Former SEC Chair Gary Gensler to Go Back to School to Teach AI

After four years of wrestling with crypto regulations and market oversight, Gary Gensler is heading back to the classroom—this time to tackle artificial intelligence.

The former SEC Chair is returning to MIT Sloan School of Management to focus on AI research and policy in a move that would bridge his Wall Street smarts and regulatory experience with cutting-edge tech, according to a statement on Monday.

Gensler's trajectory—from Goldman Sachs to SEC Chair to MIT—grants him influence at a time when U.S. tech dominance faces dual pressures from regulatory fragmentation and foreign competitors such as China’s DeepSeek.

Before joining the SEC, he taught blockchain technology at MIT in 2018, giving him insight into both the technology's potential and its risks. Roughly five years ago, Gensler also published research on systemic financial risks associated with artificial intelligence.

Departing SEC Chair Gary Gensler Slams Crypto Again—But Says Bitcoin Is Different

As crypto’s sheriff prepares to hang up his spurs, SEC Chair Gary Gensler took the opportunity Tuesday to separate Bitcoin from the rest of the herd, which he says still has to prove it has any true value. In an appearance on CNBC's “Squawk Box,” Gensler said that he believes Bitcoin is still a risky bet, but the leading cryptocurrency could morph into a different type of asset as financial market participants worldwide trade Bitcoin in a similar fashion to precious metals like gold. “I think t...

While Gensler's new role as an academic may not be as decisive as his previous post at the SEC, it will likely be influential, given MIT's partnerships with U.S. tech firms and policymakers.

The appointment follows his contentious tenure as SEC Chair, where he led oversight of the $120 trillion U.S. capital markets and established landmark crypto regulations under the Biden administration.

Gensler will co-direct the FinTech AI @CSAIL initiative from MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory alongside Professor Andrew W. Lo, where member companies will work with MIT researchers to explore new AI technologies in finance.

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From crypto to AI

During his SEC tenure, Gensler shaped crypto policy through enforcement rather than new rulemaking stemming from Congress. Under his leadership, the federal agency brought over 125 actions against major crypto firms, earning him the "crypto villain" moniker.

Despite this, it was also under Gensler’s reign that crypto ETF approvals in 2024 came to light, opening up exposure to investors through regulated instruments.

Nobel laureate Simon Johnson, who will be with Gensler at MIT, noted that they will co-teach a new course, engaging students on a range of issues "of great importance to the global economy."

It remains to be seen where, how, and if that research translates to practical governance frameworks. However, that hasn't stopped some from within the crypto community from criticizing the move.

"As an MIT Sloan graduate, [I'm] incredibly embarrassed and disappointed to see them rehire Gensler," Uniswap Foundation's Executive Director and Co-Founder, Devin Walsh, tweeted Tuesday.

"A waste of time, tuition funds, and energy for any student hoping to study and support new and innovative technologies," she said.

Edited by Sebastian Sinclair