NIST and GSA MOU to Boost AI Evaluation Science in Federal Procurement

NIST AI News & Updates

Published March 18th, 2026

Detected March 23rd, 2026

Summary

NIST's Center for AI Standards and Innovation (CAISI) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the General Services Administration (GSA) to enhance AI evaluation science for federal procurement. This collaboration aims to support the USAi platform by developing robust methodologies for assessing AI model performance and security.

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What changed

NIST's CAISI and the GSA have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to bolster the scientific evaluation of Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems within federal procurement processes. This partnership specifically aims to support the USAi platform, a secure generative AI tool designed for federal agencies. CAISI will contribute its expertise in measurement science to help GSA develop methodologies for evaluating the performance, security, and functionality of AI models used in real-world government operations.

This collaboration is expected to yield methodological guidelines for pre-deployment AI assessments and tools for measuring post-deployment performance. It aligns with America's AI Action Plan, which emphasizes the development of AI evaluation science and resources for federal agencies. While this MOU itself does not impose new direct compliance obligations on regulated entities, it signifies a coordinated effort to standardize and improve the assessment of AI technologies adopted by the federal government, which may indirectly influence future procurement requirements and standards.

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UPDATES

CAISI signs MOU with GSA to boost AI evaluation science in federal procurement through USAi

March 18, 2026

Facebook Linkedin X.com Email The Center for AI Standards and Innovation (CAISI) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the General Services Administration (GSA) to support the AI evaluation needs of USAi, a secure generative AI platform and centralized procurement toolbox that enables federal agencies to confidently adopt AI at scale.

GSA provides centralized procurement and shared services for the federal government. Through USAi, GSA expands the federal government’s AI infrastructure via shared services for agencies to experiment with and adopt AI systems.

CAISI supports AI stakeholders by developing methods to measure the capabilities and security of leading AI models with gold-standard measurement science. CAISI will leverage its measurement expertise to help GSA and its partner agencies develop robust methodologies to evaluate performance, security, and functionality within real-world user workflows in the USAi platform.

"We're at a pivotal time in the AI revolution and this partnership between CAISI and GSA will enable federal agencies to adopt AI in ways that help the American people,” said Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and Acting NIST Director Craig Burkhardt. “We are excited to help advance AI in support of the Trump Administration’s vision for innovation.”

This partnership will further GSA and CAISI’s work to create resources that support federal agencies’ procurement and adoption of AI systems—including methodological guidelines for pre-deployment assessments and tools enabling agencies to measure post-deployment performance in line with their distinct missions and operations.

Building on CAISI’s ongoing work with leading AI companies and with other government partners, this collaboration advances America’s AI Action Plan, which charges CAISI with supporting “the development of the science of measuring and evaluating AI models” and publishing guidelines and resources for “federal agencies to conduct their own evaluations of AI systems.”

Artificial intelligence and Standards