firms. Patil has held data roles inside the likes of LinkedIn, eBay, PayPal, Skype, and venture capital firm Greylock Partners. With this new position he will now act as “an evangelist for new applications of big data across all areas of government, with a particular focus on healthcare.”
Watch President Obama make the official announcement from The White House:
With a life matra of “if you can’t measure it, you can’t fix it,” we’re looking forward to seeing the impact that DJ Patil can have no just on the US’s attitude and application of data, but on other governments around the world.
For more information on this new role, we invite you to read the full article by Jessi Hempel on Wired.
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