Tech Policy Month: Brady Kruse Hopes to Protect People Through Tech Policy

As a college freshman, Brady Kruse imagined his interest in technology would have a clear endpoint: computer science. 

Image

“About three years into my undergraduate degree, I realized that I enjoyed writing code for four hours a week, not forty,” Kruse said. “I became much more interested in the effects that technology had on people rather than the underlying mechanics of the technology itself.”

That curiosity led him first to policy, then here to Sanford, and now to Duke Law School, where he continues to explore how law and policy can protect users in an increasingly data-driven world.

But before heading to Durham, the updated perspective steered him toward Washington, D.C., for an internship with the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee, his first hands-on experience in technology policy. The work inspired him to pursue a master’s degree, and Duke quickly rose to the top of his list. “When I came to tour Sanford, a current student introduced me to Professor David Hoffman,” he recalled. “After about five minutes of talking with him, I was ready to withdraw my other acceptances. He made it clear that I’d be doing real-world work that had an immediate and significant impact.”

That promise proved true. During his two years at Sanford, Kruse joined Duke’s Tech Policy Lab, where he contributed to several high-profile projects on data privacy and digital governance. Most notably, he helped lead research on the sale of personal data about U.S. military personnel, a collaboration that culminated in a 2023 report and a Lawfare podcast episode that brought national attention to the issue.

Sanford Research Sparked Career Path

The findings were alarming: data brokers were selling sensitive information about service members to anyone willing to pay. “Working in research actually gave me some faith in the policy process,” Kruse said. “Data privacy is largely a nonpartisan issue. The people who read our work were all on the same page—there’s a massive issue here, and we want to make it better.”

The project, led by Duke fellow Justin Sherman under Professor Hoffman’s guidance, reached policymakers on both sides of the aisle and was covered by major outlets, including Forbes and NBC News. “My grandma, of all people, called her local Congressman about it,” Kruse added.

Kruse credits his Sanford coursework and mentors for sharpening both his policy and analytical skills. He fondly remembers Professor David Schanzer’s Policy Analysis for Public Policy Leaders (803) course, where his first memo “came back completely dripping in red ink.” It was a humbling experience that helped him grow. “It was one of the first times academically that I felt really pushed to improve,” he said. “I became a much better writer and policy analyst thanks to him.”

Sanford also encouraged him to explore issues beyond technology. Courses on incarceration, race, and recidivism broadened his understanding of how different policy domains intersect. “As much as I love tech policy, there are other things in the world that are just as important,” he said. “Sanford gave me the opportunity to learn about a wide range of topics rather than being siloed into one.”

A Second Blue Devil Degree

Outside the classroom, Kruse found a vibrant community across Duke’s graduate programs, from law and business to medicine and the sciences. “Many of my favorite memories involve interacting with people across different programs,” he said. “Whether at a guest lecture or a basketball game, those connections made my Duke experience really special.”

Now in his second year at Duke Law, Kruse is focusing his studies on data governance and AI regulation. He sees his legal training as a natural extension of his policy background. “At Sanford, I realized that a lot of my mentors were lawyers, and the way I approached problems was quite, for lack of a better word, lawyerly,” he said.

While focused on technology, it is ultimately the human connections Kruse made at Sanford that endure. “Professors Hoffman, Stansbury, and Dellinger reach out to me often, and I keep in touch with many of my fellow Sanford alumni and co-workers. And even at Duke Law, I can keep in touch with my data privacy side. Currently, I’m in a class on AI law, which has a lot of policy elements, and a class on data governance practices.”

After graduating, Kruse will join a Washington, D.C. law firm to work on data privacy and cybersecurity regulatory issues, work that blends both law and policy. Longer term, he hopes to serve in the federal government, perhaps at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau or Federal Trade Commission, where he can help craft protections for consumers in an era of constant digital surveillance.

Cautious Optimism for Technology

Kruse remains cautious about the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence, particularly the vast amount of personal data being scraped to train large language models. “The privacy concerns for users are massive,” he said. “Anything you post online may be scraped and used to train an AI. Consumers and businesses need to put a stop to this unbridled data scraping.”

Still, he remains optimistic that thoughtful policy and accountability can shape a better digital future. “Technology will always create new issues by its very nature,” he reflected. “What matters is our mindset. Before developing a new technology, we should ask whether it’s really worth developing and how we can mitigate issues before they arise.”