SBA · SBA-22 · record R3181

General AI Use Case across the SBA for web and desktop

Small Business Administration · OCIO: Office of the Chief Information Officer

Overview

Development stage: PilotSource: b) Pilot – The use case has been deployed in a limited test or pilot capacity.
High-impact designation: Not high-impactSource: c) Not high-impact
Impact justification: Not high impact: This AI system does not meet the criteria of any of the six pillars that make up High Impact AI in Memorandum M-25-21.
Start date: 2026-02-06 (day precision)Source: 02/06/2026 00:00:00
Withheld from public reporting: NoSource: a) No

Mission

Topic area: Administrative Functions
Operational functions: No function tag matched Derived by keyword rules; see methodology

Problem the AI is intended to solve

Staff need quick access to current, accurate information with verifiable sources for research, analysis, and decision-making. Traditional search requires manual verification and synthesis across multiple sources.

Expected benefits

Faster research and information gathering with built-in source citations, real-time information access, reduced time spent verifying sources, and improved quality of research outputs. Enables more informed decision-making with transparent sourcing.

System outputs

AI-powered search and research tool that combines live web search with multiple leading AI models to provide up-to-date answers backed by verifiable citations. Supports text generation, question answering, research assistance, and multimodal dialogue. Input: natural language queries. Output: comprehensive answers with citations, research summaries, and real-time information.

Technology

AI classification: Generative AISource: Generative AI: AI that generates new or synthetic content (e.g., images, videos, audio, text, code).
System name(s): Perplexity AI Platform
Custom-developed code: No
Public source code: Not applicable - No custom code

Sourcing

How it was built: Purchased from vendorSource: a) Purchased from a vendor
Vendor (as reported): Perplexity AI, Inc.
Vendors (standardized): Perplexity

A vendor is the supplier named by the agency. It does not identify the underlying model or AI technology.

Data and privacy

Involves PII: No
Privacy Impact Assessment: Not publicly available
Authorization to Operate: Yes
Demographic features: k) None of the above
Training and evaluation data: Commercial vendor-managed training data
Federal Data Catalog: Not applicable - Proprietary vendor training data

Governance

8 of 8 minimum-practice questions answered. A blank answer means the agency reported nothing; it does not mean the practice is absent.

Pre-deployment testingReported in placeSource: a) Yes

AI impact assessmentReported in placeSource: a) Yes

Independent reviewReported in placeSource: a) Yes – by another appropriate agency office or reviewer not directly involved in the AI’s development

Ongoing monitoringReported in placeSource: a) Yes, sufficient monitoring protocols have been established

Operator trainingReported in placeSource: a) Yes, sufficient and periodic training has been established

Fail-safeNot applicableSource: b) Not applicable

Appeal processNot applicableSource: b) Not applicable

User and public consultationReported in placeSource: Conducted direct usability testing with end users during pilot phase, established feedback mechanisms through IT helpdesk and user surveys, regular consultation with program stakeholders, and continuous improvement based on user input and performance metrics.Flag: free-text answer

Potential impacts and how they were identified

Potential impacts include quality of research and information used for decision-making. Impacts identified through accuracy testing and source verification. Mitigation includes built-in source citations, user verification of information, and guidance on appropriate use cases.