ODNI launches IC data consortium solicitation to reform commercial data acquisition

Apr 16, 2025, 11:36 am EDT | Anthony Kimery

ODNI launches IC data consortium solicitation to reform commercial data acquisition

In a significant move to reshape how the Intelligence Community (IC) acquires and manages commercial data, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), through the Office of the Open Source Intelligence Executive (OSIE), has issued a new solutions solicitation. The initiative aims to establish an Intelligence Community Data Consortium (ICDC) that can consolidate the fragmented, costly, and duplicative processes currently used to procure Commercially Available Information (CAI).

This solicitation, under the authority of 10 U.S.C. § 4022 as modified by 50 U.S.C. § 3024(n)(6), contemplates awarding one or more Prototype Other Transaction (OT) Agreements to develop and implement a centralized, unclassified platform that enables secure, compliant, and efficient access to commercial data by IC users.

The solicitation explicitly targets small businesses, nontraditional defense contractors, and traditional defense contractors who partner with nontraditional participants or provide cost-sharing arrangements. The broader vision is to modernize data access for the IC while reducing replication, storage burdens, and sunk licensing costs.

At the heart of the problem lies the IC’s decentralized and siloed model of acquiring CAI. This model has led to duplicate purchases, limited data sharing, inefficient licensing agreements, and massive storage redundancies. Multiple agencies often buy the same data or platform licenses independently, leading to significant waste. In some cases, data vendors repackage similar data across multiple platforms with proprietary aggregation techniques, obscuring true value and creating challenges in vendor evaluation.

ODNI seeks to establish a government-funded Consortium that will serve as the central entity for acquiring, managing, and negotiating commercial data requirements. Through this centralized model, the IC hopes to increase transparency, improve vendor negotiations, consolidate funds to leverage purchasing power, and ensure compliance with legal and ethical standards, particularly those involving civil liberties and privacy, such as the requirements laid out in Intelligence Community Policy Memorandum (ICPM) 504-01.

The Consortium will operate as both a technical and management entity. On the management side, the Consortium Manager will act as the point of contact for commercial vendors, taking in unified IC requirements, evaluating the best data solutions, and managing vendor relationships. On the technical side, a software development team will be tasked with building a “zero copy” unclassified data marketplace, allowing users to explore, license, and interact with commercial datasets without duplicating or transferring the data into classified systems unnecessarily. This innovative approach is expected to significantly reduce cloud costs and data sprawl.

ODNI has outlined several core project goals and capabilities that respondent organizations must demonstrate. These include the ability to identify and vet commercial data providers, assess data quality and provenance, and understand the nuances of data sensitivity in accordance with IC standards. Respondents must also demonstrate the capacity to handle privacy assessments for personally identifiable information, discern whether data is AI-generated or derived, and explain how such datasets are monitored for quality and conceptual drift.

ODNI expects a clear methodology for licensing and access control, including mechanisms to ensure compliance with the Committee on National Security Systems privacy overlay standards and role-based access controls. Metrics and analytics to monitor usage patterns and market trends will also be required to help shape future acquisitions and maintain transparency.

The ICDC platform is meant to be a key enabler of change. Envisioned as a flexible, unclassified interface governed by design principles outlined in Appendix A of the solicitation, the platform must be able to accommodate API-based data access, platform browsing, and secure bulk download options. Notably, prior classified experience may not directly translate into success here. Respondents are urged to treat this solicitation as an opportunity to innovate free from legacy constraints, emphasizing technical agility over traditional classified program familiarity.

ICDC represents a novel effort to reinvent how the U.S. intelligence enterprise accesses commercial information. By reducing redundancy, avoiding unused licenses, and cutting cloud storage expenses, the project is designed to enable smarter, leaner, and more responsive data practices. At the same time, it promises a new degree of accountability and governance in how intelligence agencies interact with the expanding universe of commercial data vendors. If successful, the initiative could become a model for broader federal data acquisition reform.

The solicitation is structured as a multi-phase process. Phase 1 begins with the submission of a white paper, due April 28, 2025. Selected participants may then be invited to Phase 1A to provide mockups or visual demonstrations of their proposed solutions. Those who proceed to Phase 2 will deliver in-person oral presentations at a Washington, D.C.-area facility, engaging directly with selection officials to refine their proposals. Phase 3 will consist of negotiation and final agreement formation. Not all respondents will be selected to advance through each phase, and participation in the process does not guarantee an award.

Importantly, the solicitation allows for collaborative proposals. Organizations that can only provide either the management or technical solution are encouraged to form partnerships. The white paper must clearly describe the partnership model or indicate whether the respondent is applying solely for the consortium management or software development components. If a single vendor cannot fulfill both requirements but offers exceptional expertise in one, the sponsor reserves the right to pair vendors in a hybrid award model.

To ensure alignment with the OT authority requirements under U.S. Code, each respondent must demonstrate eligibility in one of three ways: being a nontraditional defense contractor or nonprofit research institution participating significantly in the prototype project; being a small business or group of nontraditional contractors; or providing at least one-third of the funding for the proposed solution from non-federal sources. Traditional government contractors must explicitly state their cost-share arrangement or nontraditional partner involvement. Proposals that do not clearly establish this status will be deemed ineligible.

Those interested in contributing to this transformative effort must act swiftly. White papers for Phase 1 are due by April 28, 2025, and must fully address the project’s scope, technical strategy, governance model, and compliance assurances to be considered for further phases. The sponsor anticipates awarding as many agreements as budgetary allowances permit, with successful prototypes eligible for further development and operational expansion under additional agreements.