CivStart and Montgomery County to Host State of GovTech 2026, Uniting 300+ Government Leaders and Innovators to Shape the Future of Public Sector Technology

The national govtech conference returns September 9–10 in Montgomery County, MD — following CivStart's July launch of Clarity AI at the BRIDGES conference in New York City

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md., July 7, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- CivStart today announced that State of GovTech 2026 will take place September 9–10 at the Silver Spring Civic Building at Veterans Plaza in Montgomery County, Maryland. The conference convenes the people, technologies, policies, and cultures that make up the govtech ecosystem — bringing together government leaders, startups, investors, and nonprofits to solve the public sector's most pressing challenges.

The event is hosted by CivStart in partnership with Montgomery County, MD and e.Republic. It is expected to bring together more than 300 senior local-government decision-makers, startups, and investors over two days.

"State of GovTech exists because the people solving government's hardest problems rarely get to be in the same room at the same time," said Anthony Jamison, Co-Founder and CEO of CivStart. "This event puts government leaders at the center — not as an audience, but as the people shaping what comes next."

State of GovTech 2026 is built around four pillars:

• Market Intel — the latest trends and state and local tech priorities, and how federal policy shifts are reshaping the landscape.
• Networking — hearing directly from government and industry leaders across the country about their challenges, and connecting to collaborate and partner.
• Shaping the Market — real-time problem-solving of government challenges, and knowledge production for the ecosystem.
• Leading-Edge Tech — exposure to 20+ handpicked startups ready for partnership, with the opportunity to participate as an expert judge.

The two-day program opens Wednesday, September 9, with a govtech market overview, workshops, breakouts, keynotes, fast-paced startup pitches, and an evening networking reception. Thursday, September 10, begins with a private breakfast for government attendees, followed by a keynote, additional startup pitches, breakout workshops, and closing startup awards. Government tickets are free.

State of GovTech 2026 is supported by a founding group of sponsors including Polimorphic, Meta, Tyler Technologies, Mastra, Govstream.ai, Avolve, Edwin, and SOVRA.

The announcement follows a milestone summer for CivStart. In July, the company will launch Clarity AI — its free decision-support platform for state and local government leaders — at BRIDGES, a public-sector AI conference held July 21–22 at Chelsea Piers in New York City. State of GovTech serves as the fall counterpart to BRIDGES: where BRIDGES centered on the role of AI in government, State of GovTech convenes the broader ecosystem around the full range of challenges facing the public sector.

"BRIDGES and State of GovTech are two halves of the same mission," said Nick Lyell, Co-Founder and COO of CivStart. "One introduced the tools we're building to bring government leaders clarity. The other brings the whole ecosystem together to act on it."

CivStart was founded by Anthony Jamison and Nick Lyell, who previously led CivStart's nonprofit govtech accelerator together for seven years before launching the venture to continue that mission in a new form.

Registration, session submissions, startup pitch applications, and sponsorship opportunities for State of GovTech 2026 are open now at civstart.com/sogt26.

About CivStart

CivStart builds technology tools that help government leaders move from complexity to clarity. Its flagship product, Clarity, is a free workflow tool that helps state and local government leaders define their challenges, connect with peer governments, and act with confidence. Learn more at civstart.com.

Media Contact
Nick Lyell
COO
[email protected] | 608.234.2166

SOURCE CivStart