New York state CIO Dru Rai is out
Dru Rai, who has served as New York state chief information officer and director of the Office of Information Technology Services since 2023, has left the role, StateScoop has learned.
Jenson Jacob, who has served as deputy CIO since Sept. 2025, has been named acting CIO. An ITS spokesperson declined to comment on Rai’s departure but cited “personnel issues.”
In an email sent Monday evening to ITS employees that was shared with StateScoop, Jacob said Rai’s departure was “effective immediately.”
In a brief statement shared to LinkedIn Monday, Rai said: “It’s [been my] pleasure serving [the] State of NYS and its citizens. Like every good thing has to end, and to focus on my health today is my last day at CIO of NYS. Thanks to our citizens to letting me serve!”
It appears as though the departure was unexpected. Rai was scheduled to give the welcome remarks at the New York Digital Government Summit 2026 as CIO on Tuesday morning, but Jacob gave them instead.
Jacob added in the Monday email that his appointment to the acting role was to “ensure a smooth and seamless transition.”
“As you know, I have served as Executive Deputy Chief Information Officer since 2025 and have vast experience across many areas at ITS over 15 years, including in my previous role as Chief Digital Transformation Officer. Many of you know me personally, and we have worked closely on numerous projects that have positively impacted our State. The priorities we have focused on in the last three years and the work we have done together remains unchanged,” Jacob’s email said.
“The true strength of ITS lies in the talented, hardworking, and committed employees like you who take their responsibility as public servants so seriously. I know we will continue to be in strong and capable hands,” he continued. “I look forward to continuing our work together and I thank you for all you do for ITS, our partner agencies and the people of New York.”
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul appointed Rai as CIO in September 2023, with his tenure officially beginning Oct. 2, 2023. He filled a full-time CIO vacancy that had lasted about six months after Angelo “Tony” Riddick’s retirement.
Before joining the state’s government, Rai was chief digital and information officer at chemical company Quaker Houghton, and his other prior experiences included Ball Corporation, DuPont and General Electric’s advanced-materials business.
When Hochul appointed Rai, she tasked him with advancing digital transformation and making interactions with state government more seamless. Other portfolio items included the state’s data, privacy and cybersecurity programs, as well as projects such as the “One ID” single sign-on system intended to give residents access to services across agencies.
He also worked to develop ITS as a unified technology provider with a centralized service delivery model for state agencies, helping them shift toward operating their tech independently by offering shared services.
Earlier this year, Rai said ITS was nearing completion of this transition, which saw the pairing of agency subject-matter experts with the office’s in-house centralized technology experts, and an enterprise cloud services agreement with Amazon Web Services for artificial intelligence and cloud services netted $58 million in savings for taxpayers.
