Emerging Tech

Salesforce launches new top secret cloud environment

The software company said it is the first provider to deliver a true commercial cloud that has received Top Secret accreditation with platform- and software-as-a-service capabilities for the intelligence community.

Artificial Intelligence

Google announces AI offering for classified environments

A “large percentage” of U.S. military and intelligence agencies briefed on the upcoming Gemini version expressed interest in the tool, a Google executive said.

Ideas

How FedRAMP is evolving to meet the challenges of the cloud computing market

Updates to federal cloud security policy are laying the foundation for a more secure and resilient cloud ecosystem.

Exclusive Modernization

NSA’s secret Amazon-developed cloud environment progressing ‘very well’

The agency's $10 billion cloud program dubbed “WildandStormy" is benefiting from the intelligence community's dozen years of experience in commercial cloud, an AWS official said.

Acquisition

GSA further details its plan for Ascend cloud program

Software-as-a-service vendors and providers of cloud-related IT professional services are who the General Services Administration wants to hear from now.

Artificial Intelligence

CIA looks to fast track AI adoption through cloud contract

A CIA official said the agency is working with the five recipients of its Commercial Cloud Enterprise contract to “get commercial [large language models] up into our high-side environments.”

Emerging Tech

The Pentagon’s IT agency looks to expand cloud offshore

The agency has been expanding services outside the continental U.S. while reworking tools to ease data access.

Emerging Tech

Pentagon planning huge experiment for its connect-everything concept

“We see significant progress,” in opening up DOD data, one observer said. But a bigger, multinational test is coming.

Artificial Intelligence

Microsoft, Palantir partner to expand AI offerings to defense and intelligence agencies

The new suite of offerings will be available on Microsoft’s Azure Government and Azure Government Secret and Top Secret clouds.

Defense

Air Force seeks secure cloud app to manage flights for govt VIPs

The new tool is critical “due to significant cybersecurity vulnerabilities identified in the existing scheduling system,” the branch says in a notice for industry.

Acquisition

Treasury’s funding request for IRS cloud tech far outpaces other civilian agencies, report says

Treasury’s request is the largest out of a combined federal civilian total of almost $9 billion for cloud-related programs in their fiscal year 2025 IT budget requests.

Modernization

OMB rewrites cloud buying rulebook

The FedRAMP program received its first major update in more than a decade

Updated Cybersecurity

Biden briefed on CrowdStrike IT outage as multiple federal systems impacted

Social Security offices are closed for the day due to the incident. It will be “time-consuming” for all affected systems to undo the damage because the process is manual, one expert says.

Acquisition

FedRAMP unveils new framework for prioritizing emerging tech

The cloud security program’s new Emerging Technology Prioritization Framework spells out new processes and guidance for cloud services providers specifically offering AI-based capabilities.

Ideas

Is the government losing $500M a year in cloud savings?

COMMENTARY | Multiyear discounts enjoyed by commercial cloud customers aren't reaching the government because of federal spending laws.

Acquisition

Interior awards 7 seats on $2B cloud license contract

This second iteration of the program focuses on the development of a cloud-based production environment and application migration.

Acquisition

GSA names 7 leaders to inaugural FedRAMP board

The move comes as GSA and OMB modernize the cloud security program to implement recent legislative changes.