Eric Schmidt, former CEO of Google, denies allegations that his foundation paid White House science staffers.

Eric Schmidt, the former CEO and chairman of Google, denies a Politico report that his foundation paid the salaries of two White House science staffers.

Schmidt stated in an exclusive interview with CNBC Make It on Tuesday that working with the government legally and fairly always results in criticism.

Schmidt, who served as CEO of Google from 2001 to 2011, is ranked 66th in the world in terms of wealth with a net worth of $23.7 billion, according to Forbes. In an interview, he discussed his extensive experience working with the federal government, including his time as a member of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, his five years on the U.S. Department of Defense's Defense Innovation Advisory Board, and his role as chairman of the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence in 2018.

“You want people like me to do that,” he said.

On Monday, Politico published a report stating that Schmidt Futures, a nonprofit founded by Google co-founder Eric Schmidt, influenced the White House's Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) by temporarily paying the salaries of two OSTP employees. The OSTP is responsible for developing and implementing science- and tech-related policies and budgets, and advising the president on similarly related domestic and international affairs.

On Monday, Schmidt released a statement denying the report and outlining the specific errors in it.

The article's unsupported claim is that the department was unduly influenced, which was not the case.

Schmidt Futures has collaborated with OSTP in recent years and publicly recognized our role in private-public partnerships that promote talent development and scientific advancements for the benefit of society.

Over 25 years, the U.S. government and OSTP have utilized pooled philanthropic funding to maintain staffing across agencies, according to the report.

Schmidt stated that the criticism was a demonstration of why many well-intentioned individuals avoid collaborating with government agencies. "It's not worth the abuse," he said. "And in this case, the abuse is unfounded, and we will address it."

Politico reported that Schmidt Futures indirectly paid Marc Aidinoff, the current OSTP chief of staff, for six weeks and kept Tom Kalil, their chief innovation officer, on their payroll for four months, although he was supposed to be working as an unpaid consultant at the science office.

Schmidt has long sought to impact federal science policy, with his close ties to the Obama administration dating back to his time as Google's CEO. Politico reported that some of Schmidt's financial interests, such as the development of artificial intelligence and 5G technologies, align with the OSTP's responsibilities.

Politico sent the following statement to CNBC:

The story by Alex Thompson was based on ethical concerns raised by officials from the Office of Science and Technology Policy. Schmidt Futures and Mr. Schmidt were contacted before publication and given the chance to provide comment. We stand by our reporting.

Politico received a lengthy statement from an OSTP spokesperson defending the office's policies, while CNBC Make It did not receive an immediate response from the OSTP.

The spokesperson stated that the philanthropy has influence over policy outcomes, but the OSTP is aggressively working to protect the civil rights of all Americans impacted by algorithmic discrimination in AI and automated systems. Additionally, the OSTP is gathering data to ensure equitable delivery of government services and evaluating the mental health harms caused by social media platforms. The spokesperson expressed pride in the OSTP's work.

The Politico article's thesis has been updated with a statement from Schmidt Futures, which was released on Monday.

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