Original Broadcast Date: 6/12/2026
Sponsored by: Verkada Federal
Artificial intelligence is becoming part of every aspect of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency's mission, and Michelle Aten says success depends as much on people as on technology.
During an interview on Fed Gov Today, Michelle Aten, Chief AI Officer at NGA, explains that AI is transforming how the agency delivers data, supports the warfighter, and enables employees across the organization. Rather than viewing AI as a standalone capability, she describes it as a technology that is changing the way the agency approaches its entire mission.
"Really, in every possible way," Aten says when asked how AI is changing NGA. She explains that the agency is working to integrate AI across its operations to accelerate capabilities, augment the workforce, and improve the delivery of data and services to both warfighters and partners.
Supporting that transformation begins with a technology strategy centered on flexibility. Aten says NGA follows a buy-first, build-second approach, allowing the agency to leverage commercial innovation while staying focused on mission outcomes.
Just as important, she says, is giving employees access to the tools and training they need to innovate on their own.
"We focus on being data-centric and empowering the workforce to be innovators themselves," Aten says, adding that NGA wants to build on the expertise employees have developed over decades of service.
Understanding operational requirements is another major component of the agency's AI strategy. Rather than designing capabilities in isolation, Aten says AI specialists work directly alongside mission teams to understand their day-to-day challenges.
She describes this approach as "sharing the pain" with users by sitting beside them, observing how they work, and identifying the real problems that need to be solved. Whether NGA purchases or builds a capability, the goal is to ensure it is designed around mission requirements rather than technology for its own sake.
That engagement does not end when a capability is delivered.
Aten explains that the agency maintains a continuous feedback process built around a tight OODA loop, gathering user input and iteratively improving capabilities over time. Even when an initial solution addresses only part of the requirement, NGA continues refining it until it meets and exceeds user expectations.
The conversations that drive those improvements vary by mission. Sometimes they involve formal planning and documented requirements. Other times they require sending experts directly to operators working at the edge to better understand specific operational needs.
Because NGA supports missions ranging from logistics to common operating pictures, Aten says requirements can range from capabilities serving thousands of users to solutions tailored for much smaller teams. The common objective is to ensure that every capability supports the mission it is intended to serve.
Delivering AI at the edge also requires strong collaboration.
Aten points to industry partnerships, shared lessons learned, and government-wide cooperation as essential ingredients for success. Challenges such as limited computing resources, constrained data transfer, and the need to deploy capabilities across distributed environments require organizations to work together rather than independently.
She says agencies cannot afford to develop capabilities in silos. Instead, they need shared requirements, coordinated investment, and sustained leadership support to build solutions that serve multiple communities.
That philosophy also shapes NGA's technology decisions.
Although the agency purchases most of its capabilities, Aten says NGA has developed a vendor-agnostic interface that sits above commercial AI models. Roughly 95 percent of the solution comes from industry partners, while the government-developed layer allows NGA to quickly swap models, introduce new features, and adapt capabilities without lengthy acquisition cycles.
She describes this balance as a practical middle ground that combines commercial innovation with government expertise while preserving flexibility for mission needs.
Technology alone, however, is not enough.
Aten says workforce development remains one of her highest priorities. She regularly conducts training sessions alongside NGA College and supports multiple learning opportunities, including AI mentors embedded within agency tools. These mentors guide users through personalized learning experiences and help them develop AI skills that align with their specific responsibilities.
The goal, she says, is to make learning continuous rather than limited to the classroom.
As AI becomes more common across the agency, Aten believes one of the biggest challenges is helping employees believe they can successfully use these technologies.
She encourages staff not to fear AI but to recognize the expertise they already possess. NGA's responsibility, she says, is providing tools that help employees complete repetitive work more efficiently while preserving the uniquely human skills that remain critical to mission success.
Those capabilities free employees to focus on analysis, critical thinking, and the judgment required to deliver outcomes for the American people.
For Aten, AI is not about replacing expertise. It is about expanding what experienced professionals can accomplish by giving them better tools, continuous learning opportunities, and the confidence to innovate alongside the mission.