Tech

As our stories this week illustrate, there are plenty of examples of how Trump’s corruption is making our lives demonstrably worse — from mining and oil extraction pollution that threatens the health of our communities and monopolists’ tightening stranglehold on our pockets and labor to corrupt machinations attacking our increasingly fragile democracy.

Welcome back to Watchdog Weekly. We’ve been busy so far this hurricane season, tracking the literal and metaphorical storms gathering on the horizon as elite immunity spreads its shadow over the American landscape. Here are some of the projects we’ve been working on lately:

The Prospect has obtained a fundraising pitch and historical manifesto from inside the movement.

In March 2026, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report exploring the specific ways artificial intelligence (AI) can expose, misuse, or compromise personal data. The report from the Congressional watchdog also examines the guidance issued to federal agencies on AI use and implementation by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). In its note to congressional offices, GAO concluded that OMB’s guidance, which fails to adequately address 8 out of 10 privacy-related challenges, falls short. The report recommends that the Russell Vought-led office address the identified shortcomings.

As Trump’s popularity continues to plummet, the administration is doubling down on policies to line the pockets of sycophants and tech barons.

The narrative that Palantir’s billionaire CEO Alex Karp is or was ever a leftist is equally as inaccurate as it is dangerous.

Today, the Revolving Door Project and Demand Progress release Epsteiners, a catalogue of some of Epstein’s associates on both sides of the political spectrum.

Trump has filled the PCAST with billionaires, Big Tech, and crypto interests who will use the advisory board to further their own interests.

Billionaire Jeff Yass, a GOP mega-donor including $16 million to Trump super PAC MAGA Inc., has influence over education and TikTok policy.

Artificial intelligence and crypto are supercharging identity theft and financial fraud as the Trump administration is making sensitive personal data less secure.

Social media platforms should be held responsible for the legal consequences of design functions in the same way that other parties are held responsible for editorial decisions.

OpenAI, Google, Meta and xAI continue to rack up devastating scandals while the Trump administration idly watches.

How the cryptocurrency industry lied about it’s supposed innovation in order to escape basic government oversight.