The Griswold Center for Economic Policy Studies (GCEPS) welcomes Michael R. ‘Mike’ Schmidt, former director of the CHIPS Program Office (CPO) at the US Department of Commerce, as a distinguished visitor starting on July 1, 2025.

Drawing from his experience leading the CPO, Schmidt’s research at Princeton will articulate a framework for industrial policy interventions.

Mike Schmidt

From September 2022 to January 2025, Mike Schmidt served as the inaugural director of the CPO, where he led the implementation of a $39 billion federal initiative to incentivize semiconductor manufacturing in the United States. Under his leadership, the office executed 20 final award agreements totaling $34 billion, unlocking more than $450 billion in total investment in U.S. chip production.

Before joining the commerce department, Schmidt led the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s implementation of the expanded Child Tax Credit under the American Rescue Plan, which delivered monthly payments to over 37 million families and lifted more than 3 million children out of poverty. He previously served as commissioner of the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance, overseeing the state’s tax system and the collection of more than $100 billion in annual revenue; and as deputy secretary for economic development for the State of New York, where he directed policy and operations across 12 state agencies and authorities. Earlier in his career, Schmidt held roles in the Office of Domestic Finance at the U.S. Department of the Treasury, and as a financial analyst at the Yale Investments Office. He holds a BA in history and a JD, both from Yale University.