Ben Wu is a distinguished public and private sector executive with extensive professional and management experience at the highest levels of the nation’s executive and legislative branches. An internationally recognized technology innovation and economic development expert at the intersection of policy and politics, his expertise in technology policy has led to transformative business and economic developments at national, state, and local levels.
A former U.S. Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce and U.S. Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Technology Policy, Ben was confirmed by the U.S. Senate to serve in the sub-Cabinet of President George W. Bush, overseeing the nation’s high-technology competitiveness, U.S. innovation, and the federal technology enterprise. He was the Executive Secretary for the Committee on Technology of the National Science and Technology Council, coordinating science, space, and technology policy.
Ben has also served as Special Advisor to Maryland Governor Larry Hogan and Deputy Secretary of Commerce and Chief Operating Officer of the Maryland Department of Commerce, where he played a key role in the gubernatorial Commerce Cabinet. He led in significant reforms to the state’s economic development strategy that created record growth and one of the nation’s lowest unemployment rates.
Ben’s legislative experience spanned 13 years in the U.S. Congress as Legislative Counsel for Congresswoman Constance A. Morella of Maryland and the House Science Committee’s Subcommittee on Technology, where he worked to pass legislation to advance the nation’s technology and international competitiveness. Ben also served as the President and CEO of the Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation, a private entity leading Maryland’s largest jurisdiction in one of the most innovate regions in the country.
A past Committee of 100 Vice Chair, Ben has had significant engagement on issues impacting the C100 dual mission. He is the Vice Chair and immediate past President of the US-Asia Institute, a Washington, DC non-governmental organization established to promote the U.S. relationship with countries in the Asia-Pacific region. He has led several federal and state trade missions and delegations to Greater China.
Ben currently serves on the boards of several corporate and community organizations. He is an Independent Director of Pepco Holdings, Inc. (PHI), a subsidiary of Exelon Corporation, a Fortune 100 energy provider and the nation’s largest utility company. He is also on the boards of the Make-a-Wish Foundation (Mid-Atlantic Chapter), Strathmore Hall Foundation, and CCACC of Greater Washington. He has previously served as a Trustee of Montgomery College, an elected national board director of the American Community College Trustees, the Advisory Board of the Universities at Shady Grove (University System of Maryland), Chair of the Maryland Governor’s Commission for Asian Pacific American Affairs, and board director of the National Asian Pacific Center for Aging.
