Gov. Wes Moore announced a partnership Thursday uniting his administration with two private-sector organizations — the AI research and safety firm Anthropic, and the technology company Percepta — to bring advanced artificial intelligence into multiple state agencies, with the goals of tackling child poverty, expanding housing access and modernizing Maryland’s government.
State employees will use Anthropic’s Claude AI for Enterprise and application programming interface tools to embed AI into daily workflows. Residents will be able to access a Claude-powered virtual assistant that helps them apply for benefits, update information, track applications and find helpful programs. Meanwhile, Percepta’s engineers will work alongside state teams to integrate processes such as environmental permitting and licensing, applying the Mosaic platform to expedite service delivery.
The project spans multiple state agencies, including Maryland Benefits, the Department of Labor, the Governor’s Innovation Team, and the Department of the Environment, with the Rockefeller Foundation joining the effort to provide strategic planning support.
The initiative is about more than simply introducing new technology into these agencies, Moore emphasized; he framed it as part of a broader mission to transform how government serves residents.
“Artificial intelligence can be a powerful tool for change,” Moore said in a statement. “We’ve been clear since Day One that it wouldn’t be enough to rebuild someone else’s broken government — we need to innovate.”
The new undertaking builds on prior AI work in Maryland including a bilingual chatbot launched earlier this year using Claude Sonnet, which helped more than 600,000 residents access the SUN Bucks food support benefit, according to the state. And Percepta engineers have already had an impact on two state agencies. They’ve been helping the Department of the Environment, and the state’s Digital Service and its Office of AI Enablement develop a self-service portal for environmental site assessments, speeding up permitting and financing for building projects across the state.
The partnership has the potential, representatives from Anthropic and Percepta said in statements, to transform government services and align with their companies’ missions to leverage AI to improve accessibility and create tangible benefits for residents.
It offers a way, the governor said, to expand initiatives that directly benefit Maryland residents.
“Leveraging AI will accelerate our push to fight poverty, turn renters into homeowners, and ensure every Marylander can access essential services like nutrition and financial support, quickly and effectively,” Moore said.
