Original Broadcast: 7/20/2025
Presented by EY
The U.S. Army’s journey into a data-driven, AI-enabled future is well underway—and Chief Information Officer Leonel (Leo) Garciga is helping lead the charge. In his conversation with Francis Rose, Garciga shares how the Army is scaling automation, embracing commercial technology, and building a data-literate force ready for tomorrow’s mission challenges.
The Army’s second annual Data Summit marks a pivotal moment in its data transformation. Garciga says the event draws a 980% increase in attendance over the previous year—a clear sign that interest and engagement are soaring across the force.“Our goal this year was to assess, where are we in the story?” he explains. Now that more commands have Chief Data Officers and mature data environments, Garciga sees the Summit as a turning point. “It’s the first time we’ve been able to get the community, after some maturing, together to really look at what the next steps are going to be.”
Much of this momentum comes from the Army’s commitment to democratizing data. Platforms like Vantage, launched three years ago, empower soldiers and civilians alike to dig into data and build their own solutions. Garciga highlights a notable trend: “Almost 80% of folks using the platform are government and military—very few are contractors. It’s mostly organic at this point.”Driving this cultural shift is what Garciga casually refers to as the “automation or die” memo—a directive from the Secretary of the Army encouraging widespread automation of human-intensive processes. This push aligns closely with the rollout of low-code/no-code platforms, which make it easier than ever for users to build tools without traditional programming experience.
“We’re still in the collection phase,” Garciga notes, “but we’re asking, ‘Where can we add AI or ML to gain efficiencies?’” These capabilities help back-office users free up time and energy for mission-focused work.
He sees a range of users—from beginners using AI for smarter searches to advanced users coding pilots and solving complex operational problems. The goal now is to guide more users from that rookie stage to experienced, capable developers. “Over the next year and into FY26, we’ll invest more in training—less institutional, more ad hoc, commercially available learning.”
The Army is also rapidly expanding its use of artificial intelligence. In just 72 hours, Garciga says, over 5,000 people joined the Army’s enterprise AI workspace. That number has since grown to over 19,000 users. Built to be safe, scalable, and accessible, this workspace allows personnel to experiment with large language models and find the right tool for each task.The results speak for themselves. While much of the current focus is on automating back-office functions, Garciga says that mature users are already writing code, integrating AI into Army systems, and rapidly building out use cases.“We made a commitment to get capability out,” he says, “and now we’re seeing steady growth and lots of learning.”
One of the most visible changes under Garciga’s leadership is the Army’s full commitment to the Joint Warfighting Cloud Capability (JWCC) contract. The Army is now the largest JWCC customer, accounting for 62% of all workloads on the platform. “About 18 months ago, we made the decision to stop using a reseller and move fully to JWCC,” he says. That shift not only improves account ownership and visibility, but also consolidates the Army’s buying power for better value. “You can’t beat all being there,” Garciga adds, noting that the Air Force and Navy are moving in the same direction.
The Army is now working with DoD CIO and DISA teams on the next-gen JWCC contract. The focus is on making onboarding easier—for both mission users and vendors—and improving access to commercial SaaS products. Garciga also highlights another major milestone: the Army’s implementation of continuous authority to operate (C-ATO). “It’s taken 24 months of hard work,” he says, “but we’ve now got three programs officially in C-ATO.” Rather than a one-size-fits-all approach, the Army is promoting reusable models that can be tailored to different commands and programs. Garciga believes the strategy is paying off: “It’s shortening timelines and creating critical mass. We’re seeing real maturity.” The next frontier? Partnering with industry to implement C-ATO in commercially owned, commercially operated environments—a model Garciga believes will round out the Army’s full tech arsenal.
Garciga returns to one central theme: culture change. By emphasizing commercial-first, SaaS-based platforms and removing unnecessary gatekeeping, the Army is giving its people permission—and power—to innovate. “The folks that want to move fast are finding that the more commercial they go, the faster they get from zero to hero,” he says. Making tools available in a safe, supported environment is the Army CIO’s top priority. “Not everyone’s an expert,” Garciga says. “But like learning to drive, you’ve got to get hands on the wheel.”And with thousands of Army personnel already steering their own digital futures, it’s clear that Garciga’s vision is taking hold.