Uploaded April 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Jennifer Pahlka believes America's bureaucratic dysfunction is deeply rooted in outdated processes and misaligned incentives. As the founder of Code for America and co-founder of the United States Digital Service, she has witnessed firsthand how government struggles to adapt to the digital age, often trapped in rigid procedures and disconnected from the real-world impact of its policies. Disruption is clearly needed, she says—but can it be done in a way that avoids the chaos of DOGE?
Tyler and Jennifer discuss all this and more, including why Congress has become increasingly passive, how she’d go about reforming government programs, whether there should be less accountability in government, how AGI will change things, whether the US should have public-sector unions, what Singapore's effectiveness reveals about the trade-offs of technocratic governance, how AI might fundamentally transform national sovereignty, what her experience in the gaming industry taught her about reimagining systems, which American states are the best-governed, the best fictional depictions of bureaucracy, how she’d improve New York City’s governance, her current work at the Niskanen Center, and more.
Recorded March 4th, 2025
Transcript and links: conversationswithtyler.com/episodes/jennifer-pahlka
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Timestamps
00:00:00 - On reforming government
00:06:02 - On whether DOGE is the best we can do
00:23:22 - On preparing government for AGI
00:27:08 - On public-sector unions
00:31:24 - On the UK
00:35:50 - On 50-state capacity
00:42:36 - On AI and national sovereignty
00:48:01 - On working in gaming
00:51:38 - On the best-run state
Jennifer Pahlka believes America's bureaucratic dysfunction is deeply rooted in outdated processes and misaligned incentives. As the founder of Code for America and co-founder of the United States Digital Service, she has witnessed firsthand how government struggles to adapt to the digital age, often trapped in rigid procedures and disconnected from the real-world impact of its policies. Disruption is clearly needed, she says—but can it be done in a way that avoids the chaos of DOGE?
Tyler and Jennifer discuss all this and more, including why Congress has become increasingly passive, how she’d go about reforming government programs, whether there should be less accountability in government, how AGI will change things, whether the US should have public-sector unions, what Singapore's effectiveness reveals about the trade-offs of technocratic governance, how AI might fundamentally transform national sovereignty, what her experience in the gaming industry taught her about reimagining systems, which American states are the best-governed, the best fictional depictions of bureaucracy, how she’d improve New York City’s governance, her current work at the Niskanen Center, and more.
Recorded March 4th, 2025
Transcript and links: conversationswithtyler.com/episodes/jennifer-pahlka
Stay connected:
Follow us on X, IG, and Facebook: @cowenconvos
twitter.com/cowenconvos
facebook.com/cowenconvos
instagram.com/cowenconvos
Join us on Discord: discord.gg/JAVWP7vTxt
conversationswithtyler.com
mercatus.org
Timestamps
00:00:00 - On reforming government
00:06:02 - On whether DOGE is the best we can do
00:23:22 - On preparing government for AGI
00:27:08 - On public-sector unions
00:31:24 - On the UK
00:35:50 - On 50-state capacity
00:42:36 - On AI and national sovereignty
00:48:01 - On working in gaming
00:51:38 - On the best-run state
