Google Gemini for Government Leads New Pentagon Generative AI Platform Rollout
The Department of Defense has launched GenAI.mil, a new platform for generative AI across the force, with Google's Gemini for Government as the first model onboard. Access is intended for DoD civilians, contractors, and military personnel.
"This platform puts the world's most powerful frontier AI models, starting with Google Gemini, directly into the hands of every American warrior," said Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. "At the click of a button, AI models on GenAI can be utilized to conduct deep research, format documents and even analyze video or imagery at unprecedented speed."
Access and availability
Shortly after launch, GenAI.mil was unreachable for several hours. When accessed from a civilian device, it displayed: "You have reached this page because you are not authorized to visit GenAI.mil from outside of DoW networks." In short: expect access to be restricted to DoD networks.
The Pentagon says no-cost training on GenAI.mil will be provided to all DoD employees to build confidence in use and provide the knowledge required to "realize its full potential." If your team depends on research, document production, or imagery/video review, watch for training windows and internal announcements.
Security and data handling
According to the Department of Defense, all tools on GenAI.mil are certified for Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) and Impact Level 5 (IL5), making them suitable for operational use within that boundary. For context on IL5 requirements, see the DoD Cloud Computing SRG overview on cyber.mil.
Gemini for Government supports natural language conversation and retrieval-augmented generation (RAG). The Pentagon notes it is "web-grounded against Google Search to ensure outputs are reliable and dramatically reduces the risk of AI hallucinations." Product background is available from Google Cloud's public sector page: Gemini for Government.
Practical uses for government teams
- Deep research across doctrine, policy, and open-source materials.
- Formatting and drafting memos, reports, and briefings.
- Analyzing video or imagery to accelerate initial review.
What to do now
- Confirm network access: plan to use GenAI.mil from authorized DoD networks.
- Enroll in official training when it opens; identify team use cases aligned to mission tasks.
- Set simple guardrails: never input classified material; apply correct CUI markings; keep human review in the loop.
- Start small: pilot on document formatting or research summaries before scaling to higher-impact workflows.
- Coordinate with your ISSM/Policy lead on records retention and any system-of-record handoffs.
Key quotes
"There is no prize for second place in the global race for AI dominance," said Emil Michael, Under Secretary of War for Research and Engineering. "We are moving rapidly to deploy powerful AI capabilities like Gemini for Government directly to our workforce. AI is America's next Manifest Destiny, and we're ensuring that we dominate this new frontier."
If you need additional upskilling
While DoD will provide official training on GenAI.mil, some teams may want supplemental, role-based learning to build better prompts and review practices. You can browse public courses by job role here: Complete AI Training - Courses by Job.
Initial error message noted: access attempts on December 9, 2025, showed a network restriction notice for users outside DoD networks.
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