Nonprofit Tied to SpaceXAI Lawyer Pays Salaries for Federal Design Staff

At least two members of the National Design Studio (NDS), the Trump administration office tasked with redesigning federal websites, are employed by a private nonprofit instead of the government, according to a WIRED investigation published Oct. 7. Documents reviewed by the outlet show the nonprofit, America by Design Foundation, appears to be run by James Burnham, a former Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) member who is now general counsel at SpaceXAI, the artificial intelligence company founded by Elon Musk.

What is the National Design Studio?

The White House created the NDS in August 2025 as part of a broader "America by Design" initiative, according to an executive order cited by WIRED. The office is nested inside the Executive Office of the President and is led by Airbnb cofounder and former DOGE member Joe Gebbia, now the U.S. chief design officer. NDS has built sites including TrumpRx and RealFood.gov, WIRED reports.

Who is paying NDS staff?

Two NDS members, Amittai Groot and John Cafazza, are on loan to the government while actually employed by the America by Design Foundation, per documents WIRED reviewed. WIRED reports it is not clear who funds the foundation or how much money it holds.

What is the America by Design Foundation?

WIRED identifies Burnham as the person who appears to run the nonprofit. Burnham previously worked inside DOGE before moving to SpaceXAI, Musk's AI space company, as general counsel. The foundation's funding sources and finances were not disclosed in material WIRED reviewed.

How are these employees entering government?

NDS is using the Intergovernment Personnel Act (IPA), a law that lets specialists from universities and nonprofits work in government for up to two years, WIRED reports. That mirrors how many DOGE operatives entered as "special government employees," a designation allowing up to 120 days of federal work annually without the standard hiring process or full transparency disclosures, according to WIRED.

Why does this raise concerns?

"The fact that we wouldn't know who is employing and paying these people is troubling in any context," said Don Moynihan, a public policy professor at the University of Michigan, per WIRED. "Especially in the context where there is a back-and-forth movement from the private sector to the public sector."

Moynihan's comment points to the broader question WIRED raises: whether NDS, like DOGE before it, is using loopholes to bring favored staff into government while limiting public visibility into who is doing the work and who is funding it.

Who else has moved between DOGE and NDS?

Several other former DOGE members have worked with NDS, according to WIRED. Edward Coristine, who joined DOGE's early core at age 19, now serves as the group's head of engineering. Akash Bobba, an engineer who worked across multiple agencies, and Zachary Terrell, chief technology officer at the Department of Health and Human Services, have also moved between the two efforts, WIRED reports.

Key figures

• August 2025: White House launch date for the National Design Studio, per the executive order WIRED cites.
• 120 days: Annual cap for "special government employee" status used by many DOGE staffers, according to WIRED.
• 2 years: Maximum term allowed under the Intergovernment Personnel Act, the law WIRED says NDS is using to bring in outside staff.

WIRED's reporting does not identify the foundation's funders or total assets. The full investigation is available at WIRED.