During his rapid rise, Mayor Zohran Mamdani showcased his mastery of social media, turning the medium into a political agent of mass reach and vowing to use technology to fuel his plans for New York City.
On Tuesday, the mayor will announce that he has lured someone with far more technological heft to join his administration: Lisa Gelobter, a computer scientist who helped shape the modern web by leading the team that developed the animation technology used to create GIFs.
Ms. Gelobter, an entrepreneur, was also on the launch team for the streaming service Hulu and founded tEQuitable, a company that uses technology to make workplaces more equitable.
As the chief technology officer and commissioner of the Office of Technology and Innovation, she will oversee cybersecurity, data management and the city’s technology infrastructure, and she will aim to improve digital access to essential services for New Yorkers.
“I’m deeply honored to be appointed by Mayor Mamdani at a moment when technology is reshaping nearly every aspect of civic life,” Ms. Gelobter said in a statement. “Technology impacts how people experience government every day, from accessing services to trusting that systems work fairly and responsibly.”
At 34 years old, Mr. Mamdani is New York City’s first digitally native mayor, and he has continued to embrace social media to communicate with the public.
The appointment of Ms. Gelobter adds to Mr. Mamdani’s short but growing list of marquee hires, which includes Lina Khan, the former head of the Federal Trade Commission, to lead his transition; Jessica Tisch, whom he retained as police commissioner; and Julie Su, a former acting labor secretary in the Biden administration, as the first deputy mayor for economic justice.
“Lisa Gelobter’s decades-long career as a computer scientist, innovator, and entrepreneur has been defined by her commitment to leveraging technology for the public good,” Mr. Mamdani said in a statement. “I am honored that she will bring that same vision and leadership to City Hall.”
Ms. Gelobter, who also served as the chief digital service officer at the U.S. Department of Education for the Obama administration, is viewed as one of the most prominent Black women in the technology world. Her appointment could appease some Black leaders who have criticized Mr. Mamdani for not appointing a Black deputy mayor for the first time in decades.
Ms. Gelobter was the director of program management at Macromedia where she helped develop Shockwave into a web plug-in that allowed for video games and animation on the web, turning still images into moving GIFs — animated images known as a graphics interchange format.
In 2021, Ms. Gelobter told Forbes that the Shockwave plug-in helped “set the foundation” for the modern web. “It was the thing that made the web move and had the most significant impact in the U.S. from a technological perspective,” she told the magazine.
At the U.S. Department of Education, Ms. Gelobter created College Scorecard, a web app that helps students and their families evaluate prospective colleges. John B. King, Jr., the chancellor of the State University of New York, worked with Ms. Gelobter at the Education Department and praised her hire.
“No matter where she works,” Mr. King said in a statement, “Lisa brings a relentless belief in the ability of technology to uplift and empower people, to create a country where every person can access and afford an education, to create a tech industry where every person can deepen their skills and find a job, to create programs where every person can participate and get ahead.”
Jeffery C. Mays is a Times reporter covering politics with a focus on New York City Hall.
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