White House taps Facebook alum to be first director of product

The White House has hired Josh Miller, a Facebook employee, to serve as its first director of product, a new position focusing on software like the "We The People" petition site. Miller, who announced the job move on his personal website, said that he expects to build off the White House’s existing digital efforts. “The White House has many digital products -- from WhiteHouse.gov to the We the People Petition site,” he said. “It’s a dream to be able to add to and improve this portfolio. “These initiatives represent amazing progress, and there's so much more good work to be done,” he continued. “I’m excited to apply what I’ve learned in the technology industry to the ideals of our democracy.”

The White House gig is not Miller's first in Washington. He interned in a Senate office while he was in college, but said he was frustrated by the office's limited technological capabilities. Miller dropped out of Princeton University to found Branch, a startup that focused on building tools for link sharing and fostering civil online conversation. The company was ultimately acquired by Facebook in 2014 and Branch’s team began working on projects at the social network.