Elon Musk and former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy have been tasked with leading a new Department of Government Efficiency by Donald Trump
"Together, these two wonderful Americans will pave the way for my Administration to dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies - Essential to the 'Save America' Movement," Trump said in a statement.
The Department of Government Efficiency will be known as Doge for short, according to Trump - an apparent reference to the cryptocurrency Dogecoin, which Musk has supported, calling it "the people's crypto".
Musk donated a reported $200m (£157m) to Trump's campaign, and was one of his top public surrogates.
Ramaswamy took on Trump for the Republican nomination during the primary election but became one of Trump's loudest supporters following his defeat.
The multi-millionaire has suggested a number of radical overhauls, including eliminating the FBI.
Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy have been handed the authority to conduct sweeping changes to government spending, according to Donald Trump.
"Together, these two wonderful Americans will pave the way for my Administration to dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies - Essential to the 'Save America' Movement," his statement reads.
"It will become, potentially, 'The Manhattan Project' of our time," he says, referring to the American programme to develop the first atomic bomb.
It is unclear exactly what form this new department will take but it appears it will be outside formal government structures.
The statement goes on: "The Department of Government Efficiency will provide advice and guidance from outside of Government," he adds, with a goal to "create an entrepreneurial approach to Government never seen before".
Trump says they have a deadline of concluding their work by US Independence Day on 4 July, 2026.
In Trump's statement confirming he is setting up a new agency tasked with cutting government spending and regulation, Musk is quoted as saying: "This will send shockwaves through the system, and anyone involved in Government waste, which is a lot of people!”
Musk has responded to a post sharing the statement on X - the social media platform he owns - on an account managed on behalf of Tommy Robinson, a far-right UK activist who is currently imprisoned.
"People have no idea how much this will move the needle," he writes.
Ramaswamy also reacted on X, writing: "We will not go gently."
