The U.S. Army's outgoing chief information officer, Leonel Garciga, has a blunt message about military modernization: the hardest part isn't the AI—it's the humans. As the Army accelerates its adoption of artificial intelligence, Garciga says the main obstacle is getting soldiers and civilians to adapt to new tools.

'Let's Break Some Glass'

Instead of relying on multi-year procurement cycles, Garciga favors a simpler approach: deploy tools broadly and improve them quickly. "Let's just make it ubiquitously available and see what happens," he told Business Insider. This philosophy aligns with acquisition reforms pushed under both the Biden and Trump administrations.

He also pushed decision-making authority down to commanders. "Don't turn it into a process that takes time and delays people getting the capability they need."

AI Adoption Moves Fast

The Army's AI adoption unfolded faster than expected, leaving workers struggling to keep pace. "Probably the biggest demand signal we get is, 'Hey, how do I get trained on this because I don't understand what I'm looking at?'" Garciga said. "'How do we keep up with policy?'"

The push extends across the military. In April, the Pentagon's AI chief confirmed that Alphabet Inc. (GOOG) and Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL) Gemini model is expanding into classified defense work. Meanwhile, the Pentagon boosted Meta Platforms Inc. (META)-backed Scale AI's contract to $500 million in May, using an Other Transaction Authority vehicle to accelerate AI deployment and reduce procurement delays.

The Pentagon's growing AI vendor base includes Alphabet, Microsoft Corp. (MSFT), OpenAI, Palantir Technologies Inc. (PLTR), and Meta.

What Comes Next

Garciga, a first-generation Cuban-American, stepped down last week after a three-year term and heads next to Booz Allen Hamilton (BAH) as an AI and tech advisor. His successor must determine how much AI expansion is sustainable. "Unbridled sprawl is never a good thing," he said.