FTC Chair Lina Khan adds to Office of Policy Planning: Olivier Sylvain, Meredith Whittaker, Amba Kak and Sarah Myers West to work with the agency’s chief technology officer and technologists in an informal AI Strategy Group; John Kwoka works with "competition economists and attorneys on an updated approach to merger review policies"; Sylvain from Fordham University is senior adviser on technology to the agency's chair; Kwoka is chief economist to the chair and joins from Northeastern University; Whittaker is senior adviser on AI to the chair and from New York University’s Tandon School of Engineering; Kak has similar job and also is from Tandon, as is Myers West, the commission's adviser on AI.
Northrop Grumman board elects Tom Wilson a corporate vice president and president, Space Systems, effective Jan. 1 and succeeding Blake Larson, who plans to retire on Feb. 4; Wilson is sector vice president and general manager, Strategic Space Systems division in Space Systems sector ... Digital Promise hires D’Andre Weaver as its first chief digital equity officer, also overseeing Verizon Innovative Learning Schools program; he was superintendent of Texas' DeSoto Independent School District.
Invariant adds Joel Richard, ex-office of Rep. Ted Deutch, D-Fla., as a director to work on issues including antitrust, intellectual property, emerging technologies and cybersecurity ... AMC Networks promotes Christina Spade to chief operating officer in addition to her current role as chief financial officer ... Viasat moves up Kevin Harkenrider, who has been executive vice president-global operations and chief operations officer, to chief operating officer.
AT&T veteran Michael Balmoris tweets that as "the calendar approaches 2022, I will launch my public affairs/PR consultancy -- Balmoris Group" ... Mercury hires Eric Hersey, ex-House Financial Committee communications director, as a managing director, with clients likely to include tech stakeholders ... TDI appoints to board David Coco of Austin, representing the central region for a four-year term that began Aug. 1, replacing Mark Seeger, and it names Angela Rogers, a former intern, as community relations manager.
Office of Rep. Marc Veasey, D-Texas, adds Nate Beltran, ex-Dewey Square, as tech policy adviser ... President Joe Biden plans to nominate Dimitri Kusnezov for undersecretary-science and technology, Department of Homeland Security; he's a theoretical physicist at the Department of Energy, working on emerging tech ... FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel announces that Amy Nathan, most recently senior counsel-Office of Economics and Analytics, is retiring.
Telecommunications Industry Association Senior Vice President-Chief Technology Officer Ken Koffman retires, effective at year-end; he helped start TIA QuEST Forum; TIA hires Mike Regan, ex-Aspect Software, as vice president-business performance, and he oversees the forum ... Squire Patton adds for communications practice Gardner Foster as of counsel and Nicole Sherwood, ex-Universal Service Administrative Co., as an associate ... AT&T promotes Megan Ketterer to director-communications and public relations, focusing on policy communications and media relations.
Patreon hires Ellen Satterwhite, ex-Glen Echo Group, as head-U.S. policy ... Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) appoints Laura Gomez-Martin, who has been Department of Information Technology deputy chief information security officer, as the state’s first chief privacy officer, and Patrick McLoughlin, ex-Johnson Mirmiran, as the first chief data officer ... House Judiciary Committee Chair Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., adds Marcus Robinson, ex-Brownstein Hyatt, as press secretary … PBS adds Maribel Lopez, ex-Twin Cities PBS, as head, PBS Digital Studios, effective Dec. 13.
Womble Bond adds Barlow Keener, who was at his own law firm, as a member of Womble's GCSolutions and Communications, Technology and Media Communications teams, working on transactions, "regulatory advocacy and compliance" and privacy and cyber compliance ... New Jersey Board of Public Utilities President Joseph Fiordaliso promotes Taryn Boland to chief of staff, replacing Christine Sadovy, who left to become Gov. Phil Murphy’s (D) cabinet secretary; Fiordaliso also promotes Robert Brabston to executive director-BPU, where Stacy Peterson rises to deputy executive director.
GPS Innovation Alliance Executive Director David Grossman departs; Wilkinson Barker Lead Policy Adviser Alex Damato becomes GPSIA acting executive director and remains at the law firm ... Ian Forbes from FCC Wireline Bureau returns to DLA Piper as an associate in the Telecom practice ... Invariant hires Kevin Walsh from IBM as a director and to advise clients on privacy, supply chain, semiconductors, cybersecurity and emerging technology policies ... Madison Square Garden Entertainment hires Jamal Haughton from Samsung Electronics America, also ex-Cablevision, as executive vice president-general counsel, effective Dec. 6 ... Contract manufacturer Kimball Electronics announces retirement of John Kahle as vice president-general counsel and chief compliance officer and secretary, effective Dec. 31, and promotes Associate General Counsel-Assistant Secretary Douglas Hass to succeed him.
NCTA Senior Vice President-Chief, Government Relations Joanna McIntosh retires, effective Dec. 31, to be replaced by Cliff Riccio, currently vice president-deputy chief, government relations; he will oversee federal and state legislative functions and move up to senior vice president-chief, government relations; state team continues to be led by Vice President-Senior Policy Counsel, State Government Relations Lisa Schoenthaler ... Blockchain Association hires Dave Grimaldi from Interactive Advertising Bureau as executive vice president and head-government relations.