At BRIDGES 2026, a GovTech conference with 600+ mayors, CIOs, and public-sector leaders in New York City, government buyers were clear about what earns their trust: vendors who do their procurement homework, treat implementation as seriously as the product, and build long-term partnerships. Below are the three lessons, drawn directly from a panel of government buyers.
We just returned from BRIDGES, this summer's GovTech conference in New York City, where more than 600 mayors, CIOs, and other government and technology leaders gathered for two days of conversation about AI in the public sector. For a company building at this intersection, it was an energizing few days. Here is what we heard.
What is the state of the GovTech market in 2026?
GovTech is in the middle of a real shift, and the State of GovTech panel captured why. Cities are increasingly leading tech adoption – testing AI pilots, tracking usage, and sharing what works across municipalities. They are also coordinating regionally to negotiate collectively, which creates faster, more flexible buying at the local level.
The panel made two key points worth remembering:
- AI is not the moat. What differentiates a GovTech company is delivering measurable outcomes and building deeply loyal customer relationships. According to the investors on the panel, delighted customers are the single strongest indicator of a healthy GovTech company, and referrals from trusted early adopters are how these businesses scale.
- The opportunity is in the back office. The biggest opportunity is the unglamorous back-office infrastructure that's decades overdue for replacement. That's exactly what we're building at Chief AI.
What do government buyers want every AI vendor to know?
Chief AI CEO Shannon Beckham moderated a panel on how public-sector leaders select and work with AI vendors. As a former Senate staffer and now a founder, she’s sat on both sides of the table. The panelists brought the buyer's perspective directly:
- Jesse Marks, Deputy Chief of Staff, Colorado Governor's Office
- Intashan Chowdhury, Borough Administrator, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey
- Bob Soulliere, Assistant VP for Digital Solutions, University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Three lessons stood out. If you are a startup selling AI into government, these are for you.
1. Do your homework before you pitch
The vendors who earn a conversation don't lead with a generic pitch to the first person they can reach. They find the right strategic staffer, understand the procurement and budget cycle, and frame the problem to fit that specific office.
Jesse Marks described a company that reached out about permitting reform, scoped an initial engagement small enough to sit under Colorado's competitive-bid threshold, and started that same week. The work streamlined some of the toughest parts of the state's air-pollution permitting process and opened the door to a larger relationship. A well-scoped first project can be a faster path to trust than a large proposal that stalls in review.
There's an easier on-ramp here than many founders realize. Most municipalities are required to post their budgets and audits online, so the information you need to show up prepared is often a single search away. What resonates is a vendor who can speak to a comparable budget, comparable demographics, and a comparable form of government.
2. Implementation matters as much as the product
Intashan Chowdhury reminded vendors to dig into the details. He walked through how one team flew out, sat with the users, mapped the existing workflows, and fit their solution into the office's existing tech stack – with his staff doing minimal setup work. He was impressed enough that he helped that company scale across a third of the state.
In offices running on lean teams and limited resources, hands-on support is as critical to a partnership's success as the product itself. When staff turnover is constant, a vendor who reduces the lift rather than adding to it earns real loyalty.
3. Build the relationship on trust, not the transaction
Bob Soulliere outlined how he selects a new AI vendor. He weighed cost and features, but ultimately chose the company that worked alongside him to tailor the solution and manage spend. What won him over was not just the product – it was a partner willing to challenge his assumptions, revisit the data, and come back months later to confirm his read was correct.
That's the real currency in government. Buyers are accountable to their constituents and carry the risk when a tool falls short, so the vendors who earn their trust become long-term partners.
How this shapes what we build at Chief AI
This is exactly how we think about our product. Chief AI is built for the way government offices operate. Every meeting note, document, and interaction contributes to institutional memory that belongs to the office – not to a vendor, and not to a staffer who walks out the door. The leaders we work with are partners in defining what modern government operations should look like, and BRIDGES was full of people who understand that.
A big congratulations to the entire Starbridge team for putting together an excellent conference. We left with a clearer picture of what this market values and a stronger conviction about the problem we're solving.
TL;DR: Frequently asked questions
What do government buyers look for in an AI vendor? Based on the BRIDGES 2026 buyer panel, government leaders prioritize three things: vendors who understand their specific procurement and budget cycle before pitching, vendors who treat implementation and hands-on support as seriously as the product, and vendors who build long-term, trust-based partnerships rather than closing a one-time sale.
How should a startup sell AI to government? Start with a small, well-scoped first project that can move quickly – often under a competitive-bid threshold – rather than a large proposal that stalls in review. Research the office's budget, demographics, and form of government in advance (much of this is public). And plan to sit with the users and fit into their existing tech stack instead of adding setup burden.
What is Chief AI? Chief AI builds the AI-native command center for leaders and their teams – mayors, governors, members of Congress, and C-suite executives. It turns every meeting, note, and interaction into institutional memory that teams use to automate work. Chief AI is a Stanford StartX company and a State of GovTech and US Conference of Mayors award winner.
Who is Chief AI CEO Shannon Beckham? Shannon Beckham is the Founder and CEO of Chief AI. Before founding the company, she worked inside the U.S. Senate, White House, and Eric Schmidt's office – giving her a rare view of how high-stakes leaders operate, and what technology they need to be more efficient and strategic.
What is BRIDGES? BRIDGES is a GovTech conference organized by Starbridge that brings together government and technology leaders to discuss AI in the public sector. The 2026 inaugural conference drew more than 600 attendees over two days in New York City.
If you attended BRIDGES and want to continue the conversation – or if you're a mayor or chief of staff evaluating what Chief AI can do for your office – reach out at hello@getchief.ai.
