Missouri Greenlights Statewide AI Strategy as Kehoe's Order Targets Services, Jobs, and Energy

Missouri's New AI Order: What Executives Need to Know

Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe has issued Executive Order 26-02, directing state agencies to build a statewide AI strategy. The order, signed January 13, aims to modernize public services, protect privacy, grow high-wage jobs, and prepare the grid for data center demand. All recommendations are due to the governor by November 30, 2026.

What's in the order

• Office of Administration: Develop a statewide framework for AI in government, including rules for transparency, human oversight, data privacy, data quality, and a pipeline of high-value use cases that cut administrative work and speed up response times.
• Department of Economic Development: Assess Missouri's competitiveness for AI companies and propose policies to attract startups, talent, and investment. Focus areas include incentives, regulatory clarity, and consumer protections tied to AI products and services.
• Department of Natural Resources + Public Service Commission: Conduct an energy impact review for data centers and AI infrastructure. Require large industrial power users to cover their own electricity and infrastructure costs, protect residential and small business ratepayers, and analyze long-term demand and reliable, sustainable generation options.
• Department of Higher Education & Workforce Development: Evaluate AI training at Missouri institutions and build pathways like certifications, apprenticeships, and rapid retraining for technical roles in high demand.

Why it matters for executives

This creates a clear lane for AI adoption in state operations and signals where budget, policy, and infrastructure will move. It also sets expectations for governance, energy planning, and talent pipelines that vendors and enterprise leaders should plan against now.

• Market timing: Agency roadmaps and pilots will form over the next 18-24 months. Expect structured procurement and measurable outcomes.
• Energy constraints: New data center capacity will be judged on cost allocation, reliability, and sustainability. Load planning and interconnect strategy will be scrutinized.
• Workforce supply: Certifications and apprenticeships will feed hiring. Partnerships with institutions can shorten time-to-competency.
• Governance expectations: Transparency, human oversight, and data controls won't be optional. Be ready to evidence them.

Near-term timeline

• Now: Agencies launch reviews and gather baseline data on services, systems, and energy needs.
• Next 6-12 months: Use case selection, governance drafts, and early pilots. Stakeholder and utility coordination increases.
• By Nov 30, 2026: Final recommendations to the governor with frameworks, policies, and action plans.

Executive actions to take

• Prioritize use cases that cut backlogs, shrink cycle times, and improve resident experience. Tie each to measurable service-level gains.
• Prepare a governance playbook covering model risk, human-in-the-loop, data privacy, retention, and audit trails. Map it to state expectations.
• Plan for energy if you operate or rely on high-intensity compute. Model load, interconnect timelines, and cost responsibility. Engage utilities early.
• Build talent pathways with local colleges, bootcamps, and certification programs. Target roles in data engineering, MLOps, and AI safety.
• De-risk procurement with pilots that prove ROI in weeks, not quarters. Lock in security and compliance requirements upfront.

Metrics Missouri will track

• Service response time reduction and backlog cuts
• Cost-to-serve and productivity per employee
• Data quality improvements and incident rates
• Training completions, placements, and wage growth
• Energy load factors, reliability, and cost allocation compliance
• Private investment, startup formation, and high-wage job creation

Resources

• Missouri Office of Administration - statewide operations and policy coordination
• Missouri Public Service Commission - utility regulation and energy cost allocation

Upskilling and certifications

If you're building internal capability or preparing teams for state-aligned roles, structured learning paths help. Start with role-based options and stack credentials that map to MLOps, data privacy, and applied AI.

• AI courses by job role
• Popular AI certifications