# David Sacks

> David Sacks is a South African-born Silicon Valley operator turned venture capitalist and political power broker. He was PayPal's first product leader and COO, founded and sold Yammer to Microsoft for $1.2 billion, rescued Zenefits as interim CEO, and co-founded Craft Ventures, which manages billions in assets. He is a co-host of the chart-topping All-In podcast and served as the first White House AI and Crypto Czar in the second Trump administration before stepping aside in March 2026.

- **Role:** General Partner at Craft Ventures
- **Organizations:** Craft Ventures, All-In Podcast, PayPal (former), Yammer (former), Zenefits (former), Geni.com (former), Glue, The White House (former, AI & Crypto Czar)
- **From:** Cape Town, South Africa
- **Nationality:** South African-American
- **Education:** High school, Memphis University School, B.A. in Economics, Stanford University, J.D., University of Chicago Law School
- **Known for:** First product leader and COO of PayPal, member of the PayPal Mafia, Founded and sold Yammer to Microsoft for $1.2 billion, Produced Thank You for Smoking, nominated for two Golden Globes

## Career timeline

- **1998-1999** — Management consultant at McKinsey & Company
- **1999** — Joined Confinity (soon PayPal) as inaugural product leader, later became COO
- **2002** — PayPal IPO in February; eBay acquired PayPal for $1.5 billion in October
- **2005-2006** — Produced and financed the satire Thank You for Smoking (two Golden Globe nominations)
- **2006** — Founded genealogy site Geni.com
- **2008** — Co-founded Yammer, an enterprise social network spun out of Geni
- **2012** — Microsoft acquired Yammer for $1.2 billion
- **2016** — Became interim CEO of Zenefits during a regulatory crisis
- **2017** — Co-founded Craft Ventures with an initial $350 million fund
- **2021** — Launched podcast platform Callin (acquired by Rumble in 2023); co-founded Glue
- **2020-present** — Co-host of the All-In podcast with Chamath Palihapitiya, Jason Calacanis, and David Friedberg
- **2025** — Sworn in as White House AI and Crypto Czar in the Trump administration
- **2026** — Concluded czar role in March; joined President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology

## Achievements

- First product leader and COO of PayPal, member of the PayPal Mafia
- Founded and sold Yammer to Microsoft for $1.2 billion
- Produced Thank You for Smoking, nominated for two Golden Globes
- Co-founded Craft Ventures, growing it to roughly $3.3 billion in assets under management
- Early angel investor in Facebook, Uber, SpaceX, Palantir, and Airbnb
- Turned around Zenefits as interim CEO during a regulatory crisis
- Co-host of the chart-topping All-In podcast
- First-ever White House AI and Crypto Czar

## Latest updates

- **2026-03** — Concluded his tenure as White House AI and Crypto Czar after using his 130 days as a special government employee, transitioning to the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.
- **2025-12** — Faced scrutiny in NPR and New York Times reporting over potential conflicts of interest tied to his AI investments while serving in government.
- **2025-12** — Craft Ventures opened an Austin, Texas office.

## Links

- Website: https://www.craftventures.com/team/david-sacks
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/DavidSacks
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@allin

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/david-sacks
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-06-04