logo
What Could DOGE Do With Federal Data?

What Could DOGE Do With Federal Data?

The Atlantic21-02-2025

This is Atlantic Intelligence, a newsletter in which our writers help you wrap your mind around artificial intelligence and a new machine age. Sign up here.
When the Department of Government Efficiency stormed the federal government, it had a clear objective—to remake the government, one must remake the civil service. And in particular, the team of Elon Musk acolytes 'focused on accessing the terminals, uncovering the button pushers, and taking control,' Michael Scherer, Ashley Parker, Shane Harris, and I wrote this week in an investigation into the DOGE takeover. Computers, they figured, run the government.
DOGE members and new political appointees have sought access to data and IT systems across the government—at the Treasury Department, IRS, Department of Health and Human Services, and more. Government technologists have speculated that DOGE's next step will be to centralize those data and feed them into AI systems, making bureaucratic processes more efficient while also identifying fraud and waste, or perhaps simply uncovering further targets to dismantle. Musk's team has reportedly already fed Department of Education data into an AI system, and Thomas Shedd, a former Tesla engineer recently appointed to the General Services Administration, has repeatedly spoken with staff about an AI strategy, mentioning using the technology to develop coding agents and analyze federal contracts.
No matter DOGE's goal, putting so much information in one place and under the control of a small group of people with little government experience has raised substantial security concerns. As one recently departed federal technology official wrote in draft testimony for lawmakers, which we obtained, 'DOGE is one romance scam away from a national security emergency.'
This Is What Happens When the DOGE Guys Take Over
By Michael Scherer, Ashley Parker, Matteo Wong and Shane Harris
They arrived casually dressed and extremely confident—a self-styled super force of bureaucratic disrupters, mostly young men with engineering backgrounds on a mission from the president of the United States, under the command of the world's wealthiest online troll.
On February 7, five Department of Government Efficiency representatives made it to the fourth floor of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau headquarters, where the executive suites are located. They were interrupted while trying the handles of locked office doors.
'Hey, can I help you?' asked an employee of the agency that was soon to be forced into bureaucratic limbo. The DOGE crew offered no clear answer.
What to Read Next
DOGE and new Trump appointees' access to federal data and computer systems is growing in both breadth and depth. Defense technologies, Americans' sensitive personal and health data, dangerous biological research, and more are in reach. Within at least one agency, USAID, they have achieved 'God mode,' according to an employee in senior leadership—meaning Elon Musk's team has 'total control over systems that Americans working in conflict zones rely on, the ability to see and manipulate financial systems that have historically awarded tens of billions of dollars, and perhaps much more,' Charlie Warzel, Ian Bogost, and I reported this week. With this level of control, the USAID staffer feared, DOGE could terminate federal workers in 'a conflict zone like Ukraine, Sudan, or Ethiopia.'
In the coming weeks, we reported, 'the team is expected to enter IT systems at the CDC and Federal Aviation Administration.' Just how far Musk and his team can go is uncertain; they face various lawsuits, which have thus far had varying success. The team may be trying to improve the government's inner workings, as is its stated purpose. 'But in the offices where the team is reaching internal IT systems,' Charlie, Ian, and I wrote, 'some are beginning to worry that [Musk] might prefer to destroy' the government, 'to take it over, or just to loot its vaults for himself.'

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Tesla's Texas robotaxi launch: Expect it to be 'low-key'
Tesla's Texas robotaxi launch: Expect it to be 'low-key'

Yahoo

time24 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

Tesla's Texas robotaxi launch: Expect it to be 'low-key'

Tesla's (TSLA) robotaxi will tentatively launch in Austin, Texas, on June 22, according to CEO Elon Musk. CFRA analyst Garrett Nelson thinks this launch will be more of a "low-key" event compared to its big "Cybercab" debut last year. IN the video above, you can hear more of Nelson's take on the launch and why he thinks the stock has some near-term headwinds. To watch more expert insights and analysis on the latest market action, check out more Catalysts here. What are you expecting from this robo taxi launch? Yeah, thanks for having me. We think it's going to be a lot more low-key than the robo taxi day that Tesla held in Los Angeles last October, which was on a Hollywood movie set, very different type of production. I think this is going to be much more low-key. October or sorry, June 22nd is a Sunday, which is very unusual to have a major product launch, but I don't think that's a coincidence. So, I think it's, you know, expectations are high coming into this, but I think the key is really what happens in the three to six months following this event. So, initially, it's only going to be maybe a dozen or so model wise with the most recent version of full self-driving installed on them, operating in a geofenced area of Austin with the vehicle being supervised remotely as well. So, I think a lot of people are going to say, well, why is this so special? You know, what is Tesla doing here that Waymo isn't already doing with the robo taxis that they are operating in Austin. And I think people are going to look at the size of the geofenced area. Waymos is 37 square miles. How quickly they can expand that geofenced area, and then how quickly they can increase the number of vehicles on the roads and also then expand to other markets. What is the time framing for that scaling that would lead you to then raise your own rating and expectations on the stock? Well, Elon Musk thinks they can have maybe a thousand or so on the road by the end of this summer. It seems a bit optimistic, but we'll see. Our main concerns with this stock right now are number one valuation, given this really dramatic rebound since their first quarter earnings release in April. The stock is up, you know, about 100 points from when they reported earnings, only six or seven weeks ago. So, it's valuation at north of 110 times our EPS estimate for next year, but also ongoing market share losses across their three major markets of China, Europe, and the US. That has continued. You look at the China data, Tesla sales were down 15% in May. Meanwhile, total EV sales were up 38% in China. So, in Europe and the US, it's kind of a similar story. So, those near-term issues really concern us here. We know we're right around the corner from their second quarter deliveries report, which will happen in about three weeks. I don't think that's going to be a great release. And so there's some major near-term challenges and valuation being an issue for us also. In addition to the Big Beautiful Bill, in which Tesla will be losing their tax credits, not only on EVs, but for energy storage and solar products as well.

Elon Musk's Tesla sues former Optimus robot engineer for allegedly stealing trade secrets
Elon Musk's Tesla sues former Optimus robot engineer for allegedly stealing trade secrets

New York Post

time24 minutes ago

  • New York Post

Elon Musk's Tesla sues former Optimus robot engineer for allegedly stealing trade secrets

Elon Musk's Tesla is suing one of its former engineers for allegedly stealing trade secrets related to its highly anticipated Optimus humanoid robot. The defendant is Zhongjie 'Jay' Li, who cofounded the humanoid robot startup Proception Inc. after working at Tesla from Aug. 2022 to Sept. 2024, according to the complaint filed in San Francisco federal court on Wednesday. The lawsuit alleges Li, who worked on 'advanced robotic hand sensors—and was entrusted with some of the most sensitive technical data in the program,' downloaded Optimus files onto two smartphones. 3 A former engineer is accused of using Optimus technology to create his own startup. REUTERS Li started Proception less than a week after leaving Tesla and the startup claimed to have built humanoid robot hands with a 'striking resemblance' to Optimus just five months later. 'Rather than build through legitimate innovation, trial, and technical rigor, Defendants took a shortcut: theft,' the lawsuit says. 'They misappropriated Tesla's most sensitive materials, sidestepped the laborious process of development, and launched a company based not on original discovery, but on stolen work.' Tesla is seeking unspecified 'compensatory and exemplary damages' against Li, as well an order barring Li and his associates from using any of the company's trade secrets. The company also requested a jury trial in the case. Proception is based in Palo Alto, Calif., according to its LinkedIn page. Li lists himself as founder and CEO of the startup, which he says is 'tackling one of the most challenging and exciting humanoid projects of our time.' Li did not immediately return a request for comment on the lawsuit. In the suit, Tesla's attorneys said that successfully building an advanced robotic hand is 'among the most challenging' tasks in robotics. 3 Elon Musk has said Optimus is key to Tesla's future. AP 'Although Tesla does not disclose the precise year-over-year investments in Optimus, the research and development costs are in the billions of dollars,' the lawsuit says. 'Such an ambitious project demands unparalleled expertise and substantial time and financial commitment to achieve even incremental progress.' Musk has repeatedly described Tesla's Optimus robot as key to the company's long-term health and growth. The billionaire specifically touted Optimus's advanced robotic hand during the company's earnings call in January. 3 The Optimus humanoid robot is still in production at Tesla. Stanislav Kogiku/SOPA Images/Shutterstock 'My prediction long-term is that Optimus will be overwhelmingly the value of the company,' Musk said at the time. Bloomberg was first to report on the lawsuit.

Trump job approval at 38 percent in new survey
Trump job approval at 38 percent in new survey

The Hill

time34 minutes ago

  • The Hill

Trump job approval at 38 percent in new survey

President Trump's approval rating dipped to 38 percent, the lowest of his second term, according to the latest poll from Quinnipiac University. In the June poll, 38 percent of registered voters approved of the way Trump is doing his job, while 54 percent disapproved. The results mark the first time Trump's numbers dipped below 40-percent threshold since returning to office in January — when he enjoyed an all-time high job approval rating of 46 percent. In February, that number slumped to 45 percent; in March, to 42 percent; and in April, to 41 percent. Quinnipiac University did not release polling data in May. Immigration remains the president's best issue, with 43 percent approval and 54 percent disapproval ratings. But the numbers have declined slightly from April, when 45 percent approved and 50 percent disapproved of his handling of immigration. On the issue of deportations, 40 percent approved and 56 percent disapproved — a slightly downward turn from April, when 42 percent approved and 53 percent disapproved. Trump's approval is 40 percent on the economy, 38 percent on trade, 37 percent on universities, 35 percent on the Israel-Hamas conflict and 34 percent on the Russia-Ukraine war. 'As the Russia – Ukraine war grinds through its third year, Americans make it clear they have little appetite for the way the Trump administration is handling the situation,' Quinnipiac University polling analyst Tim Malloy said in a statement. Polling averages maintained by Decision Desk HQ show Trump's job approval rating at 47 percent approval and 49.9 percent disapproval. A poll this week from YouGov/The Economist has Trump's approval among registered voters at 45 percent and his disapproval at 53 percent. The latest poll was conducted June 5-9, with 1,265 self-identified registered voters. The margin of error is 2.8 percentage points.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store