Arthur McMiler
The Defense Information Systems Agency has granted the artificial intelligence data cloud company Snowflake an Impact Level 5, or IL5, provisional authorization on AWS GovCloud US West. The clearance authorizes Snowflake service offerings to Department of Defense units and their industry mission partners on tasks that require the highest protection level for controlled unclassified information, or CUI, according to a company announcement Thursday.
Snowflake provides a unified data platform providing secure data storage, collaboration and analytics capabilities for mission-critical functions, such as financial management, enterprise business operations, logistics and supply chain, and cybersecurity.
New Subsidiary Launched
The IL5 clearance follows the launch of the company’s Snowflake Public Sector subsidiary focused on federal, defense, state and local government services, as well as serving educational institutions. In September, Snowflake also acquired Night Shift Development, a data analytics firm serving the U.S. public sector, which was followed by the company’s acquisition of Datavolo, a provider of a single platform developed to automate and manage structured and unstructured data flows between enterprise data sources
Matthew Rose, Snowflake’s corporate government relations head, said the company’s IL5 achievement is a “milestone” highlighting a commitment to deliver services involving CUI workloads. “The Department of Defense’s mission to enhance readiness and drive innovation demands secure, data-centric solutions,” the Snowflake executive remarked.
Acknowledgements on IL5 Achievement
Susan Wedge, IBM Consulting’s managing partner for the federal market, acknowledged Snowflake as a part of the IBM service network. “Achieving IL5 authorization is a critical milestone for Snowflake, and as a mission partner, will be instrumental in our ability to serve defense agencies with the robust and compliant solutions they need to harness the full potential of their data in mission-critical environments,” commented Wedge, a 2025 Wash100 winner.
Craig Abod, president of Carahsoft, Snowflake’s master government aggregator, commented that the CUI clearance will enable improved services for defense customers and partners. “This advancement strengthens our ability to support the defense ecosystem and deliver innovative solutions that accelerate mission success,” said Abod, also a Wash100 awardee.
