Tim Wu, a proponent of net neutrality, is departing the White House after almost two years of counselling Vice President Biden on technology and competition policy. This week, the Biden administration made the announcement of Wu’s resignation, stating that his last day at the National Economic Council will be January 4. In March 2021, Wu was appointed as the president’s special adviser. During the Obama administration, he had a comparable job.
Wu announced his departure from the federal government to The New York Times in order to spend more time with his family. Due to his journey between New York and Washington, DC due to his position at the White House, Wu’s young children were often separated from him. He remarked, “There are times when the strain on family is too much. “I’ve noticed a change in the equilibrium,” Wu revealed to The Times that he intends to return to Columbia University, where he taught law before serving in the most recent administration.
Wu is departing the White House just as the Biden administration is trying to control Big Tech. He was a co-author of the presidential order issued by the Federal Communications Commission last year that directed it to reinstate net neutrality and promised increased merger scrutiny. The Federal Trade Commission filed a lawsuit against Meta in July of this year to prevent the acquisition of VR developer Within. The government also took action earlier this month to block Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Both lawsuits are now in court and are anticipated to be challenging fights for the FTC.