Federal Newscast

Defense Dept opens use of three major AI tools for employees

DoD said ChatGPT can read documents for unclassified administrative and policy work.

Michele Sandiford

September 1, 2026 11:40 am

< a min read

Defense Department employees can now use three major artificial intelligence products at work. The department on Monday launched military versions of OpenAI's ChatGPT and Elon Musk's Grok to help the workforce with everyday tasks. DoD said ChatGPT can read documents for unclassified administrative and policy work. Grok is built for operational needs like market research and supply chain management. Google's Gemini was the first product launched on the Pentagon's AI hub last year. More than 1.7 million have signed up to use those services so far.
(DoD employees can now use ChatGPT, Grok at work - Defense Department)

The White House is launching a new water cybersecurity pilot with the state of Texas. The Office of the National Cyber Director and the state of Texas on Monday officially launched Project Watershed 250, a pilot project designed to provide Texas water utility providers with cyber defense resources at no cost. The program will pair federal and private-sector capabilities with state and local expertise to protect water systems and other critical infrastructure. The project comes weeks after water utilities across multiple states were targeted and, in some cases, infiltrated by hackers reportedly tied to Iran.
(Project Watershed 250 - Texas.gov)

Microsoft has a new head of its civilian federal practice. Misty Jordan took over as the general manager of federal civilian for the Redmond, Washington, software giant. She has been with Microsoft for almost 15 years. Previously, Jordan was general manager for United States federal specialist sales and also was the chief operating officer for federal operations. Jordan replaces Heidi Kobylski, who moved to a new role inside Microsoft in May. In addition to her time at Microsoft, Jordan also worked at Compusearch and Booz Allen Hamilton.
(Microsoft names new head of federal civilian practice - LinkedIn)

Under a new bipartisan House bill, the National Institute of Standards and Technology would be responsible for monitoring how artificial intelligence models are being used to make further AI breakthroughs. The Self-Improving AI Monitoring Act would hand that job to NIST’s Center for AI Standards and Innovation. Federal evaluators would have the authority to request internal developer metrics on AI-driven development. The bill comes just a month after an OpenAI model broke out of its testing environment and autonomously hacked into a third-party system.
(Rep. Whitesides introduces bipartisan bill to reduce the risk of superintelligent AI by monitoring self-improving AI systems - Rep. George Whitesides (D-Calif.))

The long-held dream of having a single sign-on for public facing federal services is one step closer. The Office of Management and Budget is telling agencies that, whenever possible, they should use the Login.gov platform to serve as the single source for identity authentication and verification for most public facing websites. While there are some exemptions, OMB said moving to the universal use of Login.gov is a crucial step toward eliminating unnecessary burdens on citizens and expenses on agencies. Agencies now have a series of deadlines over the next two years to meet OMB's goal, including inventorying existing public facing websites and conducting a Digital Identity Risk Management (DIRM) review.
(For many public websites, OMB tells agencies to move to Login.gov - Federal News Network)

The FBI will no longer automatically disregard potential employees who have had sexual encounters with a prostitute. The bureau said it will allow for consideration of the context of the conduct rather than treat it as grounds for an automatic rejection from the FBI’s hiring process. The FBI, however, still intends to dismiss applicants who are revealed during the vetting process to have engaged in prostitution within the last 10 years, three or more times overall or while in a position of trust such as public safety. The move away from an automatic disqualification falls along a continuum of evolving recruitment standards within federal law enforcement, which several years ago relaxed its approach to candidates’ past marijuana use.
(FBI no longer treating an applicant’s experience with prostitution as automatic bar against hiring - Associated Press)

The Army is testing a new artificial intelligence tool to speed up how it buys services. Army Contracting Command's Army MAX platform helps turn mission requirements into standardized documents and requests to industry. The goal is to put solicitations out in days or weeks, not weeks or months. The Army wants the software to be fully operational later this year and could eventually use Army MAX for each step in the contracting process. Army officials spend billions of dollars on services like IT or facilities upkeep each year.
(Army tests AI to speed up solicitation writing - Federal News Network)

The Army will soon be looking for a new leader. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll is stepping down after 18 months on the job. The White House didn't give a reason for Drisoll's departure. But it's been widely reported that tensions with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth may have played into his decision. Driscoll is an Iraq war veteran, tech investor and former adviser to Vice President JD Vance, whom Driscoll met at Yale Law School. When nominating Driscoll in 2024, Trump called him “a disruptor and change agent.” His departure marks the latest in a series of shakeups of the military leadership, with the Army especially seeing major upheaval. The Wall Street Journal first reported Driscoll's resignation.
(Army Secretary Driscoll stepping down - Associated Press)