BUILT BY A VETERAN, FOR VETERAN-OWNED BUSINESSES

Win More Federal Contracts. Spend Less Time Writing.

AI built for the work veteran-owned businesses actually do, capability statements, SAM.gov RFP responses, BD outreach to contracting officers, and prime/sub coordination. Cut proposal time by 60 to 80 percent without faking past performance or missing FAR Part 19 requirements. Built by a Navy vet who has read the same SOWs you have.

Try the prompt builderTalk to Jake
$25B+
Annual SDVOSB set-aside opportunity
30 min
Capability statement turnaround
60-80%
Proposal hours cut per RFP
Navy-vet led
Founder credibility, not borrowed

The short answer

Yes, veteran-owned businesses can use AI to win more federal contracts when AI drafts and you verify. AI is good at first-draft capability statements, RFP responses, BD emails to contracting officers, and prime/sub outreach. AI cannot replace your past performance, your relationships with KOs, or your judgment on whether a deal is real. The pattern is simple: AI writes the language, you verify every fact.

Why veteran-owned businesses are using AI right now

AI is the BD and proposal team a small SDVOSB cannot yet afford to hire. It does not replace your past performance or your relationships. It removes the writing load that keeps you from chasing the next opportunity.

Capability statements that actually win

One-page CS pulled from your real NAICS codes, past performance, and differentiators. Formatted so a contracting officer can read it in 30 seconds and route it to the right shop.

Faster proposal turnaround

First-draft technical approach, past performance citations, and SOW compliance matrices in hours, not weeks. You spend the saved time on pricing strategy and the win themes only you can write.

Federal BD outreach that gets opened

Cold emails to contracting officers and program managers that sound like a vet running a business, not a LinkedIn bot. Specific to the agency, the program, and the upcoming requirement.

Prime/sub coordination, handled

Outreach to Lockheed, Booz Allen, Leidos, SAIC, and the rest of the primes seeking sub roles on your NAICS and set-aside. Capability statements tailored per prime, per vehicle.

VA verification and recertification, drafted

Annual VA SDVOSB recertification packets, SAM.gov entity updates, and small business self-rep documents drafted in your voice. You verify the facts, file, and get back to the work.

Focus on the work AI cannot do

Past performance, relationships with KOs, program intel, and the judgment to know which deals are real. AI takes the writing load. You stay the operator.

AI in your business, specifically

Think of AI as a team of specialists you can call in when you need them. Here is the team a veteran-owned business has access to, and what each one actually does for federal-contracting work.

AI as a Capability Statement Drafter

One-page capability statements pulled from your real NAICS, past performance, and differentiators. Formatted for federal buyers, not marketing brochures.

Looks like
Draft a one-page capability statement for an SDVOSB in NAICS 541512 (computer systems design) and 541611 (management consulting). Past performance: three Army cyber contracts totaling $4.2M, period 2021 to 2024. Differentiators: cleared staff, agile delivery, government-cloud experience. Target agencies: Army PEO STRI, DHS CISA. Format for a contracting officer to read in 30 seconds.

AI as a Proposal Writer

First-draft technical approach, management approach, and SOW compliance matrices for competitive RFPs and sole-source SDVOSB justifications. You edit for win themes and verify every fact.

Looks like
Draft a sole-source SDVOSB justification under FAR 19.1406 for a $3.5M task order. Scope: cybersecurity assessment for a regional VA medical center, period of performance 12 months. Justify why this SDVOSB is the only responsible source. Pull the FAR citations correctly. Plain English, no marketing fluff.

AI as a BD Communicator

Cold emails to contracting officers, program managers, and small business specialists that read like a vet running a real business, not a LinkedIn-bot template.

Looks like
Draft a cold email to the small business specialist at Naval Sea Systems Command. Subject: capability statement for upcoming sustainment work in NAICS 541330. Lead with one specific past performance citation. Ask for a 15-minute capability briefing. Tone: professional, brief, no buzzwords. Sign-off includes my SDVOSB self-cert and CAGE code.

AI as a Subcontracting Coordinator

Outreach to primes (Booz Allen, Leidos, SAIC, Lockheed, Booz, etc.) seeking sub roles on the right vehicles and NAICS. Tailored per prime, per program.

Looks like
Draft an outreach email to a Booz Allen capture manager for an upcoming Army cyber program. We are an SDVOSB with NAICS 541512 and cleared staff. We hold a position on GSA MAS IT 70 SIN 54151S. Ask about subcontracting opportunities under their forecasted prime bid. Reference the specific program by name. Two paragraphs, no fluff.

AI as a Compliance Reviewer

Reads a proposal draft against FAR Part 19, SDVOSB self-rep requirements, and the SOW compliance matrix. Flags missing certifications, missing reps and certs, missing past performance citations.

Looks like
Review this draft proposal section against FAR Part 19.14 (SDVOSB program) and the RFP's compliance matrix. Flag any missing reps and certs, any past performance citations that lack a contract number or POC, and any place I claim a capability without a supporting past performance citation. Output as a checklist with line references.

AI as a Past-Performance Polisher

Turns a 2-line description of a past contract into a clean, scoreable past performance citation that maps to the eval criteria in the RFP.

Looks like
Turn this into a scoreable past performance citation. Contract: USAF Air Combat Command, $1.8M, 2022 to 2024, cybersecurity assessments at three bases. Map it against these RFP eval criteria: relevance, complexity, and quality. Format: agency, contract number, period, value, scope, outcome, POC. Keep claims specific. No marketing language.
Honest about the line

Honest representations, real past performance, and AI in federal proposals

Federal contracting is one of the few places where the legal stakes of AI use are real, immediate, and personal. False statements on a proposal are not a customer-service issue. They are 18 U.S.C. § 1001, which is a federal crime carrying up to five years. Past performance citations have to be verifiable against actual contracts. SDVOSB self-representation is a legal claim. Use AI to speed up the writing, never to invent the substance. The standard I hold to, and the standard I recommend to every veteran-owned business I work with, is below.

Past performance citations must be verifiable. AI drafts the language, the work has to be real

AI can polish a 2-line scope description into a clean citation. AI cannot invent a contract that did not exist. Every past performance entry needs a real contract number, real POC, real period of performance, and real dollar value, all confirmable by the agency.

Never let AI fabricate a customer testimonial or fake a contract reference

Fabricated references are the fastest way to a debarment. The contracting officer will call the POC. If the contract did not exist, or the work was not performed, you will be on the suspension and debarment list before the next solicitation closes.

SDVOSB self-representation is a legal claim. AI helps you draft the response, you verify the underlying facts

Eligibility, ownership percentages, control of operations, service-connected disability rating, all of these are facts you certify under penalty of law. AI is a writing assistant. It is not the legal claimant. You are.

Sensitive proposal info (CUI, FOUO) does not go into public AI tools

Controlled Unclassified Information, FOUO, and any data marked under DoDM 5200.01 stays out of ChatGPT, Claude.ai, and any consumer AI. Use a cleared environment like Azure Government or AWS GovCloud, or your prime's approved tooling. Public AI is fine for general work, never for controlled data.

How vet-owned businesses use AI Monday morning

Specific use cases I have seen work for SDVOSBs and VOSBs. Pick the one eating your week and start there.

Federal capability statement document on a desk with a pen

Capability statement updated for the new RFP in 30 minutes

Pull the right NAICS, the right past performance, and the right differentiators for the specific solicitation. One-page format. Ready to attach to a sources-sought response before the deadline closes.

Hands reviewing a printed contract document at a desk

Past performance citations rewritten to score against the eval criteria

Take a 2-line description of a real contract and turn it into a citation mapped to the RFP's relevance, complexity, and quality criteria. Specific, verifiable, and formatted to score.

Person writing a business email on a laptop at a desk

Cold email to a contracting officer drafted in your voice

Specific to the agency, the program, and the upcoming requirement. Reads like a vet running a business, not a LinkedIn bot. Includes your CAGE, SAM, and SDVOSB self-cert in the sign-off.

Two business professionals reviewing documents in a conference room

Subcontracting outreach to a prime, with the right vehicle and NAICS

Targeted email to a Booz Allen, Leidos, or SAIC capture manager. References the specific program, the right contract vehicle, and your NAICS fit. Ready to send after one read-through.

Office worker reviewing a government form on a computer screen

SAM.gov entity update letter handled while you focus on delivery

Annual SAM.gov entity registration update, NAICS adjustments, points-of-contact changes. Drafted in 10 minutes, you verify, file, and get back to the actual work.

Stacked folders of government paperwork with a pen on top

Annual VA SDVOSB recertification documents drafted

Recertification packet for the VA's Vets First Verification Program. Ownership documentation, control documentation, and disability rating verification, drafted from your existing records. You confirm and submit.

Why AI matters for veteran-owned businesses chasing federal work

If you run an SDVOSB or VOSB, you already know where the week goes. The capability statement reads like a marketing brochure when a contracting officer wanted a one-page scan. The proposal lands in the middle of the pack because the past performance was not framed against the eval criteria. The BD email to the program shop gets ghosted. Friday afternoon disappears into SAM.gov, VA verification paperwork, and another small-business self-rep update.

The writing-heavy parts of federal contracting are the parts AI does well at draft level. Capability statements, proposal sections, sources-sought responses, BD outreach to KOs, sub outreach to primes. None of this requires invented facts. It requires the right format, the right framing, and the right NAICS context, all of which AI can produce in minutes when you feed it your real records.

Think of AI as the BD and proposal team a small SDVOSB cannot yet afford to hire. It writes the first draft. You verify every fact, edit for win themes, and ship. The relationships, the program knowledge, and the judgment about which deals are real all stay with you.

What veteran-owned businesses need to think about before adopting AI

Federal work raises the legal stakes of AI use in a way most other industries do not deal with. Three things to settle before you start.

First, data classification. Anything marked CUI or FOUO does not go into ChatGPT, Claude.ai, or any consumer AI tool. Cleared environments like Azure Government or AWS GovCloud exist for a reason. If you handle controlled information for a prime, use their approved tooling, not yours.

Second, the false statements rule. 18 U.S.C. § 1001 makes false statements on a federal proposal a federal crime, up to five years. AI-fabricated past performance, invented contract numbers, or made-up customer references will get you debarred faster than anything else. The safe pattern is simple: AI drafts the prose, you confirm every contract number, every dollar figure, every period of performance against your actual records before submission.

Third, your voice is an asset. Vets in business often have an authenticity advantage over the polished marketing shops. AI written without your voice will dilute that. Train it on emails you have actually sent. SDVOSB self-rep under FAR Part 19 is a legal claim. AI helps draft. You verify.

When AI helps you most in your business

The high-value moments are the ones where the writing load is blocking the relationship work. A capability statement update the night before a teaming meeting with a prime. Past performance citations rewritten to match the new RFP eval criteria. A cold email to the small-business specialist at NAVSEA that does not read like LinkedIn spam. Sub outreach to a Booz Allen, Leidos, or SAIC capture manager, framed for the right vehicle and the right NAICS.

The repeatable workflow looks the same every time. Anonymize the scope. Let AI draft. Verify the output against your actual contract record. Final edit for voice and win themes. Ship.

Annual moments are quiet wins too. VA SDVOSB recertification packets. SAM.gov entity refresh and NAICS adjustments. Small business self-rep updates. AI drafts the documents in 10 minutes. You confirm and file.

The not-now signal is just as important. Anything classified, anything CUI, anything FOUO does not touch a public AI tool. If you are working a cleared program, defer to the cleared environment your contract requires. Public AI is for the unclassified general work, never for controlled data.

How to start using AI in your veteran-owned business

Pick one writing task this week. A capability statement update for an upcoming sources-sought. A cold email to a contracting officer at an agency you want to work with. A past performance citation that needs reworking for a specific RFP. Just one.

Train the AI on your voice first. Paste two or three emails you actually sent that worked, and tell it to match the tone. Let it produce the first draft. You do the final pass for accuracy and voice.

For unclassified general work, ChatGPT or Claude both work. If you live in Office 365, Microsoft Copilot integrates with Word and Outlook. For CUI or FOUO, use Azure Government, AWS GovCloud, or your prime's approved tooling. Match the tool to the data classification.

The 30-minute pattern is the muscle to build. Pick a writing task that usually takes two hours. Capability statement update. RFP response section. Weekly BD email batch. Draft with AI in 10 minutes. Edit for accuracy and voice in 20. Ship. Repeat next week with a different task.

Want help building this into your business? Book a free 30-minute scoping call. We are vet-owned, we get it.

Schedule a 30-min scoping call
Copy capability statement prompt

Try it yourself, draft a real capability statement

Fill in the boxes below. Click copy. Paste into Claude or ChatGPT. Get a one-page capability statement formatted for a federal buyer in under a minute. Important: do not paste sensitive contract information, CUI, or FOUO. Use anonymized scope and rounded dollar values for anything controlled.

Fill in your details

Primary first, then up to 5 secondary. Include the description, not just the number.

SDVOSB, VOSB, 8(a), HUBZone, WOSB, EDWOSB, none, or any combination.

Use anonymized contract numbers and rounded dollar values. Never share controlled information (CUI, FOUO) here.

Your prompt

live preview
You are an experienced federal proposal writer helping a veteran-owned small business build a one-page capability statement for federal buyers. Use the inputs below to generate a complete, formatted capability statement.

Business name: {Acme Federal Solutions, LLC}
NAICS codes: {541512 (computer systems design), 541611 (management consulting), 541330 (engineering services)}
Set-aside status: {SDVOSB (self-cert + VA-verified)}
Core capabilities: {Cybersecurity assessments, cloud migration, software engineering, IT modernization, RMF compliance}
Top 3 past performance contracts: {1) USAF ACC, $1.8M, 2022-2024, cyber assessments at 3 bases. 2) DHS CISA, $2.4M, 2023-2025, cloud migration. 3) Army PEO STRI, $900K, 2021-2023, training systems integration.}
Differentiators (cleared staff, certifications, vehicles, etc.): {Top Secret cleared staff, GSA MAS IT 70 SIN 54151S, ISO 27001 certified, agile delivery, 80 percent veteran workforce}
Target agencies: {DoD (Army, Navy), DHS (CISA, TSA), VA, GSA}

Output: a 1-page capability statement in the standard federal format. Sections:

1. Company Overview (2 to 3 sentences, lead with the set-aside status and the core capability)
2. Core Capabilities (bulleted list, 4 to 6 items, plain English)
3. Past Performance (3 max, formatted as: agency, contract number or anonymized identifier, period of performance, dollar value, scope, outcome)
4. Differentiators (bulleted list, 3 to 5 items)
5. Contact and Compliance Info (CAGE, UEI, GSA/SAM info placeholders)

Style rules:
- Keep claims specific and verifiable
- No marketing fluff
- No words like leverage, unlock, harness, transformation, or robust
- Past performance must be the actual contract scope, not aspirational
- Format scannable enough that a contracting officer can read it in 30 seconds
- Plain English, short sentences
Open in Claude

Frequently asked

Can vet-owned businesses use AI to write federal proposals without committing fraud?

Yes when AI drafts and you verify. False statements on a federal proposal are 18 U.S.C. § 1001 territory, which is a federal crime. AI-fabricated past performance, fake customer references, or invented certifications will get you debarred faster than anything else. The safe pattern: AI writes the prose, you confirm every contract number, every dollar figure, every period of performance against your actual records before it goes in.

Will AI replace BD reps and proposal writers in vet-owned businesses?

No for the things that actually win contracts, past performance, relationships with contracting officers, and program-level knowledge. Yes for first-draft proposal sections, capability statements, SOW compliance matrices, and BD outreach. The vet-owned shops winning with AI use it to free up the proposal manager so they can spend more time on the relationship work and the strategic shaping that AI cannot do.

Is it ethical to use AI for SDVOSB self-rep and capability statements?

Yes when AI helps you draft the language and you verify every underlying fact. SDVOSB self-representation is a legal claim under FAR Part 19. The claim is yours, not the AI's. AI can speed up the writing of your capability statement, your past performance citations, and your sources-sought responses. You still have to confirm the NAICS, the set-aside eligibility, the contract values, and the period of performance are accurate before you submit.

What AI tool should a veteran-owned business start with?

Microsoft Copilot if you already live in Office for proposal work. ChatGPT or Claude for general drafting, BD emails, and capability statements. For anything touching FOUO or CUI, you do not paste it into public AI tools. Use a cleared environment like Azure Government, AWS GovCloud, or your prime's approved tooling. Public AI is fine for general capability statement work and BD emails. It is not fine for controlled unclassified information.

How long does it take a vet-owned business to learn AI?

About 30 minutes to start with capability statement drafts and BD emails. Two to three weeks to build a real proposal-response workflow that handles SOW compliance, past performance, and pricing narrative. ROI usually shows up inside the first proposal cycle. Most vet-owned shops we work with reclaim 40 to 80 hours per RFP within the first month.

Should I tell government customers we use AI in our proposals?

Yes when it is material to the work product. Agencies are publishing AI disclosure expectations now, and several solicitations require it. Transparency is becoming a competitive advantage, not a liability. The contracting officer mostly cares that the past performance is real, the certifications are valid, and the technical approach is yours. Disclose the use, defend the substance.

Can a veteran-owned business hire you to build something custom?

Yes. I am a Navy vet too, so we speak the same language. I build SAM.gov-aware workflows, capability statement automation, BD pipelines tied to Govwin or Bloomberg Government, and prime/sub outreach systems. Free 30-minute scoping call to see if we are a fit. The contact form below routes the inquiry directly to me.

Want one built for your veteran-owned business?

Tell me what is eating your proposal cycle. I build custom AI workflows for veteran-owned businesses chasing federal work, SAM.gov-aware processes, capability statement automation, BD pipelines tied to Govwin or Bloomberg Government, Salesforce or HubSpot CRM integrations, JAGGAER bid workflows where it fits. Navy vet running this shop, so we speak the same language. One free 30-minute scoping call to see if we are a fit.

AI for SDVOSBs and Veteran-Owned Businesses | Elite AI Advantage