Gina Raimondo

Former US Commerce Secretary who built the US AI Safety Institute and AI chip export controls, and who now leads RAISE US warning that AI could hollow out entry-level work and leave millions of workers behind.

Roles

4 Jan 2011 – 6 Jan 2015General Treasurer, State of Rhode IslandSource →
6 Jan 2015 – 2 Mar 2021Governor, State of Rhode IslandSource →
3 Mar 2021 – 20 Jan 2025Secretary of Commerce, United States Department of CommerceStood up the US AI Safety Institute at NIST and led semiconductor and AI export controls.Source →
Jan 2025 – presentDistinguished Fellow, Council on Foreign RelationsCo-chairs a CFR task force on economic security.Source →
Jun 2026 – presentCo-Chair and CEO, RAISE USNonpartisan workforce-transition organisation launched 25 June 2026 with former Indiana governor Eric Holcomb.Source →

On the record

25 Jun 2026 · Interview · Semafor
I am worried that we have to be purposeful and intentional to have a plan for America's workforce.
Co-Chair and CEO, RAISE US at the time
Raimondo launches AI project with backing of tech giants →
25 Jun 2026 · Statement · RAISE US
If we build the best AI systems in the world and leave millions of Americans behind, we won't have won anything; we'll have automated our own decline.
Co-Chair and CEO, RAISE US at the time
Launch statement for RAISE US, which aims to raise $1 billion for AI workforce transition.
Gina Raimondo and Eric Holcomb Launch RAISE US, Uniting the Nation's Leading Employers and Bipartisan Governors Behind American Workers →
13 Aug 2025 · Interview · Council on Foreign Relations
If AI is going to get rid of entry-level jobs for lawyers, accountants, actuaries, and sales people, how is anyone going to learn to be great at something? To be a great negotiator, you've got to start somewhere and you're going to make a lot of mistakes. So I do worry about that.
Distinguished Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations at the time
How I Got My Career in Foreign Policy: Gina Raimondo →
20 Nov 2024 · Speech · Inaugural convening of the International Network of AI Safety Institutes, San Francisco
AI is a technology like no other in human history. Advancing AI is the right thing to do, but advancing as quickly as possible, just because we can, without thinking of the consequences, isn't the smart thing to do.
Secretary of Commerce, United States Department of Commerce at the time
Same speech also carried "We can't release models that are going to endanger people."
Why the U.S. Launched an International Network of AI Safety Institutes →