DWPA GovCon Edge: Federal AI Isn’t About Technology. It’s About Faster Decisions – March 3

Deep Water Point & Associates has long been known for bringing together serious practitioners who understand both the federal mission and the realities of the GovCon market. This conversation reflects that approach, assembling leaders who have operated inside government at senior levels and who now work closely with agencies and industry navigating the rapidly evolving AI landscape.

Two of the participants bring particularly notable federal leadership experience.

Randy Soper, now Senior Director for AI at Slalom, previously served as the IRS Chief AI Officer. His background reflects the kind of large scale, enterprise level technology leadership that few in the federal ecosystem have had the opportunity to hold.

Sanjay Koyani, Principal at Deep Water Point & Associates, also brings extensive federal experience, having served as Chief Technology Officer at the Department of Labor and as an innovation executive within the Department of Health and Human Services.

The discussion is moderated by Eric Heffernan, Senior Vice President at Deep Water Point & Associates, and also features Jeff Simpson, Principal at Deep Water Point & Associates, along with Chase Dalton, Director for National Security at Cognition AI.

Together, this group represents a rare combination of federal leadership experience, industry perspective, and advisory insight. The kind of conversation that GovCon leaders rarely get to hear in one place.

The episode explores how AI decisions are increasingly being evaluated across five areas that agencies and industry leaders alike are paying close attention to right now.

• Mission. Where AI can measurably improve outcomes
• Platform. How AI fits within existing enterprise environments
• Trust. Security, transparency, and risk management
• Acquisition. Procurement and governance realities
• Workforce. Ownership, operations, and sustainment

For companies trying to understand how federal leaders are thinking about AI today, this is the kind of discussion worth paying attention to. A fast moving conversation featuring people who have helped shape the environment many contractors are now trying to navigate.

To listen on Spotify click here. Connect with the speakers:

Eric Heffernan, SVP, Deep Water Point & Associates, Moderator
Chase Dalton, Director – National Security, Cognition AI
Sanjay Koyani, Principal, Deep Water Point & Associates and former DOL CTO and HHS Innovation Executive
Jeff Simpson, Principal, Deep Water Point & Associates
Randy Soper, Senior Director AI, Slalom and former IRS AI Chief

If you liked listening to this episode, click here to view more in this series. To view all of our podcast series, visit our podcast page.