US President Donald Trump has picked Airbnb co-founder Joe Gebbia to lead a sweeping redesign of the federal government’s digital services, according to two officials familiar with the decision.
Trump on Thursday signed an executive order creating a new National Design Studio, a White House-backed unit charged with improving the look, feel and usability of government websites and digital tools. Gebbia will serve as the administration’s first chief design officer, reporting directly to White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles.
“Government services should be simple, usable and designed for the people, not for bureaucrats,” Trump said in remarks before signing the order. “This is about efficiency and design — about making government work better and cost less.”
Gebbia, who joined the administration earlier this year, is now positioned to play a central role in Trump’s broader effort to remake the federal bureaucracy. “We’re going to apply the same principles of usability and aesthetics that transformed Airbnb to the public sector,” Gebbia said, according to the officials. “The goal is to make government digital services as intuitive as booking a place to stay.”
The appointment builds on Trump’s earlier restructuring drive, spearheaded by billionaire Elon Musk, a former adviser who led a first-wave initiative known as DOGE — short for Department of Government Efficiency. That program involved deep cuts, department closures and funding rollbacks aimed at reshaping Washington in line with Trump’s political objectives.
Former President Joe Biden had also pursued similar goals in 2021, directing agencies to modernize websites and services. But several projects were shelved after Trump returned to office, including the IRS’s free online tax filing tool. “That program is done,” former IRS Commissioner Billy Long said in July, before stepping down a month later.
Under Trump’s order, the National Design Studio will operate for three years before winding down. Its mission will be to help agencies reduce duplicative design costs and standardize the user experience across government platforms where citizens interact with federal services.
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With inputs from Reuters
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