Unanet Named to Inaugural NVTC AI50 List — Recognised for AI-First Innovation Powering Project-Based Businesses Across GovCon and AEC

For project-based businesses — government contractors, architecture firms, engineering practices, and construction companies — the promise of enterprise AI is not about consumer-facing chatbots or generic automation. It is about understanding the full complexity of project lifecycle management: connecting financial data to operational realities, surfacing insights at the moment decisions must be made, and automating the workflows that currently consume the time of people who should be focused on winning and delivering work. Unanet, the leader in AI-first ERP and growth software for project-based businesses, has been named to the inaugural 2026 AI50 list by the Northern Virginia Technology Council (NVTC) — recognising its vision and leadership shaping the future of artificial intelligence across the National Capital Region.

Honourees were celebrated at the annual NVTC Impact AI & AI50 Awards Summit on May 14, 2026, at Valo Park in Tysons, VA — NVTC's flagship convening for AI leaders across government, defence, healthcare, and enterprise technology. An independent panel of industry experts selected the 50 honourees from applications across sectors, reflecting the depth and competitiveness of the region's AI ecosystem. The recognition marks Unanet's third AI-related recognition in the past twelve months — validating an AI-first strategy that is reshaping how more than 4,200 government contractors, architecture, engineering, and construction firms identify, win, and manage projects.

"We believe the future belongs to AI-first applications that don't just surface information, but understand context, connect data across the business, and turn insight into action in the flow of work. At Unanet, we're actively shaping that future by building AI into the core of how project-based organizations operate. The AI50 recognition reflects the innovation of our team and our commitment to delivering practical, responsible AI that drives meaningful business outcomes for our customers."

— Craig Halliday, CEO, Unanet

Champ AI™ — The Natural Language Engine at the Core of Unanet's AI-First Strategy

At the centre of Unanet's AI-first strategy is Champ AI™ — the company's natural language AI engine architected to support the full project lifecycle. Champ AI delivers agentic capabilities that enable customers to execute workflows, drive efficiency, and surface real-time insights without navigating complex menu structures or writing queries. The design philosophy is deliberately practical: AI that is built into the core of how project-based organisations operate, not layered on top as an external add-on.

For government contractors, this means the ability to query project financial data, generate proposals, analyse opportunities, and automate compliance-sensitive workflows — all through natural language, and all connected to the ERP and CRM system of record where the data actually lives. For architecture and engineering firms, Champ for AE ERP enables staff to interact with ERP data using conversational queries, automate routine processes, and generate real-time operational insights without requiring specialist systems expertise. The common thread across both deployments is the same: AI that understands context, connects data across the business, and turns insight into action in the flow of work.

Alongside Champ AI, Unanet has launched GrowthStudio — its AI-powered business development and growth automation solution — which has been recognised separately with a 2026 TMC Customer Magazine AI Innovation Award for its exceptional AI-enabled innovation, applicability, and usability. Together, Champ AI and GrowthStudio represent the twin pillars of an AI-first architecture that connects the business development lifecycle — pipeline identification, proposal generation, opportunity pursuit — to the operational and financial management lifecycle within a single, unified platform.

Why the NVTC AI50 Recognition Matters — The National Capital Region AI Ecosystem

The Northern Virginia Technology Council's AI50 is not a general technology award — it is recognition specifically within one of the most consequential AI ecosystems in the United States. Northern Virginia sits at the intersection of government, defence, intelligence, and enterprise technology, making it the region where practical, mission-grade AI is being built and deployed at the highest stakes. The NVTC Impact AI Summit, now in its seventh year, is the National Capital Region's flagship event convening the leaders shaping the future of AI across these sectors — and the inaugural AI50 list identifies the 50 companies and individuals whose work is most directly advancing that mission.

For Unanet, inclusion on the AI50 list carries particular significance because the government contractor and AEC markets it serves are themselves embedded in the National Capital Region ecosystem. The firms that depend on Unanet's platform to manage their financial and operational complexity are the same firms doing the most technically demanding and compliance-sensitive work in government IT, defence, infrastructure, and healthcare. Being recognised by the region's technology leadership as a company shaping the future of AI in this context is a commercial and reputational validation that directly reinforces Unanet's position with the customers it serves.

"Northern Virginia continues to lead as a center of gravity for applied AI innovation. The AI50 celebrates the organizations and innovators shaping the future of artificial intelligence across the region — from government and defence to healthcare and enterprise technology."

— Jennifer Taylor, President & CEO, Northern Virginia Technology Council (NVTC)

The Unanet Platform — From Pipeline to Profit for Project-Based Organisations

Unanet is trusted by more than 4,200 government contractors, architecture, engineering, and construction firms — unifying financials, projects, and pursuits with built-in automation and compliance, all supported by a dedicated customer success team. The platform's AI-first architecture empowers leaders to make confident, real-time decisions that drive growth from pipeline to profit — integrating the business development and operational management workflows that project-based businesses require into a single, connected system grounded in the ERP and CRM data that matters most.

The NVTC AI50 recognition validates what Unanet's customer adoption and consecutive award recognition over the past year has been demonstrating: that an AI-first architecture built around the specific complexity of project-based businesses — connecting contract compliance, project financials, pipeline intelligence, and operational workflows into a single, context-aware system — is not a theoretical advantage but a measurable one. As government contractors and AEC firms operate in an increasingly AI-driven economy, the organisations whose software is architecturally designed for that environment — rather than retrofitting AI onto legacy product structures — will determine the competitive landscape of the sector.

To learn more about Unanet's AI-first ERP and growth platform for GovCon and AEC organisations, visit unanet.com.