Procurement Reform

Venture firm with an explicit govtech and defense thesis, co-founded by Joe Lonsdale. Co-founded and backed OpenGov (acquired by Cox Enterprises for $1.8B in 2024).

Mayor-led nonprofit co-founded by Eric Garcetti giving cities technical assistance on federal funding, infrastructure, and economic development. Active in 60+ cities, supporting smart city plans, EDA…

St. Louis-based impact investor whose InState Partners line (est. 2013) invests in govtech, pairing capital with a 50-state government affairs network to navigate procurement. First investor in…

Nonprofit strategic investment fund for frontier technologies (semiconductors, AI, quantum, advanced manufacturing) tied to US security and competitiveness. Led by Gilman Louie (former In-Q-Tel CEO),…

Major VC whose American Dynamism practice backs defense and government technology startups. Govtech investments include OpenGov (sold to Cox for $1.8B in 2024), Flock Safety, and Skydio; defense and…

Sacramento-based family office and early-stage VC with an explicit govtech focus, founded by principals who ran a national govtech consulting firm for 18 years. Invests across HHS, transportation and…

Centrist think tank founded by former Senate majority leaders from both parties. Governance program focuses on congressional capacity, executive branch management, and government modernization.…

Boston-based middle-market PE firm with government technology as a named sector. Made a minority investment in CivicPlus in 2019 and scaled it before a $290M exit to Insight Partners in 2021.

Nonpartisan nonprofit running the AI Readiness Project and the State Chief AI Officer Community of Practice (30+ states). Houses the Public Benefit Innovation Fund, which awarded $8.5M to eight state…

San Francisco-based nonprofit running the Startup in Residence (STIR) program, connecting startups to government agencies to co-design technology solutions for defined government challenges.…

Nonprofit govtech accelerator for state and local government, with six cohorts and 71+ startups scaled. Runs a 12-month accelerator, GovTech Lab, and a Venture Partner Network; its recent cohort…

Civic tech nonprofit (est. 2009) building digital tools and changing policies across the safety net, criminal justice, and tax systems. Its $100M Safety Net Innovation Lab has partnered with 14…

State digital team within the Governor's Office of Information Technology (OIT), founded by USDS alumni, using product management, user research, and agile delivery. In 2026 OIT adopted the CDS model…

Statewide coalition of government, business, and academic partners convening around smart city technology adoption in Colorado. Runs challenge-based procurement programs, pilots, and the Smart…

Nonprofit govtech founded by former USDS staff. Its first product is a consent-based income verification tool that lets benefits applicants share payroll data directly with state agencies; states are…

Center-right innovation policy think tank whose Senior Fellows program places technologists in congressional offices. Work includes GAO reform, AI governance, and congressional tech capacity; runs…

Dedicated state AI office within the Georgia Technology Authority. Published the state AI Roadmap and Governance Framework and drives a cloud-first initiative with AI integration, backed by $15M in…

Coalition of 3,000+ public servants from 900+ agencies promoting responsible public sector AI. Founded by the City of San Jose in 2023; became an independent nonprofit in 2026. Produces AI policy…

Professional association (est. 1906) of 30,000+ state, provincial, and local government finance officers; publishes the GAAFR Blue Book and runs budget and reporting award programs. Its Research and…

First VC fund dedicated to govtech, founded by Ron Bouganim; makes $250K-$500K seed investments in companies selling to government (~$50M across two funds). Portfolio includes Mark43,…

Solo-GP early-stage VC fund (est. 2024) dedicated to state and local government, founded by Rachel Stern, first investor in PayIt and co-founder of InState Partners. Has held a first close on a $15M…

Harvard Kennedy School lab embedding full-time fellows in state and local agencies for 12-36 month pro bono reform projects in child welfare, criminal justice, homelessness, housing, and procurement.…

AI procurement software for government that automates solicitation drafting, vendor matching, compliance checks, and proposal evaluation, with procurement officers retaining final decisions.…

Nonprofit trade association under CompTIA (founded 1993, 123 member companies) bridging health and human services IT vendors and government HHS agencies. Advises federal and state HHS technology…

Research center (est. 1998; part of IBM since 2002) funding practitioner-focused research on federal, state, and local public management. Publishes 25+ reports a year on digital modernization, AI…

501c3 nonprofit association bringing municipalities and technology vendors together in a neutral forum to advance smart city and region initiatives across Illinois. Member of the National Smart…

Nonpartisan science and tech policy think tank. Research on government IT modernization, AI policy, and digital infrastructure. Published 'After DOGE: Trump's Chance to Modernize.'

Strategic investor for the US intelligence community, founded by the CIA in 1999. Invests in commercial AI, cybersecurity, data analytics, and quantum companies to bring their capabilities to…

Global city network running AcceliGOV, which deploys vetted smart city solutions into municipalities through 90-day paid pilots and handles sourcing, vetting, and deployment. 32+ projects completed,…

Small city with dedicated Chief Innovation & AI Officer. AI policy, procurement, training. Serves on NH AI Task Force.

Market intelligence and procurement platform helping state and local governments research vendors, compare contracts and pricing, and procure technology (Clearbox Source and Clearbox Procure). Grew…

Peer network, research body, and voice for state CIOs. Runs the annual State CIO Survey and State CIO Top 10 Priorities, plus research with McKinsey, EY, and Deloitte on GenAI, cybersecurity, and…

Association (est. 1937) of state workforce agencies in all 50 states, DC, and territories. Runs shared UI and workforce technology infrastructure, including the IT Support Centers, UI SIDES, and the…

PIT program: fellowships, The Commons (procurement research), policy research. Co-convenes PIT University Network (PIT-UN): 63 institutions, $16M+ deployed.

Dedicated state capacity research initiative. Published 'The How We Need Now' capacity agenda. Policy research on civil service reform, digital modernization, product operating model,…

501c3 regional consortium of 50+ municipalities, agencies, corporations, and academic institutions across North Texas. Facilitates call-for-innovation programs, procurement reform, and smart region…

Private foundation whose state capacity grantmaking includes early backing of the Recoding America Fund. Funded the GovAI Coalition's 2026 transition to an independent nonprofit ($150K).

Independent nonprofit spun out of Harvard GPL's procurement initiative in March 2025. Helps state and local governments improve procurement, staffing, digital infrastructure, and budgeting, with 200+…

NYC-based evergreen fund running structured challenge programs connecting early-stage startups to public agencies (MTA, Port Authority, NYCHA) for proof-of-concept pilots and procurement pathways.…

Congressional modernization nonprofit focused on AI-ready legislatures and legislative branch capacity. Key 2025 wins: secured 4M House Modernization Initiatives Account; advanced CaseCompass unified…

Places mid-to-senior technologists in federal agencies for 12-month tours in product, AI strategy, design, and engineering (est. 2012; 260+ alumni). GSA named a 2026 cohort of 17 fellows serving 10…

Pooled grantmaking vehicle housed at the Center for Civic Futures that funds states and their partners to develop AI tools for public benefits delivery. Awarded $8.5M to eight projects in Dec 2025.

$120M 6-year pooled philanthropic initiative grantmaking for government workforce, digital infrastructure, and procedural reform. Chaired by Jennifer Pahlka.

Independent nonprofit providing AI certification, conformity assessments, and responsible AI tools for government agencies. Develops standards and frameworks for trustworthy AI procurement and…

National association (founded 2001) of state and territorial education technology leaders, including state education agency CIOs. Publishes the annual State EdTech Trends report and procurement…

Digital government consultancy delivering agile procurement support, user-centered design, cloud and DevOps, and API-first architecture to federal and state agencies. Won a $14M CMS task order (2026)…

Greater Tucson regional smart city initiative led by the Regional Partnering Center, a public-private partnership. Works to build economic competitiveness and quality of life through collaborative…

AI grant discovery and application platform for local and tribal governments, cutting months of manual work to minutes. Active in 200+ governments on a subscription model.

Federal revolving fund (Modernizing Government Technology Act, 2017) administered by GSA that provides milestone-based, repayable financing for agency IT modernization; GAO counts $1.03B across 68…

Greater Phoenix smart region consortium launched in 2019. Partners public sector, academia, industry, and civic institutions to co-design and deploy technology solutions for regional challenges.…

Nonprofit TA firm helping government agencies design and implement outcomes-focused contracting, Pay for Success structures, and data-driven service delivery. Government agencies are primary clients.

Federal digital services firm with strong portfolio including IRS Direct File, USWDS contributions, .gov registrar, and VA work. 8(a) SBA certified.

New in-house state team (Sept 2026) of engineers, designers, and technical experts working alongside VITA to modernize websites and systems and scrutinize IT contracts. Created after a $52M failed…

Defunct (Mar 2025). Former GSA consultancy that provided agile development, procurement consulting, user research, and open-source tooling to federal agencies; alumni continue its open-source…

Niskanen Center · Capacity Builder

Collaboration Opportunity, Expertise, Interesting Conversation, Problem to Solve, Tool / Product

Shelby County TN DA's Office · Government Practitioner

Expertise, Interesting Conversation, Problem to Solve

IBM Center for The Business of Government · Funder

Grant / Challenge

City of San Jose · Government Practitioner

Collaboration Opportunity, Expertise

A tool for searching and reviewing city procurement records, making contracting data legible to anyone who needs to follow where public money goes.

A tool for finding and tracking open NYC government bid and procurement opportunities, helping vendors see where they can compete for city work.