Seeking Your 2026 Predictions on Technology & America's Future

Commonweal Ventures is conducting a survey for leaders in government, venture capital, and technology who are focused on deploying technology to solve America's biggest challenges. These challenges span from national security and public health to energy independence and re-industrialization. We call the tech-ecosystem that is tackling these challenges "American Tech," or AmTech for short.

In short, we would love to hear what you think the next year holds in store for AmTech.

The results of this survey will be featured in Commonweal’s 2026 AmTech Outlook. This survey will take approximately 10 minutes.

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* 1. Your Information

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* 2. Email

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* 3. Employer/Company

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* 4. Which of the following best describes the primary lens through which you are taking this survey?

Investor (e.g., Venture Capital, LP, Growth Equity)

Current or Former Government Official (e.g., Federal, State, Local; Military)

Founder or Operator (e.g., at a technology company)

Other (e.g., Academia, Media, Think Tank, Services)

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* 5. What are the primary sectors you focus on? Choose one or more.

Health

Energy

Public Safety

Defense

Aerospace

Logistics

Manufacturing

Cybersecurity

Infrastructure

Finance

Real Estate

Government Services

Other

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* 6. Have you ever worked in or for government (including military service)?

Yes

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* 7. From your perspective, what is the single biggest obstacle that prevents innovative startups from successfully partnering with the U.S. government?

Slow and complex procurement/contracting

A risk-averse culture within government agencies

Lack of technical talent inside government to integrate new tech

Unclear roadmaps or regulations from government

Startups not understanding the government's needs or sales cycles

Misaligned funding/budget cycles

Other

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* 8. Why?

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* 9. In your opinion, over the past year, has it become easier or harder for innovative startups to partner with government?

Significantly easier

Easier

Stayed the same

Harder

Significantly harder

Significantly easier

Easier

Stayed the same

Harder

Significantly harder

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* 10. Which sector do you believe will experience the most innovation in 2026?

Health

Energy

Public Safety

Defense

Aerospace

Logistics

Manufacturing

Cybersecurity

Infrastructure

Finance

Real Estate

Government Services

Other

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* 11. Why did you choose that sector?

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* 12. Looking at America's big challenges, name one (or more) specific areas where you believe technology will make visible, positive progress in 2026.

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* 13. Conversely, name one or more areas where technology will create new problems or make America's challenges worse in 2026.

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* 14. On which issues do you expect government to take the most significant action (e.g., new policy, funding, regulation) in 2026? Examples: energy independence, public health, government modernization, onshoring manufacturing.

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* 15. Why?

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* 16. What one action from government would most positively impact the AmTech ecosystem in 2026?

Create faster, simplified procurement paths for startups

Fund more paid pilot programs and "sandbox" environments

Appoint more technical/private-sector talent to leadership roles

Provide clearer regulatory carveouts for new tech (like AI)

Launch more public-private consortiums

Other

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* 17. What do you think investors will get wrong about AmTech in 2026?

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* 18. If we quote you in our report, may we attribute your responses by name?

Yes