Connecting the Dots: Team EvalOps clinches top honors at 4th annual ATEC AI Challenge

ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. — The U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command (ATEC) recognized the winner of its fourth annual ATEC AI Challenge during the… ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. — The U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command (ATEC) recognized the winner of its fourth annual ATEC AI Challenge during the ATEC Data Summit on Sept. 22. The ATEC AI Challenge is an annual initiative leveraging the internal talent of the ATEC workforce to solve command-specific problems using artificial intelligence. “Any solution we are building frees up someone’s time so that they can spend their time doing the tasks that really require human intelligence and critical thinking,” said Liz Jones, director of ATEC’s Digital Modernization Directorate.

Centered on this year's theme, “Make a Connection,” the competition challenged participants to develop intelligent agents capable of linking capabilities and teams across the organization—uniting systems, data, and users to foster collaborative AI. “The key is to stop working in stovepipes and start thinking cross-organizationally,” Jones noted. Participation surged this year, drawing 49 project proposals and more than 120 personnel command-wide—a significant increase from last year’s 28 submissions. Across the command, teams focused on developing collaborative tools capable of transitioning from isolated prototypes into enduring, enterprise-level assets for ATEC. Judges evaluated entries on a 40-point rubric assessing effectiveness, innovation, return on investment, and connectivity, placing