Biography

Linda Lourie is the Founder and Principal of the Washington Circle Advisory Group, LLC, a Senior Advisor with WestExec Advisors, and a Consultant with the Department of Defense’s new Office of Strategic Capital, among other affiliations. She specializes in providing strategic advice to national interest focused Fortune 500 companies, dual-use startups, hedge funds, and VCs to help navigate Washington risks, including with respect to inbound and outbound investments, China/Russia sanctions and export controls, and the Australia-UK-U.S. security pact (AUKUS).

Until recently, Linda was the Assistant Director for Research and Technology Security in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). In this role, she served as the Assistant Secretary equivalent member for Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS); advised on foreign investments in emerging and foundational technology, particularly from China; developed a novel public-private cap table hygiene financing scheme to replace Chinese investments in U.S. startups with U.S. private capital; and led efforts on innovation and information sharing for AUKUS.

Linda previously served as the Associate General Counsel in the U.S. Department of Defense; the General Counsel of the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU); the first Director for Rule of Law at the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan; in the Obama White House on the Presidential Task Force on Export Control Reform; as the Deputy General Counsel for Intellectual Property at the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) in Baghdad, Iraq; the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office; the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in Geneva, Switzerland; private law firms; and early in her career was a curator at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

Linda received her A.B. cum laude in Fine Arts from Harvard University, her M.A. from New York University’s Institute of Fine Arts in Medieval Islamic Art History, and her J.D. from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law. She is a Life Member of the Council on Foreign Relations, an ex-officio member of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, and has received numerous awards for her government service, including the Secretary of Defense Medal for Exceptional Civilian Service and the Secretary of Defense Medal for Civilian Career Service.