~$36.7M for core integration of a DoD CDAO data platform — the agency awarding it is GSA, not Defense (Accenture Federal Services)
The GSA Federal Acquisition Service awarded Accenture Federal Services about $36.7 million for core integration of a data platform used by the Defense Department's Chief Data and Artificial Intelligence Office. Defense uses it; GSA signs the contract — the federal practice of one agency buying on another's behalf.
Contract key facts
- RecipientAccenture Federal
- Contract value$36,709,970 (≈$36.7M)
- Awarding agencyGeneral Services Administration
- Awarding sub-agencyFederal Acquisition Service
- Award typeDELIVERY ORDER
- Period of performance2026-07-28 〜 2027-07-27
- Contract ID (PIID)47QFCA26F0023
Contract scope (original)
THIS AWARD IS IN SUPPORT OF THE CHIEF DATA ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE OFFICE CDAO WAR DATA PLATFORM WDP CORE INTEGRATION CI
Key points
- Awarded by GSA's Federal Acquisition Service to Accenture Federal Services; value about $36.7 million ($36,709,970, as of 2026-09-08).
- The scope supports core integration of the Defense Department CDAO's War Data Platform — Defense is the user.
- Period July 28, 2026 to July 27, 2027. No outlays are recorded in this data.
- U.S. federal acquisition allows one agency to procure on another's behalf; GSA is an agency for that purpose.
- This site holds three other CDAO contracts, all awarded directly by Defense — the route here is different.
- Of the 222 federal spending records this site holds as of 2026-09-01, only two pairs carry exactly matching amounts.
1The agency that uses it and the agency that contracts differ
What stands out here is that the awarding agency is the General Services Administration rather than the Department of Defense. U.S. federal acquisition includes arrangements in which one agency procures on behalf of another. GSA exists in part for that: it puts umbrella contract vehicles in place ahead of time, opens them to other agencies, and processes individual orders within them. This award runs through GSA's Federal Acquisition Service.
2Why have another agency do the buying
The reasons are speed and reduced procedure. Using an existing vehicle takes less time to selection and award than standing up a competition from scratch. It does, however, call for care when totaling public data by agency. This $36.7 million is recorded as a GSA contract, so an agency-level total attributes it to GSA — while the Defense Department is what uses it. Reading per-agency totals as "what that agency spent" can drift from reality.
3What CDAO is
CDAO in the scope stands for Chief Data and Artificial Intelligence Office, the Defense Department organization overseeing data and AI. This site holds three other contracts naming CDAO, all awarded directly by Defense; this one differs in taking the GSA route. The specific function of the War Data Platform is not stated in the recorded scope.
4Amounts almost never repeat
Counting the pairs of records whose obligations match exactly across the 222 federal spending records this site holds as of 2026-09-01 gives just two.
Amounts do not repeat because each contract is built up on its own. Even orders under one framework differ once the work differs. Where two records do carry the same amount, that is a cue to ask whether one piece of work was split into two.
Why it matters
Procurement through an umbrella vehicle is, from a company's side, a route to award without a separate competition — so being on the vehicle governs access. For analysis, totals by awarding agency will not match the agency actually using the result. Contracts whose scope text names another agency's organization are the clue that route and user have separated.
FAQ
Why does GSA contract on behalf of Defense?
What is CDAO?
How does this affect agency-level totals?
Sources (primary)
This article is an independent organization based on the U.S. official spending data below. Verify the exact, latest details with the official source.
- USAspending (award details)
- Contract ID (PIID)：47QFCA26F0023