Last month, Authorium attended the NASCIO 2025 Annual Conference in Denver and connected with chief information officers (CIOs) from across the country. Technology and public sector-focused media outlets reported on the results of the organization’s annual membership survey, recommendations for State procurement reform, and recognition of best practices through the event’s Awards Program.
During the event and in the weeks since, Authorium’s team has continued having conversations with State leaders, and two topics keep coming up when talking to IT leaders: AI and budgets.
AI Needs a Job to Do
AI doesn’t get to live rent-free in State government organizations; it needs a job to do. “We don’t want AI as a label—we want AI that delivers an outcome,” quipped one conference attendee.
According to the 2025 State CIO Survey, most states are giving Generative AI a try, but only 25% report that they have dedicated funding for GenAI. 90% of surveyed CIOs describe engaging in pilot projects, 86% did proofs of concept, and 51% use a sandbox environment. The survey says, “This represents a big leap in the willingness of the CIO organization to allow the use of GenAI as well as an acknowledgement that this technology is highly accessible to anyone who wants to use it—sanctioned or otherwise.”
GenAI is ubiquitous, yet GenAI with a clear purpose can make an incredible difference in administrative workflows. Our platform offers GenAI capabilities that are specifically structured to support government teams. When our customers leverage GenAI for bill analysis, procurement evaluation support, and grants workflows, they can unlock incredible time savings and insights to enable their skilled staff to focus on high-level work, rather than getting bogged down with repetitive tasks.
Contracts Require Both Budget Accountability and Incremental Value
At a time when State governments are feeling the results of federal cuts, they’re faced with the challenge of filling service gaps and financial belt tightening. CIOs are cutting large, under-performing contracts. They want partners who will start small, prove value quickly, and scale with them.
Just as teams are exploring pilot programs and proofs of concept with GenAI, we’re finding ways to show government teams the value of our platform through focused engagements that allow for future growth. The U.S. Air Force was able to cut acquisition timelines by 20% with our platform and the California Department of Finance is working with us in a focused way to analyze the cost of legislative bills in their state.
To hear more from NASCIO, check out their Resource Center and to see how Authorium can support your team’s budget needs, let’s connect.
