White House Correspondents Insider

Behind the scenes of the most powerful city in the world — Washington, D.C. — and those who cover it.

POLITICO’s Jack Blanchard and Dasha Burns welcomed by Washington Women Technology Network

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The Washington Women’s Technology Network held an exclusive breakfast co-hosted by Jessica Nigro and Tammy Haddad on February 25 at the House at 1229 to welcome POLITICO Playbook’s new editor Jack Blanchard and Politico’s new White House bureau chief Dasha Burns. The event brought together leaders in media, politics, and business.

L to R: Symone Sanders, Jessica Nigro, Jack Blanchard, Dasha Burns, and Tammy Haddad

Blanchard recently relocated to Washington, D.C. from London, where he wrote the London Playbook for over 5 years. At the breakfast, he shared his take on new British PM Keir Starmer and his relationship with President Donald Trump. Burns, fresh from covering the Munich Security Conference, where she interviewed Sen. Mark Warner, provided a firsthand account of key global security discussions and their implications for U.S. foreign policy. With shifting geopolitical dynamics and fast-moving developments in Washington, their perspectives were both timely and invaluable.

L to R: Jack Blanchard, Jessica Nigro, and Dasha Burns

Attendees debated how recent White House actions would influence media access, the challenges of political coverage in a polarized landscape, and the broader implications for journalism’s role during Trump 2.0.

Jack Blanchard and Adam Verdugo take a look at the Lucid Air.

Attendees included: MSNBC’s Symone Sanders; NobleReach Foundation’s Tina Anthony; Elizabeth Falcone, chief of staff to Sen. Mark Warner; Disney’s Susan Fox; GlobalWIN’s Helen Milby; LinkedIn’s Caitlin O’Neill; AWS’s Olivia Igbokwe and Alla Seiffert; BSA’s Victoria Espinel; Politico’s Alisa Vasquez; Shannon Ricchetti; Liz Johnson; Adrienne Elrod; Adam Verdugo; and Rufus Gifford.

Dasha Burns discusses covering Trump 2.0 at a Washington Women’s Technology Network breakfast.

National AI Advisory Committee Celebrated at Washington AI Network’s Haippy Hour

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(L to R) Washington AI Network founder Tammy Haddad, EqualAI President & CEO and NAIAC Chair Miriam Vogel, and NobleReach Foundation CEO Arun Gupta co-host “Haippy Hour” in Washington, DC, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (Photo credit: John Harrington)

The Washington AI Network welcomed National AI Advisory Committee members and DC AI friends on May 1 for a special Haippy Hour at The House at 1229.

EqualAI President/CEO and NAIAC Chair Miriam Vogel and NobleReach Foundation CEO Arun Gupta joined Washington AI Network founder Tammy Haddad as co-hosts of the event. Gupta is also co-author of the recently released bestseller Venture Meets Mission: Aligning People, Purpose, and Profit to Innovate and Transform Society.

“We’re here to toast these public servants who are working hard to advise the President and make recommendations on how government should approach AI,” Haddad said as she welcomed attendees.

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AI Leaders Attend the Annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner Weekend

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Andrea Saul, VP of Public Affairs at Meta, and Joelle Pineau, VP of AI Research at Meta, attend the 31st Annual White House Correspondents’ Garden Brunch at the Beall-Washington House in Washington, DC, Saturday, April 27, 2024. (Photo by Paul Morigi/Getty Images for Haddad Media)

One of the top AI researchers, Joelle Pineau, VP of AI Research at Meta and featured guest for the inaugural TGAIFriday Lunch, attended her first White House Correspondents’ Weekend. She was joined at the Garden Brunch by former Google chairman Eric Schmidt, founder of the Special Competitive Studies Project (which will host Washington’s first AI Expo for National Competitiveness on May 7-8).

Other AI luminaries included NobleReach Foundation CEO Arun Gupta; Teresa Carlson, President of the General Catalyst Institute; EqualAI President & CEO Miriam Vogel; OpenAI’s Brad Lightcap, whom Bloomberg calls “AI’s secret weapon”; David Ginsberg, VP of Global Communications and Public Affairs at Meta; David Zapolsky, General Counsel of Amazon; John Rizzo of NVIDIA; and Center for AI Safety Action Fund Director of Government Relations and Public Policy Varun Krovi. From the U.S. Government: Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) Chief of Staff Asad Ramzanali and Director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) Vice Admiral Frank Whitworth, as well as Rep. Don Beyer, co-chair of the House AI Caucus, and Senator Mark Warner.

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The 2024 White House Correspondents’ Garden Brunch

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(L to R) Symone Sanders-Townsend, Eugene Daniels, Tammy Haddad, Savannah Guthrie, Mark Ein, Craig Minassian, Jon Banner, Kaitlan Collins, and Gus Kenworthy on stage at the 2024 White House Correspondents’ Garden Brunch in Washington, D.C., Saturday, April 27, 2024. (Photo credit: John Harrington)

Leaders in government, politics, media, business, and entertainment came together yesterday for the 2024 White House Correspondents’ Garden Brunch, held at the historic Beall-Washington House in Georgetown ahead of this year’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner.

This marks the 31st anniversary of the Garden Brunch, first held in 1993 in founder Tammy Haddad’s backyard during Correspondents’ Weekend. The annual brunch honors the freedom of the press as well as the important work of veterans’ and military family organizations. Joining Haddad as Garden Brunch co-hosts this year were Ruth Porat, Kevin Sheekey, Mark & Sally Ein, Symone Sanders-Townsend, Jon Banner, Craig Minassian, and Franco Nuschese.

During the Brunch’s main program, Sanders-Townsend presented the Garden Brunch “Champion of Journalism” Award to Eugene Daniels – Playbook Author and White House Correspondent for POLITICO, and the next president of the White House Correspondents’ Association.

Symone Sanders-Townsend presents Eugene Daniels with the 2024 Garden Brunch “Champion of Journalism” Award, Saturday, April 27, 2024. (Photo credit: John Harrington)

Daniels also led the attendees in a moment of silence to honor fellow journalist Evan Gershkovich of the Wall Street Journal, who has been illegally imprisoned in Moscow for more than a year.

Haddad also honored and recognized four Maryland police officers whose actions in the wake of the tragic Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore saved many lives. Corporal Jeremy Herbert, Officer Garry Kirts, Sergeant Paul Pastorek, and Officer Timothy Baublitz were in attendance and received an emotional round of applause for their heroism. 

Tammy Haddad recognizes Maryland police officers Corporal Jeremy Herbert, Officer Garry Kirts, Sergeant Paul Pastorek, and Officer Timothy Baublitz at the Garden Brunch, Saturday, April 27, 2024. (Photo credit: John Harrington)

CNN’s Kaitlan Collins and Olympic medalist Gus Kenworthy also took the stage to present co-host Mark Ein – owner of the Washington Commanders, the Washington Kastles, and the Beall-Washington House – with the Garden Brunch Award, marking the 10th anniversary of the Brunch being held at the historic property.

Mark Ein receives the 2024 Garden Brunch Award, presented by Kaitlan Collins and Gus Kenworthy, Saturday, April 27, 2024. (Photo credit: John Harrington)

TODAY Show host Savannah Guthrie thanked members of the military for their service and acknowledged two organizations that support veterans and military family members: Dog Tag Bakery and Blue Star Families.

Savannah Guthrie gives remarks at the 2024 Garden Brunch, Saturday, April 27, 2024. (Photo credit: John Harrington)

Throughout the Brunch, guests also had the opportunity to write notes thanking our nation’s service members and their families on the Blue Star Families Honor Wall, sponsored by U.S. Steel.

SBA Administrator Isabel Guzman posts a message to the Honor Wall at the Garden Brunch, Saturday, April 27, 2024. (Photo credit: John Harrington)

Attendees included Governor of New Mexico Michelle Lujan Grisham; British Ambassador Dame Karen Pierce; Ukraine Ambassador Oksana Markarova; Ireland Ambassador Geraldine Byrne Nason; Luxembourg Ambassador Nicole Bintner; Australia Ambassador and Former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd; DC Mayor Muriel Bowser; Senator Amy Klobuchar; Senator Mark R. Warner; Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester; Congressional Black Caucus Chair Rep. Steven Horsford;  Former Counselor to the President Kellyanne Conway; Alphabet CFO Ruth Porat; Lyft CEO David Risher; TODAY’s Al Roker and Savannah Guthrie; CNN anchors Jake Tapper, Dana Bash, and Abby Phillip; MSNBC host Symone Sanders-Townsend; former soccer player Ashlyn Harris; and actors Sophia Bush, Kevin McHale, Rosario Dawson, Jordan Klepper, Wilson Cruz, Joseph Lee, Andrew McCarthy and Desi Lydic.

Also seen were Counselor to the President Steve Ricchetti; White House Communications Director Ben LaBolt; White House Cabinet Secretary Evan Ryan; Speechwriter for the President Vinay Reddy; Senator Chris Coons; Rep. Don Beyer; Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick; Senior Advisor to President Obama Valerie Jarrett; Former RNC Chairman Frank Fahrenkopf; Dreamworks Co-Founder Jeffrey Katzenberg; Meta Vice President, AI Research Joelle Pineau; Under Armour Founder and CEO Kevin Plank; co-founder and editor-at-large of Recode Kara Swisher; executive editor of The Washington Post Sally Buzbee; Axios CEO and co-founder Jim VandeHei; POLITICO reporter and upcoming WHCA President Eugene Daniels; SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher; Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt; television personalities Jax Taylor and Brittany Cartwright; and Washington Commanders President Jason Wright.

Special thanks to this year’s Garden Brunch sponsors were GM, U.S. Steel, McDonalds, Verizon, Flex Association, and the Mark and Sally Ein Foundation; our Friends of the Brunch, Brunswick Group, The Ned, and Pernod Ricard; and our hospitality partner, Versus, bringing their Casta’s Rum Bar and Morris American Bar brands to the Garden Brunch.

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Want more history on the Correspondents’ Dinner and related events? Listen to Tammy Haddad’s podcast series “Cone of Silence” on Audioboom and iTunes.

Washington AI Network Hosts Inaugural TGAIFriday Lunch, Presented by Meta

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Tammy Haddad and Joelle Pineau take a group selfie with attendees of the Washington AI Network’s inaugural TGAIFriday Lunch in Washington, D.C., Friday, April 26, 2024. (Photo credit: John Harrington)

Kicking off this year’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner Weekend, the Washington AI Network hosted the inaugural TGAIFriday Lunch — presented by Meta — today at The House at 1229.

The Washington AI Network is a dynamic bipartisan forum that brings together diverse stakeholders from industry, government, civil society, and academia to foster collaboration, knowledge sharing, and responsible development and deployment of AI technologies.

In today’s keynote conversation, Joelle Pineau (Vice President of AI Research at Meta) talked with our founder Tammy Haddad on the power and potential of AI.

Tammy Haddad and Joelle Pineau record an episode of the Washington AI Network podcast at the TGAIFriday Lunch, Friday, April 26, 2024. (Photo credit: John Harrington)
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It’s Here: 2024 White House Correspondents’ Week

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Stephanie Ruhle (R) speaks onstage during the 30th Anniversary White House Correspondents’ Garden Brunch on April 29, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Paul Morigi/Getty Images for Haddad Media)

It’s that time of year again! With the annual White House Correspondents’ Association dinner happening this weekend, Washington is gearing up for its biggest week of events – including our annual Garden Brunch this Saturday honoring military veterans and their families.

The following is a running list of events happening across D.C. this week, as reported by Politico – and remember, these are invitation-only.

(For more updates over the next few days, make sure you’re following us on social media at @whcinsider.)

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Washington AI Network and General Catalyst host ‘cocktails and conversation’ on investing in global resilience

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The Washington AI Network and General Catalyst co-hosted an evening of cocktails and conversation on Thursday, November 9 at the House of 1229. The event brought together a diverse group of attendees, spanning the intelligence community, government representatives, the defense industry, and technology innovators for an insightful discussion on investing in global resilience.

The evening commenced with an engaging discussion on responsible innovation featuring Washington AI Network founder Tammy Haddad, along with Paul Kwan, General Catalyst’s managing director, and Teresa Carlton, a new Catalyst advisor for General Catalyst. 

A second panel featured George Barnes, former Deputy Director of the National Security Agency and partner at Red Cell Partners, alongside Matt Steckman, Anduril’s chief revenue officer, and Cameron McCord, co-founder and CEO of Nominal.

Guests included Kara Swisher, Sec. Elaine Chao, Dorothy McAuliffe, Sue Gordon, White House Deputy Assistant to the President and Senior Advisor for Political Engagement John McCarthy, CISA director Jen Easterly, Lt. Gen. Scott Howell (ret.), Daniel Koh and Amy Sennett, British DCM James Roscoe, Elizabeth Falcone, Michael Allen, and CNN’s David Urban. 

Paul Rennie OBE previews the UK’s first global ‘AI Safety Summit’ on the Washington AI Network Podcast

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A Preview of the British Prime Minister’s First-Ever Artificial Intelligence Safety Summit with Paul Rennie OBE, Head of the Global Economy Group at the UK Embassy

“The job we are having here is not to set some kind of ceiling; it is to try and set a common understanding of a floor,” says Rennie

“The Prime Minister’s committed £100,000,000 (one hundred million pounds) to our Frontier Model Task Force, which is bringing together some of the best minds in the world to look at this problem.”

The British Embassy’s Paul Rennie OBE and Washington AI Network founder Tammy Haddad

Washington, DC – In a new episode of the Washington AI Network podcast, host Tammy Haddad speaks with Paul Rennie OBE, Head of the Global Economy Group at the UK Embassy, about the British Prime Minister’s upcoming Artificial Intelligence Safety Summit scheduled for November 1 and 2. Rennie leads the UK’s climate and energy, economic security and trade, and science and technology networks across the United States.

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak ahead of the first-ever AI Safety Summit on Nov. 1-2 at Bletchley Park, Buckinghamshire (Photo Credit: Peter Nicholls/Pool via AP)

Highlights of the interview are below:

Paul Rennie on the UK’s goals for the summit:

“This summit is both part of the wider international picture, as it is much a waypoint to the future conversations we will need to have about AI. And right now we have focused on AI safety because that is the first block in the puzzle, but after this, talking about AI for good and how we expand it will become so much more important.”

Paul Rennie on collaboration between government and the private sector:

“This is not a case of governments going away in a box and coming up with their plans. It has to be in collaboration with the companies themselves. It has to be in collaboration with the academics.” We need to understand how these models work. The companies themselves don’t fully understand how the models work.”

Paul Rennie on misinformation in elections:

“People have been trying to influence elections since the first time I’m sure we had elections. You know, there are all kinds of very interesting ways to support and corrupt and so on. I think the difference now is with the generative AI, or the risk with generative AI, is that one person’s potential impact is now so much greater.”

Paul Rennie on the UK’s role in the global AI community:

“The UK has become the go-to destination for all the major AI companies looking at their European headquarters. The UK taking on this role, thinking about AI safety is both, I think, a reflection of not only our technology capability but also our very real interest in how do we make the AI work well for us.”

Full transcript here.

The Washington AI Network Podcast is hosted by media veteran and Washington AI Network founder Tammy Haddad and produced and recorded by Haddad Media.  It is available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and Audioboom). 

Washington AI Network Cocktails & Conversation 

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Tammy Haddad, AEI’s Shane Tews, and Maryam Mujica from Booking Holdings

The Washington AI Network convened policy stakeholders on Tuesday, October 17, at The House of 1229 for Cocktails and Conversation on AI in advance of the National AI Advisory Committee (NAIAC) meetings this week.  Leading AI policy experts from both sides of the aisle, the White House, diplomatic missions including the UK, Germany, and the Netherlands, and business discussed the biggest questions and opportunities. 

Shane Tews from American Enterprise Institute gave the audience her perspective after decades of experience with tech policy about the need to focus on education and reskilling the workforce on AI. Guests also heard from several members of NAIAC.

Tammy Haddad interviews AEI nonresident senior fellow Shane Tews

Guests included: Embassy of Ireland Deputy Chief of Mission Orla Keane, Karina Barao from the Special Competitive Studies Project, Center for AI Safety’s Varun Krovi, Sen. Schumer’s AI Lead Tim Ryder, White House Special Assistant Erica Loewe, Professor at Rice University and NAIAC member Fred Oswald, OpenAI’s Chan Park, President of ITI Jason Oxman, Business Roundtable VP of Innovation and Technology Amy Shuart, RIAA’s Jessica Stoll Richard, Sen. Schumer’s Deputy Research Director Hanna Taley, AEI’s Shane Tews, Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands First Secretary Correlli van Hulten, the Wilson Center’s Kellee Wicker, The Washington Post’s Cat Zakrzewski, White House Office of Public Engagement Director Steve Benjamin, YouTube’s Josh Blumenfeld, German Embassy Digital Policy Advisor Julian Ramirez, Director Senay Bulbul, Sen. Schumer’s Director of Economic Development Jon Cardinal, Lynda Carter, GlobalWIN co-founder Helen Milby, Blue Owl Group’s Colin Crowell, CNN’s Jessica Dean, Sen. Booker Policy Adviser Ian Gray, Data and Society Executive Director and NAIAC member Janet Haven, EqualAI CEO and NAIAC chair Miriam Vogel. Office of the Minority Leader Senior Policy Advisor Evan Holander, Deniz Houston from the Delegation of the EU, Sen. Heinrich technology policy fellow Max Katz, and Sen. Hickenlooper senior policy advisor Edgar Rivas. 

View photos here.

Amy Ricchetti and Tammy Haddad host lunch to honor Madame Sabine Raczy-Bili at The House at 1229

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Melanne Verveer, Evan Ryan, Sabime Raszy-Bili

Amy Ricchetti and Tammy Haddad welcomed women leaders in government, academia, law and business for a lunch celebration for Madame Sabine Raczy-Bili, French judge and wife of French Ambassador to the U.S., H.E. Laurent Bili.

Nina Totenberg and Rep. Debbie Dingell

Madame Sabine Raczy-Bili earned her degree of law from the University of Lille and is a graduate of Sciences Po Paris. After Sabine’s appointment to judge through the Ecole Nationale de la Magistrature, Sabine served for thirty years, mostly in criminal courts in Paris. She’s also represented her country along with Ambassador Raczy-Bili in Turkey, Brazil and Thailand. Sabine and Ambassador Bili have four children. 

Flore Mevel and Florence Hermite

Distinguished guests of the lunch included Rep. Debbie Dingell, Cabinet Secretary Evan Ryan, Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security’s Amb. Melanne Verveer, House at 1229’s Kathleen Buhle, Teresa Carlson, NPR’s Nina Totenberg, AWS’s Olivia Igbokwe, First Ladies Initiative at American University’s Anite McBride, Georgetown University’s Meryl Chertoff and Caroline Fredrickson, French Justice Attaché Florence Hermite and Deputy Attaché Flore Mevel.

View more photos here.