Billionaire investor Mark Cuban waded into the newest authorities tech shake-up on Saturday, providing assist on the social community Bluesky for newly laid-off federal employees whose job it was to make authorities tech work higher.
His message, which rapidly gained traction, urged the displaced engineers and designers to show the upheaval to their benefit.
“If you happen to labored for 18F and received fired, Group collectively to start out a consulting firm,” wrote Cuban. “It’s only a matter of time earlier than DOGE wants you to repair the mess they inevitably created. They must rent your organization as a contractor to repair it. However in your phrases. I’m glad to take a position and/or assist.”
Cuban’s provide got here after the federal government’s Basic Companies Administration (GSA) abruptly gutted its 18F expertise unit, which helps different authorities businesses construct, purchase, and share tech merchandise. Per Politico, the layoffs affected roughly 70 people who realized the information round 1 a.m. Japanese time on Saturday. Amongst different issues, the unit had reportedly constructed Login.gov, a safe and personal approach for the general public to entry companies at authorities businesses, together with Social Safety and the Division of Veterans Affairs.
The group itself has since described its members as “non-partisan civil servants,” posting an announcement that “18F has labored on a whole bunch of initiatives, all designed to make authorities expertise not simply environment friendly however efficient, and to economize for American taxpayers.”
The early-morning layoffs tie to a Trump administration directive to shrink the federal workforce and slash spending on the behest of Elon Musk’s Division of Authorities Effectivity (DOGE). The cuts weren’t a primary for 18F; in keeping with Politico, two dozen extra 18F workers had been laid off in February when GSA minimize probationary staffers.
These impacted within the wee hours of Saturday morning additionally obtained emails late Friday from DOGE with the topic line, “What did you do final week? Half II.”
Based on Politico, the emails — prompting workers to record their weekly accomplishments by Monday — had been broadly distributed throughout a number of businesses, together with the State Division, the IRS, and the NIH.
Within the wake of those new layoffs, Cuban’s proposal presents an intriguing chance: may the very employees pushed out of presidency assist reshape the way forward for civic tech on their very own phrases? As DOGE strikes to dismantle businesses, even Musk has acknowledged fallout tied to the pace with which his staff is transferring. On Wednesday, Musk shared that, “For instance, with USAID, one of many issues we by chance canceled — very briefly — was Ebola prevention.” (Public well being consultants have since stated the federal government’s assist has not been absolutely restored.)
The query now could be whether or not some proportion of the federal government’s rising variety of displaced former workers will seize the second, banding collectively to construct the startups that might sooner or later promote their experience again to the federal government. In that case, it will symbolize a putting twist within the administration’s efforts to shrink the general public workforce.
If Cuban has his approach, a minimum of one such unit, 18F, could discover itself inside a personal firm the federal government has no selection however to depend on. Certainly, that assertion supplied by the staff yesterday says they’re “nonetheless absorbing what has occurred” however that they “aren’t accomplished but.”
One other Bluesky consumer even has a branding concept for the startup, telling Cuban on Saturday, “Identify the brand new firm 18FU.”
