Some brief googling shows this: https://joi.ito.com/coi.html https://joi.ito.com/coi.html So at minimum he's a great networker who can help his students get go

Some brief googling shows this: https://joi.ito.com/coi.html https://joi.ito.com/coi.html So at minimum he's a great networker who can help his students get good placements. He's also been involved heavily in creative commons and helped secure funding to keep it going. He might rub you the wrong way but I'd give the probably not-stupid MIT people the benefit of the doubt that they chose him because they think he adds value to the institution, not because of some fluffy feely thing.