US: Joe Gebbia, co-founder of Airbnb, has been appointed by the White House to oversee the design of the government’s online footprint.
US president Donald Trump has appointed Gebbia as the United States’ first chief design officer, a role created as part of the launch of the National Design Studio within the Executive Office of the President.
The new position was confirmed through an executive order signed last week. The initiative, called America by Design, has been established to address the way federal services are designed and delivered. The government says the focus will be on improving the usability and consistency of the government’s digital presence, from websites and forms to broader systems that affect how citizens access services. The National Design Studio says it will work with agencies across government to “streamline interfaces and reduce duplication, with the goal of creating a simpler, more coherent experience for the public”.
Gebbia said: “My directive is to update today’s government services to be as satisfying to use as the Apple Store: beautifully designed, great user experience, run on modern software. An experience that projects a level of excellence for our nation, and makes life less complicated for everyday Americans.”
He thanked Trump for supporting the new initiative and asked people interested in joining the studio to reach out with a link to their work.
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Prior to this appointment, Gebbia also worked with DOGE to modernise the Office of Personnel Management’s mostly paper-based retirement processing.
The design executive order was based on the idea that the US government has “lagged behind in usability and aesthetics” of its digital services. Its signing was followed by the launch of at least two websites to support the effort: americabydesign.gov and ndstudio.gov.
In April this year, Gebbia stepped down from Airbnb.org’s board amid public scrutiny over political affiliations and refugee support initiatives.
Highlights:
• Joe Gebbia, co-founder of Airbnb, has been appointed by the White House to oversee the design of the US government’s online footprint
• He has been named as the United States’ first chief design officer, a role created as part of the launch of the National Design Studio
• Gebbia said: “My directive is to update today’s government services to be as satisfying to use as the Apple Store: beautifully designed, great user experience, run on modern software. An experience that projects a level of excellence for our nation, and makes life less complicated for everyday Americans.”
