The Top 5 Insights for Government from TechNet Cyber 2026 

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Cyber and defense leaders gathered at TechNet Cyber 2026 with a shared conviction: cyberspace is no longer a supporting domain; it is the connective tissue of modern conflict. Across keynote addresses and panel sessions, senior officials from the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Coast Guard and Air Force, and U.S. Cyber Command delivered a consistent message that the nation’s adversaries are not waiting and neither can the joint force. TechNet Cyber 2026 made clear that the era of incremental progress in cyberspace must give way to decisive, integrated action! 

Five critical insights emerged from TechNet Cyber 2026 that define the path forward for achieving and sustaining cyber dominance in an era of intensifying great power competition, spanning cyber integration, Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA), Artificial Intelligence (AI), critical infrastructure defense and workforce transformation and critical infrastructure defense.  

Integrating Cyber Across All Warfighting Domains Is Now a Strategic Imperative 

Cyberspace has evolved from a niche technical function into what senior officials described as the connective tissue of all-domain operations. Katherine Sutton, Assistant Secretary of War for Cyber Policy and the Principal Cyber Advisor to the Secretary of War, emphasized that the most significant capabilities in the cyber domain are realized not through standalone cyber operations, but when those operations are tightly integrated with effects across every other domain. As Katherine Sutton noted, coordinated space and cyber operations in Operations Absolute Resolve and Epic Fury effectively disrupted adversary communications and sensor networks, leaving opposing forces without the ability to see, coordinate or respond. The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff’s (JCS) public acknowledgment that U.S. Cyber Command and the National Guard were central to those operations underscore how deeply embedded cyber effects have become in the joint force’s playbook. 

Achieving this level of integration demands cultural transformation just as much as technical investment. Colonel Ryan Whitty, Director of Operations, Marine Corps Forces, Cyber Space Command  described how the Commander’s Cyber Defense Playbook and accompanying cyberspace orders now assign direct responsibility to commanders for the security of their battle space, embedding cyber into command accountability at every level.  Captian Joe Meuse, Commander Coast Guard Cyber Command described his service’s role as critical connector between maritime critical infrastructure and the joint force, providing the language, authorities and operational experience that bridges civilian and military cyber efforts. The consensus across services was clear: cyber effectiveness multiplies when it is woven into operational planning from the outset, not appended after the fact. 

Zero Trust Architecture Is Transforming from Compliance Mandate to Operational Capability 

At TechNet Cyber 2026, leaders from Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) and its Thunderdome program made a deliberate effort to move the conversation beyond compliance checklists and toward measurable operational outcomes. The conditional access policies, telemetry capabilities and identity management tools being deployed across the Department of War (DOW) Information Network have demonstrated the ability reduce risk across the department. The definition of success has shifted from meeting a compliance threshold to genuinely improving the effectiveness of defensive cyber operators. The Thunderdome program has now been implemented at approximately 400 sites across defense agencies, with a target of reaching around 900 sites and 12 agencies by the end of fiscal year 2027.  

Identity, Credential and Access Management (ICAM) adoption remains the single most important near-term enabler of Zero Trust progress. Enablement teams have been established to provide support to program offices lacking the resources or expertise to complete that transition independently, a recognition that mandate without support produces stagnation, not progress. Looking ahead, DISA leaders identified AI as the next critical layer on top of the Zero Trust foundation, moving forward with a behavioral, continuous authentication model capable of making access determinations at machine speed. Post-quantum cryptography (PQC) was also flagged as an emerging priority, with leaders emphasizing that flexibility to swap cryptographic solutions must be built into the architecture from the start. Carahsoft vendor partners offering Zero Trust and compliance solutions such as Absolute, AccuKnox, ObjectSecurity, Paramify and Quzara are well-positioned to support agencies navigating this transition. 

AI is the Force Multiplier for Cyber Operations 

The topic of AI dominated discussions at TechNet Cyber 2026 as a capability actively reshaping the strategic environment. Katherine Sutton described AI as a powerful force multiplier for adversaries and an essential tool for maintaining overmatch, noting that state-sponsored groups employing living-off-the-land techniques are already leveraging AI to increase the scale and sophistication of their campaigns. Across the services, concrete applications are already in use:  

  • The Marine Corps is deploying AI models to speed network reconfiguration and broaden threat detection  
  • The Air Force is shifting toward autonomous security orchestration to free analysts for more complex mission demands 
  • The Coast Guard is using AI to filter noise from maritime sensor data to improve transportation security and search-and-rescue operations 

Carahsoft partners offering AI-powered cyber operations and threat detection solutions such as Datadog, SentinelOne and Torq provide the visbility and automated response capabilities mission environments require. 

Cyber Force Generation Must Prioritize Domain Mastery Over Compliance-Based Training 

The Department of War’s CYBERCOM 2.0 force generation model represents the most significant restructuring of how the United States builds its cyber workforce in decades. The new model shifts decisively toward career-long operational specialization, establishing dedicated pathways in critical fields including industrial control systems, cloud infrastructure, AI and firmware reverse engineering. Success will no longer be measured by qualification boxes checked, but by the high-impact effects and strategic outcomes operators can deliver. Three enabling organizations anchor the model:  

  • The Cyber Talent Management Organization for recruiting and retention 
  • The Advanced Cyber Training and Education Center for on-demand mission-specific training 
  • The Cyber Innovation Center is the proving ground where operators and industry developers test new concepts against realistic threats 

Brig Gen Jason Christman, Air National Guard Assistant to the Commander Sixteenth Air Force, described an active effort to cultivate AI talent at all levels and empower teams with the right environment for innovation, not just deploying tools, but building the human capital to wield them effectively. Speakers highlighted the strategic value of enabling the talent ecosystem to be more permeable between active duty, reserve components and the commercial sector, enabling a continuous exchange of skills and operational experience. With adversaries leveraging AI to automate attacks at a speed human operators cannot match through manual processes alone, building a workforce capable of leveraging AI as a force multiplier is foundational. 

Defending Critical Infrastructure Requires a New Model of Operational Collaboration with Industry 

One of the most urgent themes at TechNet Cyber 2026 was the vulnerability of critical infrastructure -power, water, telecommunications, transportation and port systems that are fundamental to the Nation’s wellbeing. Adversaries understand that targeting operational technology systems, which have historically not received the same security rigor as IT networks, is both easier and potentially more damaging. Leaders described active adversary campaigns targeting logistics networks, port facilities and base infrastructure, and emphasized that no single Government entity can address this challenge alone. 

Coast Guard Cyber Protection Teams are already deployed into ports and maritime critical infrastructure to partner directly with industry, raise cybersecurity awareness and provide technical assistance that industry partners would struggle to access independently. Katherine Sutton called for moving beyond traditional public-private partnerships limited to information sharing and toward a model of operational collaboration where trusted industry partners take a forward-leaning role in defending systems and disrupting adversary activity in real time. Panelists were equally clear that defending critical infrastructure begins with eliminating self-inflicted vulnerabilities through disciplined network hygiene, patching and scanning. Resilience, the ability to absorb an incident and continue operating while reconstituting, emerged as the defining characteristic of a credible cyber defense posture for both military and civilian infrastructure. Carahsoft partners offering identity verification and cyber resilience solutions such as Socure, Cympire and RAKIA bring targeted capabilities to help agencies and critical infrastructure operators meet that standard.  

Charting the Course for Cyber Dominance 

TechNet Cyber 2026 reinforced that sustained dominance in cyberspace requires synchronized progress across policy, technology, workforce, architecture and partnerships. The integration of cyber across all domains, the operationalization of Zero Trust, the purposeful adoption of AI, a reimagined force generation model and a new paradigm for industry collaboration are interconnected elements of a comprehensive transformation.  

As Carahsoft, The Trusted Government IT Solutions Provider™, continues supporting the Government’s cybersecurity and IT modernization priorities, the insights from TechNet Cyber 2026 inform how industry can best partner with the joint force to deliver capabilities that drive cyber dominance.  

 For more information on Carahsoft and our industry-leading cybersecurity technology partners, visit our cybersecurity solutions portfolio.   

Contact the cybersecurity team at CyberSecurity@carahsoft.com or (571) 591-6111 to discuss how Carahsoft’s technology partners can support your cyber mission requirements. 

The Intersection of AI and Supply Chain Security in State and Local Government

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State and Local Governments spend an estimated $4.5 trillion annually on procurement. While third-party vendors, such as contractors and software providers, are vital for essential Government services, each introduces potential risks, necessitating robust supply chain security measures.

That’s where applications of artificial intelligence (AI) offer value. As the number of vendors and risks increases, State and Local organizations can no longer rely solely on legacy systems to manage supply chain risks. Some are turning to AI to monitor their supply chains, detect anomalies and respond to potential threats.

However, because State and Local Governments are accountable to the public, decision-makers must balance AI’s potential benefits with strong governance, transparency and risk management strategies to promote trust. Here’s a look at the applications of AI in supply chain security to inform your decision-making.

AI Applications in Supply Chain Security Management

AI systems are not a foreign technology in Government operations. Dearborn, Michigan, uses generative AI-powered translation tools across its digital services to boost accessibility, while Raleigh, North Carolina, uses machine learning to predict municipal water breaks.

These technologies are also making their way into risk management, with leaders increasingly using AI in Government programs to enhance supply chain security. Here are several common AI use cases.

Supply Chain Visibility

State and Local Government supply chains are often extensive and interconnected. For example, vendors providing automated vehicle solutions to Government agencies may rely on networks of sensor manufacturers and software developers. Cloud service providers (CSPs) often partner with infrastructure providers to expand their capabilities, while software vendors may outsource parts of their operations, such as IT support. 

AI tools help review such vendors’ disclosures, highlighting dependencies that might go unnoticed when relying solely on manual analysis. This level of visibility can support more informed decision-making. For example, if a review reveals that a potential software provider partners with a vendor with a history of cyberattacks, you’d know to consider other options for your organization’s cybersecurity.

Continued Vendor Risk Assessments

With State and Local Governments facing rising cybersecurity risks, organizations can’t afford to wait for periodic vendor reviews. Risk assessments need to be continuous, which AI-powered tools can facilitate.

These tools use natural language processing (NLP) to analyze large volumes of incoming data from vendor contracts, security ratings, vulnerability disclosures and compliance information. Machine learning systems can also score vendors’ risk profiles and highlight suppliers whose risk levels change over time to promote early intervention. 

Anomaly Detection

Cyberattacks often have early warning signs. For example, you might experience unusual login activity from your vendors’ accounts, unexpected software updates or unnecessary data transfers if hackers compromise a system in your supply chain.

AI systems are now helping organizations catch such red flags. They scan vendor systems for anomalies and provide early warning signals before attacks escalate.

Incident Response

Speed is everything when it comes to security threats. The faster your organization responds to an identified threat, the lower its risk of disrupting operations and jeopardizing sensitive information, such as constituents’ personal details.

State and Local institutions are using AI-powered security solutions to speed up their responses. These solutions can scan numerous vendor systems simultaneously, identify affected areas and initiate containment efforts.

For example, if the tools detect unusual supplier traffic, they can isolate compromised vendor endpoints or restrict the supplier’s access to your data. AI-supported responses are especially valuable for State and Local Governments because budget constraints force many to operate without dedicated cybersecurity teams.

Risk Forecasting

Some State and Local organizations respond to supply chain security threats only after incidents occur. The problem with reactive responses is that they can jeopardize Government services and data security if they’re too slow.

Agencies are moving from a reactive to a more proactive approach by using AI. AI tools can analyze huge volumes of historical data to identify patterns that signal risk. They can then scan your systems for these patterns and bring your security team’s attention to potential threats before they materialize. With essential Public Sector operations, such as transport and emergency services, riding on how well State and Local Governments operate, the ability to detect threats before they affect systems has a direct impact on the public’s wellbeing.

Addressing Transparency, Governance and Risk Considerations

State and Local Governments are accountable to the public. Therefore, they need to balance innovation with transparency, accountability, responsible governance and regulatory obligations. AI can assist in these areas.

Prioritize Transparency

Limited transparency is one of the biggest ethical concerns around AI use in Government. To alleviate this unease among stakeholders, avoid “black-box” AI systems. Instead, use solutions that offer clear explanations for their outputs or recommendations.

If your AI-powered platform flags a vendor in your supply chain as high-risk, it should highlight the factors that led to that assessment. This level of transparency improves decision-making and makes it easier for your procurement and security teams to defend their actions whenever questions arise.

Evaluate AI Vendors

AI vendors are also part of your supply chain. To reduce your risk exposure, conduct due diligence, just as you would with other suppliers. Key features to look for in an AI-powered supply chain management solution include strong security protocols, automated regulatory framework mapping, real-time end-to-end supply chain visibility and automated alerts. Also check for integrations with third-party applications, such as project management tools and regulatory knowledge repositories.

Establish Strong Governance Frameworks

State and Local Government institutions manage sensitive constituent data and infrastructure, necessitating clear policies for AI use. To establish strong governance:

  • Map AI initiatives to established frameworks: Align your AI policies with frameworks such as the National Institute of Standards and Technology Risk Management Framework (NIST RMF) to provide greater structure to your processes. NIST RFM establishes guidelines for vendor evaluations, risk monitoring and oversight, which can lend credibility to your AI-powered processes.
  • Create data tiers: Classify data into distinct levels and establish clear policies on the tiers AI systems can access. For example, you could classify data by confidentiality (public, internal, confidential or critical) and restrict AI’s access to highly sensitive datasets, such as those involving military applications.
  • Form an AI review board: Establish a team consisting of IT, cybersecurity, finance, legal and procurement experts to vet potential AI vendors and continually monitor tools.

Keep Humans in the Loop

The presence of AI systems doesn’t have to mean the absence of human input. In fact, it shouldn’t. An ideal supply chain security management system balances AI with human expertise:

  • Ask human experts to determine acceptable risk levels for your vendors, and use AI to assess their exposure.
  • Leverage AI capabilities, such as deep learning, for large-scale document processing and threat pattern recognition, but maintain human input in decision-making.
  • Have your risk management and security teams review AI tools’ output and recommendations before acting on them.

For smooth AI-human collaborations, provide AI literacy training to your teams. Successful and responsible AI adoption depends on your workforce’s understanding of the technology’s capabilities, limitations and governance requirements.

Strengthen Supply Chain Security With AI

With State and Local Governments relying on vast networks of third-party vendors, AI-powered supply chain security management has become invaluable. AI tools enhance everything from supply chain visibility to risk and fraud detection, enabling institutions to continually offer smooth services to their communities.

Some stakeholders might have ethical concerns over the applications of AI. To alleviate these concerns, it’s crucial to implement strong transparency, governance and accountability measures.

Learn how AI can strengthen Public Sector supply chains with Onspring’s platform and book a demo today.

Carahsoft Technology Corp. is The Trusted Government IT Solutions Provider, supporting Public Sector organizations across Federal, State and Local Government agencies and Education and Healthcare markets. As the Master Government Aggregator for our vendor partners, including Onspring, we deliver solutions for Geospatial, Cybersecurity, MultiCloud, DevSecOps, Artificial Intelligence, Customer Experience and Engagement, Open Source and more. Working with resellers, systems integrators and consultants, our sales and marketing teams provide industry leading IT products, services and training through hundreds of contract vehicles. Explore the Carahsoft Blog to learn more about the latest trends in Government technology markets and solutions, as well as Carahsoft’s ecosystem of partner thought-leaders.

The Top 5 Insights for Government from GovExperience Summit 2026

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Government service delivery is no longer just a concept; it has become an operational necessity. That was the core message from leaders across Federal, State and Local Government who gathered at the 2026 GovExperience Summit, hosted by Carahsoft Technology Corporation. From the Department of Transportation (DOT) to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to the General Services Administration’s (GSA) Federal Acquisition Service to State and Local senior officials, speakers shared how their agencies are moving beyond the art of the possible and into the art of the probable, hardwiring real data pipelines, deploying agentic artificial intelligence (AI) and building constituent trust at scale. The summit brought together the entire ecosystem needed to make Government modernization a reality: technology, procurement and the human experience.  

Here are the most actionable insights from the day. 

When CX Becomes the Mission: Building a Culture That Lasts 

One of the most consistent themes across the summit was that customer experience (CX) can no longer function as a standalone initiative or a compliance checkbox. Dr. Linda Davis, Chief Veteran Officer at the VA, described how her office has spent a decade hardwiring CX principles directly into agency culture, embedding them in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), tying them to employee performance plans and measuring outcomes publicly each quarter. The VA’s approach underscores that sustainable CX transformation begins with cultural change, not technological change. As Dr. Davis put it, “it starts with the change in the culture and the people, both those who are providing the services and those who you are serving.” This philosophy has allowed the VA, the largest integrated healthcare system in the country, to outperform Private Sector hospitals on star ratings while serving one of the most diverse constituent populations in Government. The key is to ensure that every stakeholder, from frontline staff to agency leadership, views their work through the lens of the constituent they serve.  

Beyond the Front Door: Why End-to-End Digitization Matters 

A recurring challenge raised across multiple panels was the tendency of agencies to modernize only what constituents see, such as the website, the chatbot and the intake form, while leaving back-end systems untouched. Matt Passos, Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at the Department of Commerce (DOC), was direct: “A lot of times we tend to digitize just the front end…but in the back end a lot of times your staff is working hard to try to keep that up.” His recommendation was to deploy AI and automation across the entire technology stack, from intake to adjudication to notification, to deliver seamless end-to-end outcomes. Travis Thomas, Chief Product and Technology Officer at DOT, echoed this with a concrete example: a grants portal delivered on time and on budget was ultimately deemed a failed product because local municipalities found it so confusing that it delayed their ability to secure funding for urgent infrastructure repairs. The key takeaway is to shift how success is measured. Instead of focusing on whether a system was delivered, organizations should evaluate whether it actually led to measurable improvements in the constituent experience. 

AI Works Best When Deployed with Precision and a Human in the Loop 

Enthusiasm for AI was matched throughout the day by an equal emphasis on disciplined, use-case-driven deployment. Matt Gonzales, Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) and Presidential Fellow at the White House, offered a practical framework: identify your process bottlenecks first, then apply AI to the specific problem. “For you to use AI, you really need to know your use case, your processes, before you want to throw AI into it,” he advised. One panelist described how AI tools were used to ingest and group thousands of public regulatory comments, reducing review time from several months to a few weeks, while keeping a human reviewer in the loop throughout. In cybersecurity, AI-driven alert aggregation was highlighted as a means of reducing alert fatigue in Security Operations Centers (SOC), surfacing only the most actionable threats for human review. At DOT, AI-enabled “cognitive offloading” for civil engineers, summarizing lengthy inspection documents to surface anomalies, drove AI tool adoption from 30% to 70% of users in just 30 days. Across every panel, the message was consistent: AI amplifies human decision-making; it does not replace it. Successful agencies start small, iterate in sprints and scale what works.  

Data Foundations and Interoperability Unlock Proactive Service Delivery 

Across the Federal, State and Local Government panels, leaders agreed that the single greatest barrier to personalized, proactive service delivery is fragmented data. Natalie Evans Harris, State Chief Data Officer (CDO) for Maryland, challenged the prevailing assumption that breaking down silos requires consolidating everything into one system. Instead, she advocated for building the connective infrastructure, “the roads,” that allow agencies to share data at the intersection points that matter without dismantling the specialized repositories each agency depends on. The results of this approach are already tangible: Maryland’s integrated benefits platform allows residents to apply once and receive proactive eligibility notifications across multiple programs through automated back-end matching.  

John Burstler, formerly of the VA’s Veterans Experience Office, described how a cross-agency customer data platform, pulling information from the Department of War (DoW), Social Security Administration (SSA), Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), enabled the VA to enroll three million of five million previously unenrolled veterans in benefits between 2022 and 2024. Dartanian Smith Williams, CDO for the City of Baltimore, reinforced that this principle applies at the local level as well: coordinating data between departments enables smoother operations, reduces redundancy and frees budget for additional investment in constituent services. Building these data foundations is not glamorous work, but it is the prerequisite for everything that follows. 

Omnichannel Engagement and Cloud Infrastructure Must be Built for Trust 

The afternoon’s cloud and digital services panel, featuring leaders from the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA), the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and more, brought the conversation back to a foundational question: how does Government earn and maintain constituent trust in every channel?  John Hale, Chief of Product Management and Development at DISA, described the DoW’s evolution from treating cloud as “just another hosting platform” to embracing a hybrid cloud model that fuses on-premises and commercial capabilities to support decision makers at mission speed.  

Vijay D’Souza of GAO offered a broader observation: successful cloud adoption requires more than spinning up applications; it demands specialized staff training, defined governance and clear performance metrics tied to mission outcomes.  A real-world example highlights the stakes: one of the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) 38 designated high-impact service providers still directs constituents to a form with a disclaimer that responses may not be received. The alternative, an omnichannel model that connects chat, voice, video, Customer Relationship Management (CRM) data and AI-assisted escalation, is within reach today. Twenty percent of the U.S. population speaks a language other than English. Accessibility, real-time sentiment analysis and seamless case continuity are not optional features for high-impact agencies. They are baseline requirements for delivering Government services that meet the expectations of a modern public.  

The GovExperience Summit 2026 made one thing clear: the agencies making the greatest strides in constituent service are those that align technology, data infrastructure and workforce culture toward a single, measurable outcome: trust. As the Trusted Government IT Solutions Provider ™, Carahsoft helps agencies access the full portfolio of tools required to operationalize that vision, from cloud and AI platforms to CX technologies, all through established contract vehicles that simplify procurement.  

Explore Carahsoft’s Customer Experience Technology portfolio of leading solutions that support Government modernization priorities, including AI, cloud infrastructure, digital services and advanced analytics.  

Contact the Customer Experience Team at CX@Carahsoft.com to discuss how Carahsoft’s technology partners can support your agency’s mission requirements.

The Post-Quantum Shift Has Begun: Why 2026–2027 Will Redefine Cybersecurity Modernization

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For years, post-quantum cryptography (PQC) was viewed as an important but distant cybersecurity challenge; something to monitor, study and prepare for eventually. That mindset is changing rapidly. Today, the convergence of AI-driven cyber escalation, critical infrastructure modernization and finalized NIST standards is transforming PQC from a future research topic into an immediate operational priority.

From Future Concern to Immediate Priority

Across Government and industry, organizations are beginning to recognize that many of the cryptographic assumptions underlying modern digital infrastructure were built for a different era. Legacy systems were never designed to withstand the combined pressures of nation-state cyber attacks, hyperconnected operational environments and the accelerating pace of artificial intelligence (AI). As a result, 2026 and 2027 are shaping up to be the defining years when the market transitions from post-quantum awareness into active execution.

2026–2027: The Tipping Point for Quantum-Safe Modernization

The next two years will likely become the tipping point for quantum-safe modernization. In 2026, most organizations will focus heavily on cryptographic inventory initiatives, risk assessments, pilot programs and crypto-agility planning. Agencies and enterprises alike are beginning to realize that before they can protect themselves from future cryptographic disruption, they first need visibility into where vulnerable cryptography actually exists within their environments. This is a far more complicated challenge than many initially expected. Cryptographic dependencies are deeply embedded across networks, applications, APIs, cloud services, firmware, identity systems, industrial controls and security appliances. In many cases, organizations simply do not possess a complete understanding of how extensively legacy encryption is woven throughout their operations.

By 2027, the conversation is expected to shift decisively toward broader deployment. Quantum-safe overlays for remote access, edge-to-cloud encryption, Zero Trust modernization and operational technology segmentation will increasingly move into funded programs across Federal agencies, utilities, telecom providers, financial institutions and critical infrastructure operators. The market is beginning to move beyond theoretical planning toward practical implementation because organizations now understand that the risks are no longer hypothetical.

“Harvest Now, Decrypt Later” and the Rise of AI-Driven Threats

One of the most significant drivers behind this urgency is the growing concern surrounding “Harvest Now, Decrypt Later” attacks. Adversaries are believed to already be collecting enormous volumes of encrypted Government, defense, financial, healthcare and infrastructure-related data with the expectation that future quantum computing capabilities may eventually decrypt the information retroactively. For organizations managing long-life sensitive data, the implications are profound. Infrastructure lifecycles often extend twenty or thirty years, while certain forms of sensitive information may retain strategic value even longer. By the time quantum computing fully matures, it may already be too late to protect data that was transmitted years earlier using vulnerable cryptographic methods.

At the same time, AI is fundamentally changing the speed and scale of cyber operations. AI-enabled systems are dramatically accelerating vulnerability discovery, infrastructure mapping, credential exploitation, malware adaptation and social engineering campaigns. Legacy cybersecurity architectures were not built to defend against threats evolving at machine speed. Meanwhile, AI itself is becoming deeply integrated into critical infrastructure, industrial automation, defense systems, smart grids, logistics networks and operational technology environments. These systems increasingly depend on trusted machine-to-machine communications and secure data integrity. If cryptographic trust begins to erode, AI-enabled operational systems themselves become vulnerable to manipulation, spoofing, data poisoning and operational disruption. In many respects, AI may actually be accelerating the need for PQC faster than quantum computing itself.

Hyperconnectivity Is Expanding the Attack Surface

This challenge is becoming even more urgent as critical infrastructure grows increasingly hyperconnected. Utilities, pipelines, manufacturing plants, transportation systems, municipalities, healthcare providers and telecom operators are all rapidly modernizing through cloud adoption, edge computing, IoT deployments, distributed operations, remote access pathways and private 5G architectures. While this connectivity creates tremendous operational efficiencies and new business opportunities, it also dramatically expands the attack surface. Many of these environments still rely on aging VPNs, legacy PKI infrastructures, unsupported firmware, flat network architectures and long-life industrial systems that were never designed with quantum resilience in mind.

A New Cybersecurity Model: From Discovery to Migration

At the Federal level, procurement and modernization pressure are also accelerating market adoption. Agencies and regulated industries are increasingly expected to demonstrate cryptographic visibility, migration planning, vendor readiness and crypto-agility. Procurement conversations are evolving rapidly. The question is no longer simply whether a vendor supports PQC. Organizations are now being asked to explain their migration strategy, inventory methodology, remediation approach and long-term cryptographic roadmap. This shift is creating significant momentum across Federal modernization programs, defense initiatives, telecom infrastructure, energy systems and managed security services.

What is emerging is a new operational model for cybersecurity modernization: discover, assess, prioritize, protect and migrate. Organizations that begin this process early are likely to benefit from reduced long-term remediation costs, improved operational resilience, stronger regulatory readiness and greater infrastructure trustworthiness. Early movers may also gain competitive procurement advantages and stronger positioning with customers, regulators, insurers and investors. Conversely, organizations that delay action risk expanding technical debt, compressed migration timelines, increased operational exposure and growing regulatory pressure.

Quantum Readiness Is Now a Business Imperative

Post-quantum readiness is no longer simply a cybersecurity discussion. It is rapidly becoming a business resilience, operational continuity and national security priority. The organizations that lead over the next decade will not necessarily be those with the largest technology budgets, but those that establish cryptographic visibility, crypto-agility and quantum-safe migration pathways before disruption forces reactive action.

The market transition has already begun. The question organizations now face is not whether they should prepare for the post-quantum era, but how quickly they can act before the rest of the market catches up.

Secure your infrastructure for the quantum era. Discover how Patero’s CryptoQoR™ can protect your critical communications today with seamless, future-ready encryption.

Contact Patero@carahsoft.com for more information about how to get started.

Carahsoft Technology Corp. is The Trusted Government IT Solutions Provider, supporting Public Sector organizations across Federal, State and Local Government agencies and Education and Healthcare markets. As the Master Government Aggregator for our vendor partners, including Patero, we deliver solutions for Geospatial, Cybersecurity, MultiCloud, DevSecOps, Artificial Intelligence, Customer Experience and Engagement, Open Source and more. Working with resellers, systems integrators and consultants, our sales and marketing teams provide industry leading IT products, services and training through hundreds of contract vehicles. Explore the Carahsoft Blog to learn more about the latest trends in Government technology markets and solutions, as well as Carahsoft’s ecosystem of partner thought-leaders.”

Better Together: How Nutanix and Omnissa Are Building the Modern Government Workspace

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Public Sector IT leaders navigate rapid change including geopolitical shifts, evolving cyber threats, vendor consolidation and pressure to do more with constrained budgets. For agencies modernizing end-user computing (EUC) and digital workspace environments, progress increasingly depends on integrated infrastructure, flexible architecture and trusted partnerships. Nutanix and Omnissa, distributed by Carahsoft, The Trusted It Solutions Provider™, deliver a combined platform that reduces complexity, accelerates deployment and keeps agency employees productive and secure.

A Partnership Built for the Public Sector

Carahsoft is the bridge between technology innovators and Government agencies, providing procurement vehicles, technical resources and partner support that simplify adoption. That relationship extends to Nutanix and Omnissa, with Carahsoft serving as a distribution partner that helps Federal, State, Local and Education agencies access both platforms through streamlined procurement. The partnership spans years of General Services Administration (GSA) Schedule contracting support, proof-of-concept assistance and technical resources that help agencies evaluate, deploy and scale their environments with confidence.

Nutanix brings a unified, software-defined infrastructure platform that combines compute, storage and virtualization into one hyper-converged stack. Rather than managing firmware updates across siloed server, storage and networking components, agencies can use Nutanix Prism Central and its Lifecycle Manager (LCM) to manage lifecycles holistically, reducing administrative overhead and compatibility risks. Nutanix’s cloud platform, NC2, also enables consistent operations across on-premises environments, AWS, Azure and Google Clouds without requiring agencies to re-architect their applications.

Omnissa is fully focused on the modern digital workspace. Through Workspace ONE, Omnissa unifies management of virtual desktops (VDI), mobile devices and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) applications while providing enterprise-grade security, conditional access and unified endpoint management (UEM). Omnissa also uses AI to proactively monitor and improve the digital employee experience, identifying performance issues before they affect end users.

A Stronger Solution Together

The integration between Nutanix and Omnissa Horizon on AHV, Nutanix’s native hypervisor, reached general availability at the end of December 2025 and has seen significant market response. Its beta program was the largest and most successful in Horizon’s history, and within weeks of general availability, the combined solution had already scaled to over 70,000 users. That momentum reflects real demand from agencies seeking a high-performance, fully supported alternative that avoids the constraints of legacy vendor agreements.

The technical case for combining the platforms centers on optimization. Running Horizon on Nutanix’s hyper-converged infrastructure positions compute and storage in the same stack, delivering measurably stronger VDI performance than traditional three-tier architectures. The operational experience combines Nutanix’s infrastructure management through Prism with Horizon’s app delivery and provisioning capabilities, including App Volumes, giving IT teams a more unified view across their virtual desktop environment. The outcome is faster deployment, lower total cost of ownership and reduced complexity.

Nutanix and Omnissa Better Together Blog, embedded image, 2026

Rethinking How Apps Are Delivered

One meaningful Omnissa capability is its apps-on-demand delivery model through App Volumes. Many agencies still use persistent desktop environments, pre-loading large application libraries onto each VDI instance whether or not they are needed. For engineering teams managing hundreds of applications, this creates unnecessary bloat, complicates patching and introduces avoidable performance overhead.

Omnissa shifts that model by delivering applications on demand, so they are available when needed without the administrative burden of persistent installation. This speeds patching, reduces the management footprint and gives IT teams tighter control over the application environment.

Addressing the Evolving Demands of Government IT

The Nutanix and Omnissa partnership is designed to grow with agency requirements. Hybrid deployments spanning on-premises data centers and cloud environments are now the norm, and both platforms support that reality. Nutanix Cloud Cluster (NC2) enables Nutanix workloads to run natively on AWS and Azure while maintaining consistent management while Omnissa Horizon extends seamlessly across those environments so agencies can place workloads based on performance, compliance and cost requirements.

Licensing flexibility reinforces that adaptability. Nutanix offers End-User Computing (EUC) licensing on a per-user basis so agencies can license per user or by core count. For organizations with power users who need high-performance environments, this model delivers direct cost savings, a meaningful consideration for Public Sector agencies that must justify every technology investment.

Security is embedded, not added on. Nutanix incorporates Nutanix Flow Network Security micro-segmentation and Zero Trust networking capabilities at the infrastructure layer while Omnissa brings conditional access policies, endpoint compliance enforcement and AI-driven threat monitoring at the workspace layer. Together, they create a layered security posture that supports the rigorous Government compliance demands.

Simplifying the Path to Modernization

For agencies running VMware or Citrix environments and navigating the complexity of transition costs, structured migration support removes a common barrier to change. Nutanix and Omnissa both offer migration tools, validated reference designs, pre-sales architects and post-sales services teams designed to move agencies from existing platforms to the integrated stack. Environment sizing tools help partners and agencies right-size deployments before committing resources, reducing the risk of over- or under-provisioning.

Preparing for an AI-Driven Future

Looking ahead, both organizations are investing in AI integration as a core platform capability, an approach particularly relevant for Public Sector agencies working to adopt AI responsibly. Nutanix supports AI and containerized workloads on the same infrastructure used for VDI, using Nutanix GPT-in-a-Box and reducing the need for separate AI infrastructure. Running AI workloads in a virtualized environment has also shown total cost of ownership (TCO) advantages over bare-metal deployments.

Omnissa is building AI into autonomous digital workspace management, enabling more self-healing, self-optimizing environments that detect and resolve performance issues before they impact productivity. For agencies exploring AI use cases, VDI environments offer a controlled deployment path that routes sensitive data within agency boundaries rather than public cloud AI services.

For Public Sector agencies evaluating their next phase of IT modernization, the combination of Nutanix’s infrastructure simplicity, Omnissa’s workspace management depth and Carahsoft’s procurement and support ecosystem represents a practical, proven path forward.

To learn more about the Nutanix and Omnissa integrated solution, including the general availability of Omnissa Horizon 8 support for Nutanix AHV, visit the Omnissa blog.

Carahsoft Technology Corp. is The Trusted Government IT Solutions Provider, supporting Public Sector organizations across Federal, State and Local Government agencies and Education and Healthcare markets. As the Master Government Aggregator for our vendor partners, including Nutanix and Omnissa, we deliver solutions for Geospatial, Cybersecurity, MultiCloud, DevSecOps, Artificial Intelligence, Customer Experience and Engagement, Open Source and more. Working with resellers, systems integrators and consultants, our sales and marketing teams provide industry leading IT products, services and training through hundreds of contract vehicles. Explore the Carahsoft Blog to learn more about the latest trends in Government technology markets and solutions, as well as Carahsoft’s ecosystem of partner thought-leaders.

Making Existing Government Intelligence Systems Agentic Without Losing Control

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How an Agentic Intelligence Fabric connects the tools agencies already use.

Government and enterprise intelligence teams do not usually suffer from having too few tools.

They suffer from having too many tools that do not work together.

An analyst may work across OSINT platforms, risk intelligence feeds, investigative databases, geospatial tools, link analysis software, internal knowledge bases, case management systems, spreadsheets, ticketing workflows, chat channels and reporting templates.

Each system may be valuable. Each may be approved, procured, trained and trusted for a specific part of the mission.

But the work between them is often manual.

Analysts copy data from one tool into another. They reconcile entity names by hand. They compare screenshots, exports, notes, alerts, maps and source references across disconnected environments. They merge findings into a case narrative after the fact. They preserve evidence in one place, make judgments in another and produce reports in a third.

This is where intelligence work slows down.

It is also where risk enters.

The next step for Government AI is not to replace trusted platforms with a standalone AI application.

The next step is to connect existing systems into governed agentic workflows that can retrieve context, compare signals, merge findings, preserve evidence and support human judgment without losing auditability or control.

That is the role of an Agentic Intelligence Fabric.

The Real Problem Is Tool Fragmentation

OSINT is essential to modern intelligence and risk work. Publicly available information, media, infrastructure data, corporate records, social platforms, geospatial signals, breach data and live event streams can all help analysts understand what is changing in the world.

But most organizations do not consume OSINT through one clean workflow.

They consume it through many tools.

One tool may surface an entity. Another may provide enrichment. Another may hold geospatial context. Another may contain internal history. Another may hold the case file. Another may be used for reporting. Another may be where the final decision is documented.

The problem is not that these tools are useless. The problem is that they rarely share operational context.

They do not automatically know that two slightly different names refer to the same organization. They do not preserve the analyst’s reasoning across systems. They do not carry uncertainty from discovery into reporting. They do not maintain one accountable path from source to case to decision.

When tools are disconnected, analysts become the integration layer.

That is expensive, slow and fragile.

It creates practical questions that matter under pressure:

  • Where did this claim come from?
  • What evidence supports it?
  • What weakens it?
  • Which tool produced this signal?
  • Which system has the most recent context?
  • Which duplicate entity should be merged?
  • What assumptions are being made?
  • What was copied manually?
  • Who accepted those assumptions?
  • What decision is this work meant to support?

These are not cosmetic workflow issues. They are intelligence quality issues.

Merging data is not clerical work when the decision depends on whether the merge is correct.

If the wrong records are joined, a weak correlation can become an assessment. If source context is lost, a claim can become harder to challenge. If evidence is copied without provenance, the output may look clean while becoming less defensible.

The real problem is not OSINT alone.

The real problem is disconnected intelligence operations.

Agentic AI Changes the Workflow

AI agents create a practical way to address this problem.

Instead of using AI only to summarize a document or answer a question, agentic systems can perform sequences of work across approved tools: retrieving context, calling APIs, comparing entities, checking case history, preserving source references, preparing analyst-ready outputs, flagging uncertainty and routing tasks to the right human decision point.

That matters because the analyst’s real burden is often not one difficult query.

It is the repeated movement across systems.

An agent can help search an approved OSINT platform, compare the finding with internal case context, check whether an entity already exists in another system, retrieve relevant prior reporting, preserve source references, identify contradictions and prepare a structured draft for analyst review.

The agent is not replacing the underlying tools.

It is operating across them.

But agentic AI also introduces a control problem.

The more an agent can do, the more important it becomes to define what it is allowed to do, when, why and under whose authority.

An agent with broad tool access and weak governance is not operational maturity. It is risk. It can use the wrong tool, trust the wrong source, merge the wrong entities, lose the evidence chain, summarize uncertainty away or create outputs that are difficult to defend after the fact.

In serious environments, agentic AI needs more than model capability.

It needs a fabric that connects tools while enforcing boundaries.

The Missing Layer Between Tools and Decisions

Most organizations do not have a single intelligence system. They have a landscape of systems.

Some are specialized OSINT platforms. Some are investigative tools. Some are internal data repositories. Some are knowledge bases, ticketing systems, reporting workflows, watch floors or classified and controlled environments. Many are already embedded in procurement, security, training and operational practice.

Replacing all of that is rarely realistic and often undesirable.

The more practical path is to add an operating layer that can connect existing platforms, tools, data sources, agents, evidence, cases and human approvals into one governed workflow.

That is what an Agentic Intelligence Fabric is designed to do.

An AIF is not just another AI application sitting beside existing systems. It is the connective layer that lets approved agents work across existing systems without surrendering control.

At minimum, the layer must do three things. It must connect approved external and internal systems so that governed agents can work across them—preserving case context, source references and entity resolution across tool boundaries. It must govern access through role-based controls, audit trails for both agent and human actions and intervention points tied to real operational risk. And it must deploy in the environments where the mission actually runs—cloud, sovereign cloud, on-premises, air-gapped or edge—without forcing the buyer to compromise on security posture or sovereignty.

The point is not to automate intelligence away from analysts.

The point is to let analysts operate faster while keeping judgment, accountability and mission authority where they belong.

Where the Work Runs Matters as Much as What Runs

Federal missions do not run in one environment.

The same workflow may need to operate in cloud today, in a sovereign or Government cloud tomorrow, in an on-premises environment for sensitive cases and air-gapped or at the edge for classified or forward-deployed work.

A fabric layer earns its name only if the operating model—cases, evidence, controls, agents—is preserved across all of them. Anything less forces the agency to maintain different intelligence operations in different boundaries, with different audit posture and different governance gaps.

Deployment is not an afterthought to the workflow. It is part of the workflow.

A Practical Example

Consider an analyst preparing a targeting assessment ahead of an inbound shipment. The case begins with one question: does this consignment, this consignor or this route warrant a closer look?

Answering that question pulls the analyst across five systems—an OSINT platform for entity discovery, an internal targeting database, a sanctions screening tool, a trade-data source and a case management application. The work gets done. But the evidence trail lives across five exports, the entity matches are made by hand and the assumptions behind each step are remembered, not recorded.

The goal should not be to replace any of those systems with a separate AI interface.

The better model is to let governed agents work across them.

A governed agent can retrieve the entity context, surface candidate matches across systems, preserve source references, highlight the sanctions hits that need escalation, identify contradictions and prepare a structured draft for the analyst’s review.

The analyst remains responsible for the assessment.

The system preserves what the agent did, which tool it used, which records it merged, what it ignored, what assumptions it made and where the human accepted, changed or rejected the output.

In this model, agentic AI does not become an uncontrolled layer of automation. It becomes a governed extension of the operational workflow.

That is the difference between using AI as a sidecar and operating AI as the connective tissue between intelligence tools.

Why This Matters for Government Adoption

Government AI adoption will not be decided only by model quality.

It will be decided by whether AI can work inside real operational constraints: existing systems, procurement realities, security controls, audit requirements, human review, deployment restrictions and the need to defend decisions under scrutiny.

Standalone AI tools can demonstrate impressive capability in isolation. But Government work rarely happens in isolation.

The work happens across systems, authorities, policies, teams and environments. The AI architecture has to respect that reality.

This is why the next generation of intelligence systems needs to unify four layers:

  • OSINT as a source layer.
  • Agentic AI as the workflow capability that can operate across tools.
  • Intelligence as the governed production of judgment, evidence and action.
  • Agentic Intelligence Fabric as the operating layer that connects existing systems, data, agents, cases and decisions.

When those layers are separated, organizations get more tools, more interfaces and more risk. When they are connected properly, AI can help existing investments become more useful without weakening control.

From AI Tools to Agentic Operations

The Government and enterprise market does not need AI for its own sake.

It needs AI that can operate responsibly inside mission workflows.

That means agents must be able to use approved tools, but not exceed their authority. They must accelerate analysis, but not hide uncertainty. They must produce outputs, but keep those outputs attached to evidence. They must work across platforms, but leave a trail that can be audited, challenged and reviewed.

This is the category WhoMeta is building toward with Arqent: an Agentic Intelligence Fabric for evidence-native, human-governed, sovereign intelligence operations.

The future of intelligence will not be defined by the organization that collects the most data or deploys the most AI features.

It will be defined by the organization that can connect its existing systems into accountable agentic workflows and still prove what it knows.

Ready to connect your intelligence systems without losing control? Explore how WhoMeta’s Agentic Intelligence Fabric brings your existing tools into one governed, auditable workflow.

Carahsoft Technology Corp. is The Trusted Government IT Solutions Provider, supporting Public Sector organizations across Federal, State and Local Government agencies and Education and Healthcare markets. As the Master Government Aggregator for our vendor partners, including WhoMeta, we deliver solutions for Geospatial, Cybersecurity, MultiCloud, DevSecOps, Artificial Intelligence, Customer Experience and Engagement, Open Source and more. Working with resellers, systems integrators and consultants, our sales and marketing teams provide industry leading IT products, services and training through hundreds of contract vehicles. Explore the Carahsoft Blog to learn more about the latest trends in Government technology markets and solutions, as well as Carahsoft’s ecosystem of partner thought-leaders.

Top 7 State and Local Contract Vehicles to Support Your SLG Fiscal Year Requirements

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As the end of the fiscal year approaches, State and Local Governments (SLG) and education institutions are ramping up purchasing to ensure every allocated budget dollar is spent and their organization is prepared for further IT advancements in the coming year. Leveraging the right contract vehicles can streamline procurement processes, ensuring timely and efficient acquisition of necessary technologies and services. These contracts can also provide technology vendors and resellers unique opportunities to expand their Public Sector businesses.  

Below, we explore the top contract vehicles that SLGs and education institutions are using as they close out their fiscal year with their preferred reseller partner this month.  

1. NASPO ValuePoint  

NASPO ValuePoint is the cooperative purchasing arm of the National Association for State Procurement Officials, designed to provide access to the best possible IT solutions. It is considered to be the nation’s most significant public contracting cooperative. The contract offers a wide variety of cloud solutions, including Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS) and Software as a Service (SaaS).  

Carahsoft’s Contract: NASPO ValuePoint contract #AR2472 includes thousands of technology vendors.  

Who Can Use It: State and Local Governments, municipalities and public education entities (K-12 and higher education).  

2. GSA Cooperative Purchasing Program  

The General Services Administration (GSA) Cooperative Purchasing Program  grants SLGs access to Federal GSA Schedule contracts for IT solutions and professional services. The GSA Cooperative Purchasing Program provides a streamlined procurement process for SLGs to purchase IT solutions, often with pre-negotiated and cost-effective pricing structures.  

Carahsoft’s Contract: GSA Schedule #47QSWA18D008F, aggregates solutions from many technology vendors.  

Who Can Use It: State and Local Governments.  

3. Texas Department of Information Resources (TX DIR)  

The Texas Department of Information Resources (TX DIR) has established a Cooperative Contracts Purchasing Program which offers a wide range of product offerings, services and technology solutions to Public Sector customers in Texas and nationwide. The DIR contracts streamline the procurement process by handling all of the preliminary work upfront, making it easier for eligible entities to acquire a wide range of hardware, software, cloud solutions and professional IT services. Public organizations outside of Texas are also eligible to purchase through DIR contracts.  

Carahsoft Contract: Carahsoft holds eight TX DIR contracts, offering a wide variety of products and services from hundreds of technology vendors.  

Who Can Use It: State and Local Governments, public education and other public entities nationwide.  

Top 7 SLG Contracts Blog, embedded image, 2026

4. California Software Licensing Program (CA SLP)  

The California Software Licensing Program (CA SLP), established in 1994 and administered by the Department of General Services’ (DGS) Procurement Division provides SLGs within the state of California with access to discounted software licensing agreements. This vendor held contract expedites and simplifies the procurement process while supporting State Government modernization goals with a host of technology solutions.  

Carahsoft Contract: Carahsoft acts as a reseller on 19 CA SLP contracts, offering solutions ranging from data management to cybersecurity and more.  

Who Can Use It: State and Local Government agencies in California.  

5. E&I Cooperative Services  

E&I Cooperative Services is the largest and most experienced member-owned, non-profit purchasing cooperative focused on education. E&I provides education institutions with access to IT products and services, including learning management systems, classroom technologies and administrative software tailored to their unique needs.  

Carahsoft Contract: E&I Cooperative Services contract #EI00063-2021MA provides E&I members with cloud and managed service solutions and related IT products and services.  

Who Can Use It: E&I members and educational institutions, including K-12 schools, teaching hospitals, colleges, universities and some municipalities. 

6. OMNIA Partners Public Sector  

OMNIA Partners is one of the largest Public Sector cooperative purchasing organizations, providing comprehensive access to a wide variety of technology contracts across hardware, software and cloud solutions. The cooperative purchasing program is focused on efficiency, compliance and value, aiming to further streamline the procurement process for the Public Sector entities that leverage this contract.  

Carahsoft Contract: Carahsoft’s contracts with OMNIA Partners, #R240303 and #23-6692-01, provide SLGs and education institutions with access to technology from over 2000 vendors.  

Who Can Use It: State and Local Governments, public education institutions and nonprofits that are approved OMNIA partners.  

7. CoreTrust  

CoreTrust is a cooperative purchasing organization working together with public procurement leaders to create high quality, cooperative contracts that optimize cost savings, drive compliance and efficiency, providing effective outcomes to public sector agencies. CoreTrust cooperative contracts also actively support local labor markets, ensuring a holistic approach to sustainable growth and impact. 

By leveraging the CoreTrust suite of cooperative contracts, organizations gain access to contracts and discounts from leading suppliers of products and services across a wide variety of industries and benefit from a streamlined procurement process. 

Carahsoft Contract: CoreTrust 24COR-018GR offers members access to IT hardware, software, cloud solutions, compatible IT ancillary products, servers and professional IT services. 

Who Can Use It: State and Local Governments, K-12 and higher education, Tribal Governments in all 50 States/Commonwealths, D.C. and Puerto Rico 

Through leveraging these contract vehicles, SLGs and education institutions can easily find and purchase technologies that map to their modernization efforts while ensuring compliance and maximizing investments through their preferred resellers. As the fiscal year draws to a close, these contracts serve as a vital resource for timely and cost-effective procurement, driving end-of-year business to new heights and propelling Public Sector advancements.  

For more information on Carahsoft’s offerings under each of these contract vehicles, please reach out to contracts@carahsoft.com.  

The Top 5 Insights for Government from SOF Week 2026 

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Defense leaders, industry innovators and policy experts converged at SOF Week 2026 with a shared urgency: the Special Operations Forces (SOF) enterprise is transforming to meet an era defined by overlapping threats, convergence and speed. From the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (OASD) for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict’s (SO/LIC) five-priority framework to discussions about an increasingly transparent battlespace, panels and keynotes showed an enterprise striving to modernize at the speed of relevance. 

Across sessions, discussions highlighted the structural challenges facing the SOF community and the solutions emerging to address them, from autonomous systems and open source intelligence (OSINT) to acquisition reform and deeper operator-industry collaboration.  

Five critical insights define the path forward for special operations amid intensifying power competition. 

A Restructured SO/LIC Enterprise Is Organized Around Five Strategic Priorities 

SO/LIC leadership articulated a clear vision for the SOF enterprise creating asymmetric advantages in multi-domain effects, so the joint force wins decisively across the conflict spectrum. Organized around five priorities—people, policies, pioneering, partnerships and prudence—the framework establishes a blueprint for how the enterprise will resource, evolve and operate. Central to this vision is empowering Theater Special Operations Commands (TSOCs) with the authorities, resources and decision-making space to synchronize operations and adapt to rapidly evolving theater conditions. 

Acquisition reform is a defining enabler. SOF is positioned as the department-wide pathfinder for requirements and acquisition reform, using mechanisms such as Middle Tier Acquisition (MTA), other transaction authorities and commercial solution openings to field capabilities faster than traditional processes allow. The recently launched SOF Ventures initiative connects TSOCs, science and technology partners and interagency stakeholders with venture capital and private equity, positioning private investment as a direct force multiplier for national security priorities. 

Though SOF comprises just three percent of the joint force and less than two percent of the Department’s budget, it delivers outsized strategic impact. Every investment must be evaluated against clear objectives, including whether capabilities are properly resourced, effectively employed and aligned with long-term readiness and lethality requirements for active-duty forces and their families. The Center for Special Operations Analysis Capability (C-SOAC) team will bring independent, data-driven analysis of force design and investment to support those decisions. 

The Battlespace Has Become Fully Transparent and Adversaries Are Exploiting It 

Tom Swetman, Vice President of Janes, outlined how ubiquitous commercial data collection has rendered the battlespace transparent in ways legacy operational security frameworks were never designed to address. Satellite imagery, mobile device telemetry, social media metadata and commercially available information (CAI) now provide adversaries a persistent, low-cost intelligence capability that rivals traditional collection methods. Every environment is a collection environment, and the volume and fidelity of available data means hiding in the noise is no longer viable. 

Adversaries weaponize this environment through pattern-of-life and identity resolution, digital exhaust and metadata exploitation as well as pre-targeting individuals, families and supply chains. They treat OSINT as a formal discipline with dedicated methodology and resources, increasingly outpacing how U.S. forces integrate commercially available data into planning. Brandon Hough, Co-Founder of Anomaly Six, elaborated on the CAI layer, noting that procurement transparency requirements create a parallel vulnerability, enabling adversaries to map supply chains, identify critical suppliers and target the industrial base before a capability reaches deployment. 

Mitigation requires moving OSINT and CAI analysis from the margins into core mission planning. Signature management and intelligence collection plans must be developed collaboratively and red-teamed against real-world data environments from the outset of pre-deployment planning. Artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled auditing tools that continuously monitor the digital footprint of deploying forces are becoming operational necessities rather than optional enhancements. 

Agentic AI and Edge-Deployable Models Are Transforming Intelligence Delivery 

Across sessions, a clear consensus emerged: open source, commercially available and sensor data now exceed what human analysts can synthesize without AI. Agentic AI platforms that autonomously ingest, prioritize and deliver risk intelligence are moving from concept to operational deployment. New platforms enable real-time forecasting and interdiction analysis from mobile device and Software Development Kit (SDK) data. Leaders described the transition toward agentic risk intelligence as a fundamental shift in how the intelligence community approaches the volume and diffuse nature of modern signals. 

The practical insight centers on small language models (SLMs). Lightweight, hyper-tuned models deployable at the tactical edge—on vehicles, laptops or sensor platforms—compress the intelligence-to-action timeline without requiring connectivity to enterprise compute infrastructure. Panelists cited commercial platforms such as Snowflake, already used by defense partners for high-performance edge processing and operational environment modeling, as examples of commercial innovation outpacing Government-developed solutions. They called for those capabilities to be integrated into operational architectures rather than rebuilt from scratch. 

The integration challenge is equally important as the technology itself. Open source and commercially available intelligence capabilities must be embedded in the planning cycle from the outset, not layered on top of existing intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) collection. Delivering contextual, filtered and mission-relevant information through a unified interface is the operational standard industry partners and program offices must work toward to achieve meaningful decision advantage. 

Drone Dominance and Lethal Autonomy Define the Next Generation of SOF Lethality 

The Department of War’s (DoW) drone dominance initiative, backed by $1.1 billion to procure 200,000 small drones by 2027, reflects how drones are reshaping future conflict. SOF is positioned to play a pivotal role as an end-user and the pathfinder for validating autonomous systems before scaling across the joint force. The U.S. Special Operations Command’s (USSOCOM) designation as the joint force provider to the Defense Autonomy Working Group (DAWG)—a department-wide effort to integrate autonomous systems that solve combatant command problems—institutionalizes this role and places SOF at the center of autonomy doctrine development. 

Directed energy represents a complementary capability set. Leaders identified low-cost, small form factor laser systems and high-power microwave technologies as near-term priorities for counter-unmanned aerial system missions. With the underlying science largely proven, the remaining challenge is engineering systems with the cost, durability and range needed for distributed deployment across the force. The need to prioritize directed energy was established even before recent operational experience with drone swarms accelerated the timeline. 

AI’s role in targeting was addressed directly across panels. Aggregating intelligence at scale and speed, deconflicting with allied forces and streaming data into decision cycles enables a level of precision and lethality that was previously unattainable. Building the kill chain of the future means treating AI as an organizing principle for integrating intelligence, fires and maneuver from the outset of system design and operational planning. 

Closing the Industry-Operator Feedback Loop Accelerates Capability Delivery 

Dual-use technology developers showcased emerging capabilities, from piezoelectric energy harvesting systems that extend unmanned underwater vehicle endurance to AI-powered automatic target recognition platforms that reduce analysis timelines from hours to minutes. These companies share the challenge of navigating the gap between demonstrated capability and funded programs. Moving from proof of concept to fielded system remains one of the defense acquisition ecosystem’s most persistent friction points. 

Theater Edge Innovation Labs (TEILs) offer one structural response, moving problem-solving closer to the warfighter so industry partners can test and iterate against specific operational scenarios in days rather than months. The SOF enterprise extends this model into the private capital ecosystem, aligning venture and growth investment with urgent operational needs. Together with other rapid acquisition mechanisms, these initiatives are designed to keep the innovation pipeline flowing and compress the timeline from operator-identified gap to fielded solution. 

The critical enabler is a robust, structured feedback loop, which panelists argued that talent is as important as technology in sustaining it. Reducing friction in that pipeline, particularly around clearance timelines and accreditation processes, was identified as a high-priority structural change. Operators who engage directly with industry during testing create valuable data assets that accelerate model development and product refinement. Recognizing operational test data as a strategic asset is among the most consequential investments SOF can make. 

Pioneering the Path Forward for Special Operations 

SOF Week 2026 reinforced that SOF is not simply integrating new technologies onto existing formations. It is rethinking how it recruits, equips, trains and fights as a technologically advanced and strategically agile force. The five priorities articulated by SO/LIC leadership, the intelligence challenges of a transparent battlespace, the emergence of edge-deployable AI, the acceleration of lethal autonomous systems and the deepening of industry-operator partnerships represent interconnected pillars of a coherent modernization strategy. Sustained success will depend on aligned authorities, cultural transformation around data and technologies that translate strategic intent into operational and tactical advantage. 

As Carahsoft, The Trusted Government IT Solutions Provider®, continues supporting defense modernization, insights from SOF Week 2026 inform how industry can partner with SOF to deliver the capabilities required for operational advantage amid intensifying strategic competition. 

Explore Carahsoft’s Defense Technology portfolio of leading solutions that support SOF modernization priorities, including AI, cybersecurity, autonomous systems and advanced analytics. 

Contact the Defense Team at DOW@carahsoft.com to discuss how Carahsoft’s technology partners can support your mission. 

Student Safety and Success: Secure Communications In Education

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Teachers, administrators and other staff in education have many regulations to be aware of when communicating with and about students and parents. From the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) to a variety of regulations individual to each state, educators have both a legal and moral obligation to keep their communications transparent, auditable and policy compliant. MultiLine by Movius is a secure, cloud-based, cost-effective solution that provides a unique phone number for professional communications utilizing an educator’s personal device, all while establishing clear and strong boundaries between the two forms of communication.

Communication Channels: Not Just Between Teacher and Student

Communication is a vital part of an educator’s job. Being available for a student and for their parents or guardians to answer questions or address concerns strengthens that relationship and promotes a student’s growth and success. However, there are significant challenges that K-12 organizations face when utilizing unmonitored and unrecorded forms of communication. Without a way to monitor correspondence, organizations open themselves to liability risks with legal and compliance blind spots, especially with sensitive information.

In one case, a staff member inadvertently shared student updates with a non-custodial parent. When the issue came to light, it led to a FERPA review. Because the communication took place on a personal device, there was no accessible audit trail, making it difficult to fully document what occurred and increasing compliance risk for the district.

In another example, district leadership discussed an active investigation via personal text messages. When those messages were later requested, some were unavailable or incomplete, creating challenges with documentation and chain of custody. This situation introduced potential legal exposure, along with additional costs tied to e-discovery and review.

These incidents outline only a few ways K-12 institutions risk compliance violations when communication channels between education staff, students, parents and guardians go unmonitored.

The MultiLine Solution

Regarding mobile communications, there are two main modes that education staff utilize: personal devices or a district-issued devices. Each come with their own drawbacks.  Personal devices are convenient and cost-effective, but lack the ability to log, audit and monitor correspondence. On the other hand, district-issued devices have some stricter monitoring capabilities; however, they are expensive to maintain and carrying two mobile devices is inconvenient to staff. An ideal solution to the communication challenges facing K-12 organizations balances the convenience of a personal device and the security of a district-issued device.

MultiLine by Movius is an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered mobile-first experience for voice, Short Message Service (SMS), social messaging and Microsoft Teams. Education staff can download the Movius application on any smartphone, tablet or desktop computer, including any device privately owned by the staff member. Through the application, the user is assigned a secure, district-owned number to the device. This number does not operate under the personal phone’s carrier and does not touch any personal emails, text messages or searches, creating clear separation of personal and professional lines.

MultiLine logs and audits all texts and calls for transparency and accountability, ensuring FERPA, HIPAA and district policy compliance. Every message and call is automatically logged, encrypted with AES-256 and stored in a secure cloud archive, which is accessible by district administrators for monitoring, auditing and parental review. Additionally, MultiLine preserves institutional knowledge through the application, even through staff turnover. As one staff member leaves, their MultiLine phone number can be reassigned to the incoming staff member through the Movius administrative portal. Overall, MultiLine reduces legal exposure and supports risk mitigation.

School districts face budget shortfalls and increasing pressure to stretch every dollar while providing the greatest educational experience possible for their communities. In addition to being secure and transparent, administrations need cost-effective communication solutions. Switching to MultiLine from cellular stipends cuts communication costs by over 50%, while adding policy protection, logging and auditability capabilities.

On June 27, 2025, Kentucky enacted Senate Bill 181 (SB 181), requiring public schools to use traceable, archivable and parent-accessible platforms for all electronic communications between staff and volunteers and students. While it is legally codified in Kentucky, there are several advantages to having strict delineations between personal and professional communication methods in education. Having thorough security, logging and monitoring of staff, parent and student digital correspondence not only minimizes noncompliance risk, but ensures that students are getting the most out of their education.

Watch Movius’ webinar “Improving K-12 Student Attendance and Engagement in 2026 with MultiLine” to further explore the advantages of fully monitored and logged communication channels for education professionals.

Carahsoft Technology Corp. is The Trusted Government IT Solutions Provider, supporting Public Sector organizations across Federal, State and Local Government agencies and Education and Healthcare markets. As the Master Government Aggregator for our vendor partners, including Movius, we deliver solutions for Geospatial, Cybersecurity, MultiCloud, DevSecOps, Artificial Intelligence, Customer Experience and Engagement, Open Source and more. Working with resellers, systems integrators and consultants, our sales and marketing teams provide industry leading IT products, services and training through hundreds of contract vehicles. Explore the Carahsoft Blog to learn more about the latest trends in Government technology markets and solutions, as well as Carahsoft’s ecosystem of partner thought-leaders.

Modernizing Higher Ed IT: Equinix for Research Universities

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Leading research universities constantly push the boundaries of human knowledge. Your faculty and students rely on advanced technologies to make breakthrough discoveries, analyze massive datasets and collaborate with experts around the globe. But as these academic ambitions grow, the physical technology supporting them often struggles to keep up.

Legacy on-campus data centers often lack the capacity to handle the intense power and connectivity demands of modern computing. This infrastructure gap creates a severe bottleneck, slowing down critical research and complicating the pursuit of Federal funding.

Carahsoft and Equinix have partnered to help universities overcome these hurdles. By shifting from aging campus facilities to a colocation data center full of modern digital infrastructure, you can accelerate discovery, streamline hybrid cloud strategies and enhance your competitive edge for Federal grants.

Here is how you can design the digital foundation your university needs to thrive.

Powering the Next Generation of AI and HPC

The most complex research projects, particularly those involving artificial intelligence (AI) and High-Performance Computing (HPC), require unprecedented processing power. Legacy campus data centers were not built to support the dense, power-hungry servers necessary for these workloads. As a result, many universities face significant power and cooling limitations for modern GPU-based computing.

AI-ready data centers are built to handle these precise demands. Instead of sinking millions into renovating aging campus facilities, universities can leverage colocation services that provide the specialized cooling and energy density required to run high-performance supercomputers and deep learning models efficiently.

By offloading the physical infrastructure burden, your IT team can stop worrying about power outages or cooling failures and start focusing on what truly matters: empowering researchers to process massive datasets and reach conclusions faster.

Securing Grants with Strict Compliance

Federal grants are the lifeblood of university research programs and data sovereignty and privacy regulations increasingly shape how and where educational institutions can process AI data.

For IT and security leaders (CISOs), navigating frameworks like CMMC, FISMA High, HECVAT or HIPAA is a top priority.

Academic research often involves working with sensitive or Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI). Storing this data in vulnerable environments puts your institution at risk.

Utilizing colocation facilities can simplify the path to compliance by offering private, direct connectivity that bypasses the public internet. This ensures that sensitive research data remains protected both in transit and at rest. When your university can confidently demonstrate robust security controls and data sovereignty to Federal agencies, you gain a significant advantage in grant competitiveness.

Seamless Collaboration and Hybrid Cloud

Academic research is rarely an isolated effort. True innovation happens when universities collaborate with national labs, Federal agencies, private industry and peer institutions worldwide. This requires secure, high-speed data sharing across vast geographic distances.

Interconnected infrastructure offered by colocation providers allow universities to create secure physical and virtual links into a global ecosystem of research partners. This provides you with the ability to quickly transfer massive datasets to collaborating institutions without the frustrating latency or security risks associated with standard internet connections.

Many IT leaders are adopting hybrid cloud strategies to gain more efficient, cost-effective access to computing resources. To make that strategy work, it is essential to choose a colocation provider with a strong ecosystem that aligns with your specific requirements. That includes the right mix of cloud providers, networks, neoclouds and research partners to support your workloads, performance goals and growth plans. A well-connected provider does more than house infrastructure; it gives you the flexibility, reach and partner access needed to build a hybrid cloud environment that is resilient, scalable and fit for purpose.

Securing Your Digital Future with Equinix

The demands on university data centers will only increase as AI adoption grows and Federal grant requirements become more stringent. A strong digital foundation built on high-performance data centers like Equinix helps universities scale AI infrastructure globally with greater speed and efficiency. This enables institutions to run high-performance computing workloads, securely share sensitive data and connect more easily with the global research community.

Through software-defined, secure interconnection with Equinix Fabric, universities can connect directly to leading cloud and SaaS providers, including AWS, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud, Salesforce and Workday. This gives research teams fast, reliable access to critical digital resources while reducing complexity and improving control. It also allows institutions to scale workloads to the public cloud during periods of peak demand and scale back when needed to improve performance and manage costs.

Optimize your Cloud Access Strategy

A strategic Carahsoft technology partner, Equinix is is committed to helping universities design future-ready IT infrastructure. Whether your top priority is optimizing your cloud access strategy, supporting your AI infrastructure goals or securing data for your next major research grant, Equinix provides the tools you need to succeed.

If you are exploring ways to modernize your digital infrastructure or want to learn how your peers are navigating these exact challenges, Carahsoft and Equinix are here to help. Reach out to the digital infrastructure specialists at Carahsoft to schedule a brief discussion or an executive briefing to dive deeper into your university’s specific goals.

Let us help you accelerate discovery and power the next generation of academic innovation.

Come meet Equinix at EDUCAUSE 2026 at Booth #210!

Carahsoft Technology Corp. is The Trusted Government IT Solutions Provider, supporting Public Sector organizations across Federal, State and Local Government agencies and Education and Healthcare markets. As the Master Government Aggregator for our vendor partners, including Equinix, we deliver solutions for Geospatial, Cybersecurity, MultiCloud, DevSecOps, Artificial Intelligence, Customer Experience and Engagement, Open Source and more. Working with resellers, systems integrators and consultants, our sales and marketing teams provide industry leading IT products, services and training through hundreds of contract vehicles. Explore the Carahsoft Blog to learn more about the latest trends in Government technology markets and solutions, as well as Carahsoft’s ecosystem of partner thought-leaders.