As the world moves rapidly toward digital financial systems, a new group in Washington is calling for the United States to take charge of its own economic future — and to do so intentionally.
The America First Technology Infrastructure & Innovation Initiative — shortened to America First Tech — is a nonpartisan forum of government, technology, and finance leaders that wants to ensure U.S. leadership in the digital economy of the future.
“America First Tech was founded to ensure the United States takes a leadership role in shaping the economic infrastructure of tomorrow — by design, not by default,” says Igor Volovich, Executive Director of Strategy at America First Tech.
At the heart of their mission is a sense of urgency around the transformation already underway. Technologies such as stablecoins, tokenized dollars, and blockchain-enabled payment systems are creating what some call a generational opportunity. Supporters say they could make financial systems faster, more efficient, and more secure. But they also carry risks — including the risk of leaving the U.S. dependent on standards and systems developed elsewhere.
Volovich says the organization was created to keep that from happening.
“We believe America thrives when innovation reflects our values: openness, accountability, and opportunity for all,” he says.
Building on this vision, America First Tech aims to bring together policymakers, technologists, economists, and other stakeholders to shape a digital infrastructure that reflects those principles.
“This is a moment to bring policymakers, builders, and economists together — to shape the foundational systems that will support a more resilient, inclusive, and secure American economy for generations to come,” Volovich continues.
America First Tech describes itself not as a lobbying group, but as a forum: a place where different sectors can come together to work out the frameworks needed to guide the U.S. through a period of historic change. The group’s founders stress that their focus is on preserving sovereignty and accountability in systems that could otherwise develop haphazardly or under foreign influence.
Volovich, a former cybersecurity executive, sees this work as critical to ensuring that the U.S. economy remains anchored in American values even as it adopts the tools of the digital age.
Stablecoins — digital tokens pegged to the dollar — have grown rapidly in recent years, signaling a shift in how money moves around the world. Meanwhile, blockchain-enabled “rails” promise to rewire the infrastructure of payments, trade, and investment. But policymakers have struggled to keep pace with technology.
By bringing the right people to the table, America First Tech hopes to help bridge that gap — and to keep the U.S. in control of its own economic destiny.
For now, the group is focused on laying the groundwork: introducing itself to the policy and media communities, assembling a network of Fellows and partners, and preparing to offer more detailed ideas in the months ahead.
Future initiatives, they say, will include deeper dives into specific issues, legislative implications, and expert contributions from those Fellows and partners.
In all of it, the message remains clear: the United States can — and should — lead in the design of its own digital economic future.
As Volovich puts it, “America First Tech was founded to ensure the United States takes a leadership role in shaping the economic infrastructure of tomorrow — by design, not by default.”
It is, he says, a matter of aligning innovation with the country’s fundamental values: “We believe America thrives when innovation reflects our values: openness, accountability, and opportunity for all.”
And that alignment, he concludes, will require collaboration.
“This is a moment to bring policymakers, builders, and economists together — to shape the foundational systems that will support a more resilient, inclusive, and secure American economy for generations to come.”
For America First Tech, that work is just beginning.
