Federal leaders have embraced AI’s promise, but scaling from experimentation to measurable mission impact requires a sharper focus on data readiness, governance and time-to-impact.
IRS CEO Frank Bisignano testifies before the House Ways and Means Committee in the Longworth House Office Building on Capitol Hill on March 4, 2026 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
U.S. Marines with Marine Wing Communications Squadron 38, Marine Air Control Group 38, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, set up a Viasat Multi-Mission Terminal during Exercise Wild Bell at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, California, May 13, 2025. During the exercise, Marines with MWCS-38 honed field skills and tested 5G networks across multiple domains. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Samantha Devine)
Close-up of phone screen displaying icon for Anthropic Claude app, a Large Language Model (LLM) powered generative artificial intelligence chatbot. (Photo by Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images)
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz speaks during a press conference at the State Capitol building on Jan. 5, 2026 in St. Paul, Minnesota. (Stephen Maturen / Getty Images)
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei looks on during a meeting with France’s President Emmanuel Macron on the sidelines of the AI Impact Summit in New Delhi on February 19, 2026. (Photo by Ludovic MARIN / AFP via Getty Images)
A Rolex watch hangs on the wrist of a model during a street style fashion photo session, on Dec. 18, 2025 in Paris, France. (Edward Berthelot / Getty Images)
U.S. Navy Corpsmen assigned to Task Force Ashland, I Marine Expeditionary Force and Royal Thai Navy service members conduct tactical combat casualty care at Hat Yao Beach, Rayong, Thailand, Feb. 25, 2026. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Austin Salazar)
A photo taken on March 31, 2023 in Manta, near Turin, shows a computer screen with the home page of the artificial intelligence OpenAI web site, displaying its chatGPT robot. (Photo by Marco BERTORELLO / AFP) (Photo by MARCO BERTORELLO/AFP via Getty Images)