Michael Nelson

Dr. Michael R. Nelson has worked at the forefront of Internet-related global public policy issues for over 30 years.

In 2015, he launched the Washington DC policy office for Cloudflare, a startup that has improved the performance and security of more than 13 million Web sites.

Prior to that, he was a Principal Technology Policy Strategist in Microsoft’s Technology Policy Group and a Senior Technology and Telecommunications Analyst with Bloomberg Government.

Since January 2009, Michael has been teaching courses and doing research on the future of the Internet, cyber-policy, technology policy, innovation policy, and e-government in the CCT Program at Georgetown University.

Previously, Michael served as Director of Internet Technology and Strategy at IBM where he managed a team helping define and implement IBM's Next Generation Internet strategy. Prior to that, Michael was Director for Technology Policy at the Federal Communications Commission and Special Assistant for Information Technology at the White House where he worked with Vice President Gore on issues relating telecommunications policy, information technology, encryption, electronic commerce, and information policy.

From 1988 to 1993, he served as a professional staff member for the Senate's Subcommittee on Science, Technology, and Space, chaired by then-Senator Gore and was the lead Senate staffer for the High-Performance Computing Act.

He serves on the boards of the Arthur C. Clarke Foundation and the European Institute and Communication section of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) where he is also a Fellow.

Mike was recognized as a Global Leader of Tomorrow of the World Economic Forum. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Caltech and his Ph.D. from MIT.