This Week in Government Tech Media – July 25, 2025

By Brad Bass /

Before we jump into this week’s coverage, I wanted to strongly encourage everyone to listen to the latest episode of Gov & Beyond featuring a roundtable discussion with Frank Konkel and Natalie Alms from GovExec and Billy Mitchell and Madison Alder of Scoop News Group. I found their insights on government-focused journalism in 2025 nothing short of fascinating!

On to the news!

This week, we saw an explosion of coverage from the government tech media on the President’s new artificial intelligence (AI) action plan and its accompanying executive orders (EOs). A number of reporters also focused attention on the Defense Department’s Golden Dome initiative this week. See our roundup of trending news below:

AI Action Plan

AI always grabs the attention of reporters in the government tech world, but this week the topic seemed particularly prevalent, with publications covering the new White House action plan from a variety of perspectives:

  • The plan prioritizes three aspects of AI: eliminating barriers to adopting the technology, promoting widespread use of American AI, and eradicating what the administration defines as “bias” from those tools, according to a comprehensive analysis by Madison Alder in FedScoop. Alder’s colleague Matt Bracken followed up with a piece on how the plan will require an overhaul of the U.S. environmental permitting system and other regulations. Yet another FedScoop article by Miranda Nazzaro zeroed in on the “bias” aspect of the plan, with one expert calling that the plan’s “biggest error.”
  • The plan directs the departments of Commerce and State to work with industry to deliver “secure, full-stack AI export packages” to “friends and allies” overseas, John Curran wrote in MeriTalk. His colleague Weslan Hansen reported on a “mixed” reception to the plan from industry, with some observers applauding its support for innovation on one side and concerns raised by labor, environmental and civil rights groups on the other.
  • In coverage for Nextgov/FCW, Alexandra Kelley wrote that the plan’s goals focus on reducing bureaucratic barriers to AI innovation and using open-source models to help win the global tech race. In a separate article, Kelley wrote that the three EOs aim to streamline federal permitting for energy infrastructure to handle AI computing needs; promote the U.S.-made AI tech stack abroad; and remove biased or “woke” AI technologies from the government. 
  • Defense tech reporters covered the news as well. Patrick Tucker of Defense One also wrote about the mixed reaction to the plan, noting that it could both help and hurt the country in its competition with China. The plan gives the Pentagon “a prominent or even leading role in setting standards and coordinating efforts across the executive branch,” according to an analysis by Sydney J. Freedberg Jr. in Breaking Defense. It also calls for the standup of an “AI and Autonomous Systems Virtual Proving Ground” at the Department of Defense (DOD), reported by Brandi Vincent in DefenseScoop. In MeriTalk’s take, Lisbeth Perez focused on the plan’s call to embed AI across the entire defense ecosystem, transforming warfighting, logistics and back-office operations through AI.
  • Reporting from the state government perspective, Colin Wood wrote in StateScoop that the plan threatens to revoke federal funding if states’ AI laws are deemed overly “burdensome.” Similarly, Chris Riotta published a piece in GovInfoSecurity quoting an observer who said the plan could undercut AI security by limiting states’ ability to address documented issues. Chris Teale of Route Fifty cited critics of the plan who said it presented the same moratorium on state government AI regulations that was rejected by Congress, just “under a different name.”

Golden Dome

There was a slight uptick in coverage of the administration’s Golden Dome missile defense program, even in some publications not focused on the DOD – mostly on recent statements by the new program manager:

  • ExecutiveGov published a helpful overview of the Golden Dome initiative by Pat Host, featuring answers to “the five hottest questions” revolving around the program.
  • MeriTalk’s Perez reported on statements from Gen. Michael Guetlein, the newly-confirmed program manager of the initiative, who promised to deliver a blueprint for the program to Pentagon leaders within 60 days.
  • Guetlein also said he will move quickly to hire an expert team to start identifying and integrating technology for an advanced homeland missile defense architecture, according to an article by Courtney Albon in Defense News.
  • In Breaking Defense, Theresa Hitchens focused on Guetlein’s view that the greatest technical challenge his team will face will be building space-based interceptors to stop enemy missiles in their boost phase. Reporting on that same angle, Greg Hadley of Air & Space Forces Magazine wrote that Guetlein said this technology already exists but has “just never been brought to bear on this problem set.”
  • In coverage for SIGNAL Media this month on the proposed Defense budget, Courtney Benedetto reported that “Golden Dome is a large focus for the DOD moving forward,” with the department requesting billions of dollars in tech investments related to the project.

Events Next Week

Here’s our latest list of events we think might be worth your attention in the coming week. Below, you’ll see links to each event along with information about the sponsoring organization and venue:

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