Government contractors are lining up to work with DOGE
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Security contractors are adapting to DOGE's brutal cost-cutting regime — by pitching their tech as essential to its mission.
Why it matters: As federal workforce cuts deepen, DOGE is expected to lean more heavily on third-party security vendors to help dismantle longstanding information silos — despite the national security risks that could come from its quest.
Driving the news: In recent weeks, DOGE has quietly begun laying the groundwork for what privacy advocates long feared was its endgame: building a centralized database containing the personal information of millions of U.S. citizens and residents.
- Some reports also suggest DOGE is exploring ways to deploy AI agents to replace federal workers across agencies, fueling further alarm about the national security and privacy implications.
Between the lines: Several companies are now marketing their tools directly to agencies as a way to survive DOGE's cost-cutting demands.
- ServiceNow CEO Bill McDermott said in an earnings call last month that his company is benefiting from the shift. "In this moment, we're one of the rare companies that will grow 30% year over year in the public sector," he said.
- Wired reported this month that OpenAI has met with the Food and Drug Administration about a tool to evaluate new drugs. Two DOGE associates were also in attendance, according to the report.
- A source familiar with the matter confirmed the meetings to Axios, noting that OpenAI has shown clear interest in working specifically with the FDA in some capacity. However, no contracts have been signed yet.
The intrigue: Many of these vendors have ramped up their lobbying power in recent months — particularly with Trump-aligned lobbying firms.
- So far in 2025, at least nine security and consulting firms, including Zscaler, Accenture, and Booz Allen Hamilton, have registered with Ballard Partners, according to congressional lobbying disclosures.
Zoom in: Axonius, an Israeli cybersecurity startup with growing federal ambitions, told Axios it's started pitching itself to agencies as a tool that can help them dodge the most severe DOGE audits.
- The company's platform gives administrators full visibility into devices, software and users, aligning closely with DOGE's stated mission to streamline IT environments.
- Tom Kennedy, vice president of Axonius Federal Systems, told Axios that the company's tools can be "part of a great efficiency story" and that its technology usually gets through relevant DOGE audits.
- But Brian Meyer, field CTO at Axonius Federal Systems, added that the company's pitch doesn't endorse job cuts.
- "Even before the DOGE, there was a problem in the cybersecurity industry for full-time employees — they're already trying to do more with less," he said. "We've been telling that story for years: Based on what we have, you can do more with the resources that you have."
The big picture: The federal cybersecurity ecosystem has been on edge during the early months of the second Trump administration, amid staff cuts in the federal cyber workforce and a pending Department of Justice investigation into former CISA director Chris Krebs.
- Several administration officials met with companies on the sidelines of the RSA Conference last month in the hopes of mending some of these relationships.
- Still, some executives say federal work has remained consistent. "We have been really privileged to have a strong relationship with every White House administration," Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince told Axios in an interview.
- "It feels like everything today is a partisan issue — but cybersecurity is on the less partisan side of that equation," he added.
Yes, but: That hasn't spared vendors from fallout.
- Security research government contractor Mitre is laying off 442 employees, or nearly 5% of its workforce, in June due in part to contract cancellations.
- Deloitte has also shared plans to lay off staff, and other consulting firms have warned of declining U.S. federal revenues this year.
- "It's disruptive, there's no other way to put it," Kennedy said of DOGE's cuts to the federal cybersecurity workforce. "We were hoping that cybersecurity would be sheltered, and it has not been from a human side."
What to watch: Courts have continued to stonewall some of DOGE's most ambitious efforts, including accessing personal information at the Social Security Administration.
- Lawmakers have raised serious concerns about the scope of the contractor and workforce cuts at CISA.
Go deeper: Elon Musk leaves legacy of self-destruction at DOGE
