Radha Iyengar Plumb

Radha Iyengar Plumb is an American government official who served as the chief digital and artificial intelligence officer in the U.S. Department of Defense. She previously served as Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment. She was confirmed for that position by the U.S. Senate on April 18, 2023 and assumed office later that month.^[1][2][3][4]

Radha Iyengar Plumb
Official portrait, 2023
Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment
In office April 21, 2023 – April 8, 2024
President	Joe Biden
Preceded by	Alan Shaffer
Personal details
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	John F. Plumb
Education	Massachusetts Institute of Technology (BS) Princeton University (MS), (PhD)

She was formerly the chief of staff to the Deputy Secretary of Defense.^[5]

Education

Plumb has a Ph.D. and MS in Economics from Princeton University and a BS from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.^[3]

Career

Plumb started her career as an assistant professor at the London School of Economics. She then became the director of research and insights for trust and safety at Google. She also worked as the global head of policy analysis at Facebook. She has been a senior economist at RAND Corporation and has also held senior staff positions at the Department of Defense, Department of Energy, and the White House National Security Council. She co-hosted the Bombshell podcast for several years along with Erin Simpson and Loren DeJonge Schulman.

Biden administration nomination

On June 15, 2022, President Joe Biden nominated Plumb to be deputy undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment.^[3] Hearings were held before the Senate Armed Services Committee on July 28, 2022. During that hearing, Senator Dan Sullivan placed a hold on Plumb's nomination over a dispute with the Biden administration over a mining project in his home state of Alaska.^[6] The committee favorably reported Plumb's nomination to the Senate floor on September 28, 2022. Plumb's nomination expired at the end of the year and was returned to President Biden on January 3, 2023.^[7]

Plumb was renominated the same day. The committee favorably reported Plumb's nomination to the Senate floor on February 9, 2023.^[8]

But later in February, Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Alabama, placed a hold on all Defense Department nominations and general officer promotions because he disagrees with new department policies that help troops travel for abortion if they serve in states that heavily restrict abortion.^[9]

On April 17, 2023, the United States Senate invoked cloture on her nomination by a 61–26 vote.^[10] On April 18, 2023, her nomination was confirmed by a 68–30 vote.^[11]

In April 2024, Plumb resigned her deputy undersecretary position to assume the role of chief digital and artificial intelligence officer.^[12]

Personal life

Plumb is married to John F. Plumb, who as of 2023 serves in another post within the United States Department of Defense.