Dcode Capital participated in our recent Series D raise, reaffirming their commitment to partnering with Hyperscience to help us scale within the U.S. federal market. We took this opportunity to sit down with Meagan Metzger, Dcode CEO and Dcode Capital investor, to talk about changing federal tech priorities, getting started with AI and automation, and why the future of Dcode and Hyperscience looks so bright.
Recent drivers of change, from the pandemic to the aging U.S. population, have put unprecedented strain on the processes that power federal agencies. How have you seen government digital transformation agendas change over the last 9-12 months?
That unprecedented strain forced the government to take advantage of digital capabilities and emerging tech solutions. All the things that had blocked technological transformation in the past had to give way.
Government leaders in the Dcode community essentially crammed multi-year modernization efforts into a few months amid widespread remote work. Many focused on innovative procurement methods, commercial tech capabilities that were ready to go fast, and contracting authorities to get sh*t done.
I’ve also been energized to see some federal agencies leaning into all the change instead of looking to go back to the way things were. We’re seeing proof that the government has what it needs to innovate, they just need to use it — and stop blaming acquisitions.
Dcode Capital invests in tech companies that can move our country forward, and Hyperscience is definitely one of those companies.
Meagan Metzger, Dcode founder and CEO and a Dcode Capital investor
What is it about Hyperscience that led Dcode Capital to invest?
Dcode Capital invests in tech companies that can transform the government on a large scale and move our country forward. The government can get stuck in red tape, and that’s especially tough when we’re working to leapfrog tech advancements.
The government is past needing to just digitize documents; it needs to jump from paper all the way to AI quickly, skipping some steps in between. Hyperscience is an incredibly promising way to achieve that.
As our CSO and Dcode Capital investor Meg Vorland has said, the U.S. government is looking for technology that will make better use of its data, increase efficiency, and cut costs, and Hyperscience has the technology and team to meet those needs and succeed in the complex federal market. Plus, Hyperscience is far superior to anything else on the market. They’re uniquely positioned to capitalize on these opportunities working with the government because they’ve thought 10 steps ahead.
Dcode is focusing on bringing commercial solutions to critical government challenges. Barriers remain, and change won’t happen overnight, but what’s the first step federal agencies can take to get started?
One of the first sections in our Dcode Advance course for government leaders explains the importance of focusing on outcomes instead of over-prescribing solutions. Frame your organization’s needs as “I need a way to….” rather than “I need a tool that does exactly this thing in this way.” Plus, don’t be afraid to expand what kinds of tech you look at — think big, act small! And just make sure it’s fully vetted for the federal market and equipped to succeed.
What’s been your most rewarding moment with Dcode to date?
The most rewarding moment with Dcode to date was the first time we sat down as a team to compile our impact metrics — including government contracts coming out of our tech accelerator and innovative MVPs coming out of our government courses. The results were awesome and showed that our solutions were working.
Hyperscience’s story in the federal market is a great example of what’s possible when tech companies in the private sector and the U.S. government work together! The good news is we’re seeing increased demand from the government and tech companies looking to work together to better serve Americans, and the newest iteration of our acceleration program and other offerings will continue to make that happen at an even larger scale.
Automation can put the power into the hands of the people driving transformation within the most complex government agencies. We look forward to working alongside Dcode to help the public and private sector increasingly embrace software-defined operations, helping agencies at all levels become more agile and capable of serving its constituents.
Charlie Newark-French, Hyperscience COO
Meagan Metzger is the Dcode founder and CEO and a Dcode Capital investor. Connect with her on LinkedIn or follow her on Twitter.
