The critical watches and warnings issued by the National Weather Service (NWS) inform everything from a firefighter's deployment to wildfires to the public's beach plans. This information is powered by some of the most advanced computational infrastructure in the world. According to David Michaud, director of the National Centers for Environmental Prediction's Central Operations at the NWS, high-performance computing (HPC) is the indispensable foundation that turns raw atmospheric data into actionable public safety information.

Michaud joined GovCast to discuss HPC and the IT systems accelerating science at NWS, including the service's operational supercomputers capable of calculating up to 14 quadrillion calculations per second.

Michaud also talked about the burgeoning role of AI/ML in weather prediction. These new predictive models are not intended to replace the traditional NWP models, but to complement them.

The U.S. is facing a surge in advanced threats from nation-state actors like China and Russia, who are increasingly probing critical infrastructure vulnerabilities.

David Travers, director of the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Office of Water Emergency Response and Cybersecurity, noted how escalating risks to the nation's water sector has shifted over his 30-year career, how adversaries are leveraging emerging technologies like AI to improve attacks and how the agency is adapting.

He also detailed how partnerships with Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the FBI are improving incident reporting, plans for a new $9 million water system resilience grant and the top cybersecurity initiatives shaping 2026.

The Army needs innovative and efficient solutions to problems. At the Association of the United States Army's Annual Meeting and Exposition in Washington, D.C., Innovation Officer at the Army's 3rd Infantry Division's Marne Innovation Center (MIC) Capt. Brendan Shutt explained how the Army's grassroots innovation model is transforming problem-solving.

The center embeds innovation directly into training environments, sourcing problems from soldiers in real time and involves warfighters firsthand in innovation. He said its soldier-driven, agile approach offers a compelling blueprint for future battlefield innovation and efficiency.

Shutt described challenges with scaling solutions across the Army, but said partnerships with academia provide fresh perspectives, technical bandwidth and can support more complex projects involving AI and autonomous systems.

Mitchell Thornbrugh, CIO and director of the Office of Information Technology at the Indian Health Service (IHS), is leading a transformative effort to modernize health care delivery for Native American and Alaska Native communities.

Patients at the Heart Electronic Health Record (PATH EHR) is an enterprise-wide initiative uniting more than 200 staff from federal, tribal and urban health facilities. At the core of Thornbrugh's vision is an understanding that rural and underserved areas face distinct health care challenges, including limited resources and workforce shortages.

By approaching EHR modernization through the lens of community impact, IHS is positioning itself as a leader in redefining how digital health serves patients across vast and diverse regions. Thornbrugh emphasizes that the true breakthrough lies in data liberation — unlocking decades of health records to improve outcomes and guide smarter decision-making.

This patient-first, data-driven approach ensures PATH EHR is not only a milestone for Native health systems today but also a blueprint for health care transformation for generations to come.

Kyle Cobb, acting deputy director for technology and product at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Office of Public Health Data, Surveillance and Technology (OPHDST), shared how emerging technologies are transforming the way health care data is shared and managed. Cobb outlined how APIs are replacing outdated data connections with a hub-and-spoke model, creating more efficient and centralized data utilities.

Tools such as FHIR-based APIs and core Data Use Agreements (DUAs) are not only reducing administrative burdens but also helping providers and public health agencies exchange information more consistently. This standardization builds the foundation for a stronger, more responsive data infrastructure capable of supporting both routine health care operations and large-scale public health emergencies.

Artificial intelligence is becoming the next major accelerant in this transformation. Cobb described how AI tools can parse older data formats and convert them into modern FHIR bundles, unlocking access to legacy systems that were previously difficult to integrate.

Dr. Neil Evans, Acting Program Executive Officer for the Department of Veterans Affairs' Electronic Health Record Modernization Integration Office, provided an update on the rollout of the common electronic health record (EHR).

The VA paused the rollout in 2023 following optimization and reliability issues. Evans outlined plans to restart deployment in April 2026 at select sites in Michigan, with a target of full, enterprise-wide implementation by 2031. He described the VA's wave-based deployment schedule, which leverages user feedback and lessons learned from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the War Department, both of which have deployed the common EHR. Evans discussed the challenges and opportunities the EHR presents for veterans and active military personnel alike.

Robert Sholtis, CIO at Marine Corps Forces Pacific, discussed at AFCEA TechNet Indo-Pacific his modernization efforts for the service across the Indo-Pacific region. MARFORPAC operates one of the largest services across some of the most challenging environments in the world, facilitating the need to quickly adopt, acquire and scale emerging technologies as they develop.

Sholtis said that industry, warfighters and acquisition must work in concert to properly supply the force with the most up-to-date, scalable technology like AI to prepare against adversarial threats. He called on industry to provide innovative technologies to MARFORPAC when the force will find ways to make the technology scalable. Guest: Robert Sholtis, CIO, Marine Corps Forces Pacific

Marine Corps Forces Pacific is standing up a Digital Transformation Team (DXT) as part of the Marine Corps' AI Implementation Plan's Digital Transformation Pilot. C5ISRT Systems Integration Officer and Agentic Warfare Lead Capt. Mason Millsap joined us at AFCEA TechNet Indo-Pacific to explain how the pilot helps personnel digitize processes, expand secure data pipelines and accelerate AI adoption for real-world operations.

He discussed how DXT is advancing the service's Digital Transformation Pilot and optimizing digital data flows across tactical and operational systems to strengthen command and control, improve interoperability and enhance decision-making across the Indo-Pacific region.

He also highlighted how the service is integrating emerging technologies from the research, development, test and evaluation (RDT&E) enterprise to maximize the value of prototypes and demonstrations while preparing for the rise of agentic and autonomous systems.