The General Services Administration is extending some OneGov artificial intelligence contract deals and negotiating new offers with vendors as several popular agreements near expiration next month. Birgit Smeltzer, director of GSA's Office of IT Products, said the agency continues to work with original equipment manufacturers on pricing that makes sense for federal buyers. The AI discounts have saved the government $1.4 billion so far, she said.
"Some of the OEMs have already agreed to extend some of the limited-time offers, and some are looking at producing new offers for us," Smeltzer told FedScoop. "We look very much at what makes sense for the government and what may not have taken flight so much, and put some offers out there that work for our agencies."
Three popular OneGov deals - for OpenAI's ChatGPT, Google's Gemini and Anthropic's Claude - expire next month. GSA created the program to support President Donald Trump's executive order on cost-effective federal contracts, and the barrier to entry for state-of-the-art AI tools has dropped to as little as $0.47 to $1 per agency. Smeltzer said some organizations have also leveraged the discounts to negotiate their own contracts outside of GSA, and she asked agencies to "keep working with us" while the new offers are finalized. No timeline for the next round of deals has been announced.
Pentagon directs $244 million to Palantir
Separately, Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg ordered the department to provide nearly $244 million through March for undisclosed Palantir products. The one-page memo, titled "Funding Palantir," was issued Aug. 4 and viewed by DefenseScoop last week. Two sources said the directive was influenced by the Trump administration's Business Operators for National Defense program, and illustrates the government's plans to further fast-track the tech giant's military offerings.
"Palantir is providing valuable support to improve efficiencies with the defense industrial base," Feinberg wrote. "Their efforts are improving Department of War and prime contractor understanding of delays in production and maintenance of critical munitions and delivery vehicles, which are already resulting in process improvements."
Feinberg directed the under secretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment and the Pentagon comptroller to "fund up to $243.9M for Palantir services through March 31, 2027" and to identify funding options for the period through December 31, 2028. The memo did not specify which Palantir products the funds would support or identify which budget pools would cover the investment.
What to watch
For government employees procuring AI tools, the OneGov extensions mean the opportunity to secure steeply discounted access to major models isn't closing yet - but it's worth moving on if your agency hasn't already taken advantage, since the timeline for a new round of deals remains unclear. And defense personnel impacted by the Palantir directive should expect some shift in how technologies are prioritized, though exact product timelines are still unknown.
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