Google is opening the doors of its Gemini artificial intelligence platform to U.S. government agencies, offering access at a token cost of under a dollar. The initiative, unveiled Thursday by the General Services Administration (GSA), is aimed at accelerating the public sector’s use of generative AI in day-to-day operations.
The program, branded “Gemini for Government,” will provide agencies with Google’s full AI suite—ranging from text and image generation to video creation and digital agents capable of managing complex workflows. “This gives federal agencies the ability to leverage our entire AI innovation stack to deliver on their missions,” Google CEO Sundar Pichai said in a statement.
Michael Rigas, the GSA’s acting administrator, described the offering as a catalyst for transforming government efficiency, noting that AI could streamline operations across departments much like cloud computing did a decade ago.
The near-free deal follows a similar arrangement earlier this year in which Google supplied Workspace software to agencies at steep discounts. It also mirrors a recent move by rival OpenAI, which granted the U.S. government access to its enterprise-grade ChatGPT for one year—for just $1.
That partnership was paired with a larger, $200 million Pentagon contract, where OpenAI is helping the Department of Defense explore applications for generative AI, from improving healthcare access for service members to bolstering cyber defense.
Taken together, the agreements highlight an escalating race among tech giants to become the federal government’s preferred AI partner. For Washington, the competition has an upside: cutting-edge tools at negligible cost, while private companies gain a foothold in what could become one of the largest long-term markets for generative AI.
