Understanding artificial intelligence spending by the U.S. federal government

In our prior series of papers for Brookings, we explored the rise of national artificial intelligence (AI) strategy documents and sought to make sense of what each country was trying to do and how effectively they were doing it. In our concluding paper, we focused on where the U.S. was lagging behind and proposed options to remedy the lagging. In particular, we recommended three options: 1) apply lessons from the U.S. space race to invigorate talent development, (2) adopt a multi-national consortium approach (similar to NATO) and (3) create a robust partnership with one other country. Following the guidance of "Deep Throat" of Watergate fame, in this new series of articles, we follow the federal trail of money to understand the federal market for AI work, the hardware, software, and services being purchased. We also track the key players who allocate the money (legislators), spend the money (program managers), and receive the money (vendors). Taken together, this series provides a comprehensive look at federal IT spending, its direction, and its key players.