OpenAI has reportedly hired Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s daughter Jessica Schumer for a top policy job as Silicon Valley increasingly works to shore up ties with Democrats ahead of November’s midterm elections.
Jessica Schumer, Amazon’s former top public-policy official in New York, is joining OpenAI to handle the company’s government outreach and partnerships in Northeastern states, Axios reported, citing a spokesperson for the AI giant.
The Harvard and Yale-educated Schumer brings deep ties to Democratic politics and government to OpenAI, which is rapidly expanding its operations in Washington, DC, and state capitals as lawmakers wrestle with how to regulate the booming industry.
Before joining Amazon in 2020, Schumer’s résumé included serving in the Obama White House as chief of staff of the Council of Economic Advisers and working as policy director for Tim Kaine during Hillary Clinton’s unsuccessful 2016 presidential campaign.
OpenAI’s hiring of Jessica Schumer could draw scrutiny because her father, a Dem, helped lead the Senate’s push to develop federal AI policy, including a series of bipartisan forums that culminated in a policy roadmap.
Her younger sister Alison Schumer has also built a career in tech, working at Facebook and Instagram before moving to Airbnb and later returning to Facebook.
Her roles have included policy and communications at Instagram, public affairs at Airbnb and product marketing at Facebook.
Jessica Schumer’s hiring comes as Big Tech companies that aggressively courted President Trump after his return to the White House increasingly hedge their bets ahead of an election that could hand Democrats control of the House.
OpenAI itself has pursued what appears to be a bipartisan strategy.
It also brought aboard Caulder Harvill-Childs to handle policy and partnerships in the Southeast. Harvill-Childs, who most recently worked in public policy at Meta, previously served under Georgia House Speaker Jon Burns, a Republican.
Other tech companies have made similar moves as the prospect of a Democratic-controlled House raises the possibility of congressional investigations, subpoenas and hearings.
Meta, whose CEO Mark Zuckerberg cultivated a closer relationship with Trump following his 2024 election victory, has poured millions into groups aligned with both parties.
The tech giant gave $5 million apiece to Democratic-aligned House Majority Forward and Majority Forward, while handing the same amounts to GOP-aligned American Action Network and One Nation, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The company previously contributed $10 million to a Trump-aligned political committee.
Companies including Meta and Palantir have meanwhile been preparing for the possibility that a Democratic House could launch investigations into corporations with close ties to Trump, according to the Journal.
Companies are also consulting lawyers and making internal preparations for potential congressional inquiries, the Journal reported.
The preparations come as Democrats need a net gain of just three seats to seize the House and gain control of committees with subpoena authority.
Artificial intelligence companies and their wealthy backers have been pouring tens of millions of dollars into congressional races — including Democratic primaries — as the industry seeks to shape emerging AI policy.
Leading the Future, a pro-AI super PAC backed by tech heavyweights including OpenAI co-founder Greg Brockman, Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale and venture capitalist Ron Conway, have amassed tens of millions of dollars to influence congressional races.
The group has backed Democrats including Reps. Ritchie Torres of New York, Rob Menendez of New Jersey and Val Hoyle of Oregon, while supporting Republicans in other races.
Other AI-linked groups have spent millions supporting candidates in both parties, a sign that Silicon Valley is seeking influence on both sides of the aisle.
Prediction-market giant Kalshi has taken a similarly approach.
Donald Trump Jr. serves as a strategic adviser to the company. This year, Kalshi hired John Bivona, a former Biden administration official who previously served as deputy national political director of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, to lead its federal government relations operation.
It later added veteran Obama strategist Stephanie Cutter as a policy adviser.
The Post has sought comment from Chuck Schumer, Jessica Schumer and OpenAI.
