Former UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to advise Microsoft and Anthropic 

Rishi Sunak, who served as the UK’s prime minister from 2022 to 2024, has taken on senior advisory roles as Microsoft and Anthropic, The Guardian reports.  

Letters from the Parliament’s workplace of the Advisory Committee on Enterprise Appointments (Acoba) disclosing Sunak’s appointments revealed issues that the ex-Conservative PM’s privileged info might “grant Microsoft an unfair benefit.”  

Sunak has some historical past with Microsoft, which has a number of lively contracts with British authorities departments. In 2023, he unveiled a £2.5 billion cope with Microsoft to spend money on new knowledge facilities and coaching within the U.Ok..

Acoba additionally noted that “there’s a cheap concern that your appointment may very well be seen to supply unfair entry and affect throughout the U.Ok. authorities…given the continued debate about the right way to finest regulate AI, and at a time of intense debate and lobbying all over the world on what the strategy must be.” 

Sunak stated he would steer clear on advising on U.Ok. coverage issues, stick with high-level views on macro-economic and geopolitical traits, and keep away from lobbying. He stated he would divert his wage to the Richmond Mission, a charity he based together with his spouse earlier this yr. 

The previous PM additionally serves as a senior advisor to funding financial institution Goldman Sachs and speech author for companies like Bain Capital and Makena Capital. 

Sunak isn’t the primary British politician to tackle roles serving to Silicon Valley tech giants navigate governmental affairs. Sunak’s senior political adviser, Liam Sales space-Smith, can be on Anthropic’s payroll. And former Liberal Democrat Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg served as Meta’s president of worldwide affairs till January 2025.   

In america, the revolving door between Silicon Valley and the U.S. authorities is ever-active. At Meta, Clegg was changed by Joel Kaplan, George W. Bush’s former deputy chief of employees, in addition to Dustin Carmack, a former adviser to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, joined the agency’s coverage group in 2024. Microsoft’s present president of worldwide affairs is Lisa Monaco, former deputy lawyer normal beneath Joe Biden.