The Arlington, Virginia unit of Accenture along with National Harbor, Maryland-based company Knexus and Scale AI of San Francisco, California, have emerged as the winners in the Defense Logistics Agency’s inaugural artificial intelligence hackathon. The three companies will receive contracts worth a total of $3.5 million for developing AI reporting tools in demand planning, a chatbot app and virtual acquisition agents, DLA said Tuesday.
The agency invited vendors in March to demonstrate in the hackathon their capabilities to provide innovative AI and machine learning solutions to DLA operations.
Selection Criteria
The competition drew 46 entries that a DLA research and development team screened based on a set of standards that included technical merit, feasibility and AI performance. Through the criteria, six vendors were selected for proposal presentations in an in-person DLA event in June attended by some 50 representatives from the agency, the Department of Defense, military services and academia.
The three winners were selected after another review of their submitted white papers, technical and cost offers, and in-person presentations.
Repeatable Solutions
Adarryl Roberts, DLA chief information officer, said the hackathon is the agency’s first endeavor at expanding AI use through repeatable procurement solutions.
“DLA’s goal to become a digital organization is a journey that starts with standardizing how the agency uses emerging technologies to answer DLA’s critical logistics challenges,” he added.
The agency is expected to hold its next hackathon in 2025.
