by Mike Gifford, CivicActions

Governments want to use new Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools. However, many governments overlook the AI tools they already have at their disposal. Currently, governments often use a content management system (CMS) to deliver better online services. For many government agencies, that tool is Drupal, which is the most popular CMS for US federal government websites.

Over one in four federal agencies use Drupal. Drupal works well with common AI tools. This is because Drupal uses a highly structured database, with a strong global community that supports this software. They maintain secure software that aligns with open standards.

Because Drupal is over 20 years old, people have developed ideas about it as it has evolved, even though their ideas have not always evolved with it. People see it as being clunky and difficult to manage. Today, Drupal is a very flexible platform. It easily presents information to different audiences. It has a strong application programming interface (API) that can manage the content behind a static site. Drupal CMS can also use AI to support the management of content. Drupal has become the open-source platform for big website projects. However, it has lost some of the hobbyists who work on smaller sites.

The new AI features in Drupal are changing this. They create new possibilities for everyone. This is especially true for large organizations that already use Drupal. Drupal has become more of a no-code/low-code tool. This gives less technical authors more control over their sites. Government-focused AI tools, like rules-aware code, can really help citizens.

Drupal + AI: More Than a Trend

The latest AI tools in Drupal CMS show real-world improvements. They are not just experiments. These tools improve how people work. The official AI module lets content editors generate text, as well as rephrase or summarize text. They can do this directly within the editor interface.

Authors will find it easier to create clear, useful content. The content will have a consistent voice. AI helps create different content versions which can suit smaller audiences. Government services can better support a range of people. This includes people with reading difficulties, but also professionals and older adults. AI makes it much easier to deliver personalized content.

AI does more than help authors. Drupal's AI Automators module connects AI services to task automation. For example, it generates metadata, in addition to producing charts and graphs from unstructured data. These abilities work with existing Drupal modules, such as Views and Paragraphs. Authors can turn stories into visuals or structured data without leaving the CMS.

With AI, Drupal is now an open-source no-code/low-code solution. It is a great fit for government sites. Agencies using Drupal have choices. They can use several commercial large language model (LLM) or host their own internal LLM.

Drupal puts these AI tools right into the editor interface. It does not treat them as developer-only APIs. Drupal shows it wants to help everyone publish content.

Improving Accessibility with AI

Many government websites struggle to add clear alternative text ("alt text") to images. This text is required for website accessibility, following Section 508 and WCAG guidelines. AI can help by pointing out missing alt text, suggesting what to write, and even creating alt text that fits best practices. These new tools let governments fix old images that lack alt text and ensure all new images have good alt text from the start.

AI tools can make websites easier by creating more consistent experiences. Often a citizen needs to navigate across several agencies to be able to accomplish a single task, AI can help to streamline this.

AI can also support building experiences that cross agency silos. Governments are starting to build around life events—like having a child, starting a business, or retiring. Citizens come to government sites to accomplish a task, and they generally don’t know or care what agencies are involved. Drupal CMS can support inter-agency teams to write with one voice, proactively supporting a user’s end-to-end experiences. For governments managing thousands of pages and hundreds of contributors, this means reducing the effort to manually align with a style guide. At the same time, working to improve compliance, usability, and trust.

One powerful example of Drupal’s AI integration is the new support for Vertex AI Search, Google Cloud’s new AI search tool that works with an organization’s internal content. The CivicActions team built the open-source Vertex AI Search module for Drupal. This module allows teams to add advanced, secure, and highly contextual search experiences directly into their existing Drupal sites. This means government agencies can offer staff and the public natural language search over thousands of pages, documents, and databases within the CMS, itself. Instead of starting from scratch or buying proprietary platforms, governments can use the Drupal tools they already have to deploy transformative, AI-powered search that respects security, structure, and openness.

AI has the potential to provide better results for more obscure searches (the long tail) or for those who are more comfortable using more natural language searches. It will soon be possible to provide blended results and tailored summaries based on what a user asks for. We see huge benefits for this, particularly for users who are using mobile phones.

Supercharging Rules as Code

Governments are exploring a new way to manage laws. They call it "Rules as Code" (RaC). RaC makes laws and policies machine-readable. Computers can understand them from the start. This lets governments test and reuse rules. They can also put rules directly into online services. Usually, governments publish laws as text. RaC does more. It treats rules as legal text and computer instructions. This makes sure the law and the software match.

Drupal is a popular website platform that includes RaC, which can be added to Drupal with a simple add-on. Since it is open source, anyone can use it. In Australia, the government uses GovCMS. GovCMS includes a Rules as Code feature, This helps government groups write their rules in Drupal. They use structured content and logic-based setup. Then, they can test their rules.

This effort is part of a global movement. Many people want to improve how governments work. Digital Benefits Network’s Rules as Code Community of Practice helps. It brings together people from different governments. They share tools and lessons. They also show how they use RaC. Georgetown’s Beeck Center wrote a report. The report is called "Benefit Eligibility Rules as Code." It shows how RaC can improve benefits delivery. It can make things clearer and helping people trust government services more.

AI can make RaC even better. Governments can use AI to do more with RaC. Here are some ways:

AI can read policy text. It can turn that text into computer code. Then, people can check the code. They can make sure it works well. They can also ensure it meets policy goals.

A RaC system can use AI. It can find rules that conflict. It can also find loopholes. Humans might miss these issues.

AI can simulate changes to rules. It can show how those changes might affect people. This happens before the rules go into effect. Legislators can see how different laws will affect different people.

Drupal, Rules as Code, and AI together create a new foundation. Governments can use this foundation. They can do more than publish policies. They can put policies into action openly. Communities can then check the policies themselves. This helps create better services. These services are easier to build. They are also fairer, more consistent, and focused on people.

Drupal as a hub for more sophisticated AI interoperability

As governments experiment with AI, there’s a growing need for shared standards that help AI tools interact with public services safely and responsibly. One emerging approach is the Model Context Protocol (MCP)—a new open standard developed by Anthropic. MCP allows AI tools, like chatbots or language models, to understand the structure and context of complex government services in a more accurate and secure way. It helps bridge the gap between large AI systems and multiple sources of real-world information they need to reference.

Drupal is now one of the first content management systems to support this protocol. The new Drupal MCP Server module allows agencies to expose structured, real-time information directly to AI systems in a standardized format. This means government websites can become trusted sources for AI assistants, ensuring that facts, policies, and services are described accurately and consistently. It also helps reduce misinformation by giving AI tools direct access to verified public content.

For federal agencies already using Drupal, this opens a powerful new channel for making public information more discoverable and useful. Whether answering questions about benefits, policies, or how to apply for services, AI systems can now interact more meaningfully with government content. By adopting MCP, agencies can ensure their digital services are not just understandable by humans, and the next generation of AI systems.

Why It Matters Now

It is clear that governments must modernize. Current practices are simply not meeting the needs of citizens. AI offers great potential to support this change. However, governments must apply it carefully and fairly. People must trust the government's use of AI. Drupal is an open-source system, commonly used in government already.

Governments don't have to start from scratch, and should leverage their existing Drupal websites. AI can make writing easier and improve accessibility. AI can make understanding rules easier.

This is a safe, smart and cost-effective approach. It's a future-focused way to explore AI's potential for government. As the open source technology is available right now.

Governments, are you ready to build better experiences? Explore Drupal CMS today. See how it can help you harness the power of AI for your citizens. It has never been easier to check out the latest version of Drupal, and the new desktop launcher makes it even easier.