Kristen Smith 
- The Ask Sage brand is being retired for DOW customers
- A new local device supports classified deployments up to TS/SCI
- BigBear.ai will demo the air-gapped device at AFCEA TechNet Augusta in August
BigBear.ai has broadened its generative artificial intelligence platform for Department of War customers, adding hardware for classified, disconnected environments and a procurement path that allows agencies to bring their own AI models. The McLean, Virginia-based company announced the expansion Wednesday.
As part of the overhaul, the Ask Sage product brand will be retired for DOW customers and replaced by the redesigned BigBear.ai generative AI platform. The company acquired Ask Sage in a roughly $250 million deal completed in January and has since rebuilt the model-agnostic, multimodal platform at its core. BigBear.ai said the changes align with the department’s AI Acceleration Strategy.
Kevin McAleenan, CEO of BigBear.ai and a two-time Wash100 Award winner, said mission-ready AI means giving customers control and technology that functions in the conditions operators actually face, including air-gapped settings.
How Does the Air-Gapped Hardware Extend GenAI to Classified Missions?
A new local device supports deployments up to the Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information level, whether connected locally or fully air-gapped. Operators with connectivity can access cloud-hosted models; those cut off from external networks can still use the platform’s core generative AI functions via locally hosted models. Cloud configurations, meanwhile, offer a broad model catalog and support deployments up to DOW Cloud Impact Level 6. BigBear.ai will demonstrate the device at AFCEA TechNet Augusta, running Aug. 17-20, and said it is available now.
What Does the Bring-Your-Own-Model Option Change?
The new delivery path decouples platform and secure workspace licensing from model access. Agencies that buy model capacity under their own agreements can license the BigBear.ai platform directly, while customers who want the company to handle model procurement can stay on its managed, token-based arrangement. Both run on the same underlying platform. Jason Layman, executive vice president of generative AI products and platforms at BigBear.ai, said the capabilities were built to address the daily problems DOW customers face. The bring-your-own-model option is expected to reach dedicated tenants through the company’s contract vehicles around the third quarter of 2026.
