The Department of War Picks AI Platform As A ‘Fighting Force’

The Department of War has selected Google’s Gemini to serve as the department’s first enterprise AI deployed across its internal platform.

Google and the Department of War confirmed that Gemini will be used for streamlining “complex administrative tasks” designated as “unclassified work,” according to a press release. Google cited “summarizing policy handbooks, generating project-specific compliance checklists, extracting key terms from statements of work, and creating detailed risk assessments for operational planning” as examples.

“Gemini for government is the embodiment of American AI excellence, placing unmatched analytical and creative power directly into the hands of the world’s most dominating fighting force,” the Department of War said in a statement.

As for safeguarding data, Google stated that Gemini for Government will give the Department of War full control over its information, ensuring that no information is shared with Google’s public models.

The Department of War calls Gemini for Government the “first of several frontier AI capabilities” for its new AI platform, GenAI.mil, though other third-party models have yet to be revealed.

The Department of War’s Gemini selection comes days after OpenAI CEO Sam Altman called for immediate action to improve the quality of its large language model, ChatGPT. Altman has ordered a halt to side projects such as OpenAI’s Sora video generator to increase focus on the day-to-day operations of its chatbot.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Altman’s internal memo is “the most decisive indication yet of the pressure OpenAI is facing from competitors that have narrowed the startup’s lead in the AI race. Of particular concern to Altman is Google, which released a new version of its Gemini AI model last month that surpassed OpenAI’s models on industry benchmark tests.”

The Department of War emphasized that deploying Gemini is a part of the White House’s AI Action Plan announced in July, which mandates that all federal agencies ensure that their employees benefit from access to frontier language models and are provided with access and appropriate training for the tools. The Department of War is providing training for GenAI.mil to all employees to “build confidence in using AI and give personnel the education needed to realize its full potential.”

Just nine days after the White House released its action plan, Google was awarded a $200-million ceiling contract to support the U.S. Department of War’s Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office (CDAO). The Department of War did not immediately respond to a request for comment when asked if the rollout of Gemini in GenAI.mil is part of the July contract.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said the Department is going all-in on AI. “We are pushing all of our chips in on artificial intelligence as a fighting force. The Department is tapping into America’s commercial genius, and we’re embedding generative AI into our daily battle rhythm.”

He added, “AI tools present boundless opportunities to increase efficiency, and we are thrilled to witness AI’s future positive impact across the War Department.”