Josh Gruenbaum, a 2025 Wash100 Award winner, knows a Federal Acquisition Regulation revamp has been tried before. Previous presidential administrations have laid out lofty goals of streamlining the rules that govern the federal procurement of goods and services, only to succumb to the more than 2,000-page behemoth of a document.
But what’s different about a FAR revamp in 2025? Specific emerging technologies previously unavailable.
“I feel really good about it because the technology is different today,” Gruenbaum, the head of the General Services Administration’s Federal Acquisition Service, said recently at a public forum, according to a FedScoop article. “The agentic tools and artificial intelligence.”
What makes these technologies special, Gruenbaum said, is that they relax “tough, laborious [and] monotonous” parts of humans combing through the FAR, while accelerating the pace of progress. He vowed that subject matter experts would still be part of a FAR overhaul leveraging AI tools.
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How Is Trump Reforming Acquisition?
President Donald Trump in April issued an executive order calling for the dramatic simplification of federal procurement. He wants agencies that have procurement authority to make sure that agency-specific rules are in sync with a revamped FAR.
He also instituted a 10-to-1 initiative, where every new federal regulation had to be justified with clear benefits and broader deregulatory actions. Trump directed the greater use of commercial alternatives, with a goal of increasing innovation and driving higher quality and cost-effective solutions. The GSA has even launched a website for the public to track the FAR overhaul.
Gruenbaum has been bullish on using AI to improve federal productivity and increase government savings. The GSA in August came to terms with OpenAI to acquire ChatGPT Enterprise services to participating agencies for $1 per agency for one year.
Low-Cost AI Services for Government
The announcement came shortly after the GSA designated OpenAI, Google and Anthropic as approved AI companies that can provide their services to civilian agencies, according to TechCrunch. Most interestingly, the trio will have their tools offered through the Multiple Award Schedule, a contracting platform that allows federal agencies to tap AI tools through prenegotiated agreements. This reduces the need for them to individually negotiate with vendors.
“We encourage other American AI technology companies to follow OpenAI’s lead and work with us as GSA’s OneGov continues to modernize and streamline government operations,” Gruenbaum said in a GSA statement.
Office of Centralized Acquisition Services
Gruenbaum’s work revamping federal acquisition hasn’t ended with AI services. GSA created a new office within the FAS called the Office of Centralized Acquisition Services that will serve as a nerve center for federal acquisition efforts totaling $500 billion of goods and services annually, NextGov/FCW reported.
Gruenbaum was quoted in the NextGov/FCW article as saying this new office will consolidate government procurement and regulations while using more indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract vehicles. It will also use more shared services, assisted procurement and demand management. The office will also handle contracting for agencies including the Small Business Administration and the Office of Personnel Management.
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