EXCLUSIVE — One of former President Joe Biden’s top tech advisors used a little-known law to hire staff that ultimately pushed for policies supported by Anthropic, a major artificial intelligence firm. Both that advisor and the staff they brought on had ties to a nonprofit organization funded by a major investor in Anthropic, an arrangement some have characterized as a conflict of interest.

Jason Matheny, the founding director of Georgetown University’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology, served in several senior roles within the Biden White House between March 2021 and June 2022. During this period, documents obtained via the Freedom of Information Act show that Matheny hired Benjamin Buchanan, then a top staffer at CSET, using the Intergovernmental Personnel Act and tasked him with helping the administration craft its AI policies.