Jacob Helberg, a 36-year-old former Palantir adviser, was confirmed as Under Secretary of State for Economic Affairs on October 7, 2025, following a 51-47 Senate vote. He is now leading US diplomatic efforts to secure AI supply chains, focusing on semiconductors and rare earth elements.
Helberg introduced the Pax Silica framework to build supply chains independent of Beijing. The initiative targets partnerships with Japan, South Korea, India, the UAE, and Australia to counter Chinese economic leverage in critical technology sectors.
The strategy gained urgency in April 2025 after China imposed export controls on seven essential elements. Helberg views this dependency as a national security vulnerability and aims to integrate energy security, semiconductor production, and advanced manufacturing.
Helberg previously served on the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission from 2022 to 2024 and worked at Google. He highlights India’s engineering talent as a key strategic asset for the US in the ongoing global AI competition.
