New Senior Leaders Named at U.S Food and Drug Administration

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recently named four new senior leaders at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration: JARED SEEHAFER as the first deputy commissioner for technology and artificial intelligence; Dr. MICHAEL DAVIS as director of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research; KARIM MIKHAIL as director of the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research; and BRET KOPLOW as director of the Center for Tobacco Products. "These leaders will drive the reforms needed to confront our nation's most serious health challenges and strengthen American leadership in medical innovation," HHS Secretary Robert Kennedy, Jr. said in a press release. Seehafer is set to lead the creation of the FDA's strategy in technology, software and AI. Davis was CDER's deputy director from June 2025 to May before stepping in as acting director, according to his LinkedIn page. Since May, Mikhail has been acting director of CBER and before then, he was a senior advisor for the FDA commissioner in May 2025, according to his LinkedIn profile. Koplow has also been acting director of CTP since May and first joined the FDA in 2011 starting as senior advisor for oversight for the commissioner, according to his LinkedIn profile.