The U.S. State Department has launched the Freedom Tech Excellence Program, a limited‑term initiative that will enlist private‑sector partners including the Bitcoin Policy Institute to promote digital freedom and expression worldwide.

The program aims to bring technology firm and advocacy expertise to State Department officials to address online freedom of expression, privacy‑enhancing technologies, countering digital surveillance, and responsible AI governance.

The Bitcoin Policy Institute announced on its X account that it would serve as a founding partner alongside Palantir Technologies, Anduril Industries and the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation. The institute, founded in 2021 as a non‑partisan research and advocacy organization, has supported efforts to codify President Donald Trump’s March 2025 executive order establishing a strategic cryptocurrency reserve, though Congress has not yet passed legislation to enact the order as of July.

The partnership represents the first inclusion of a crypto‑focused advocacy group in a State Department digital‑freedom initiative and the program is expected to operate for a defined term with participation from selected private‑sector employees.