Across the country, cities are confronting challenges that cannot be solved with traditional procurement alone. Whether the goal is revitalizing a downtown corridor, addressing homelessness, modernizing transportation, or catalyzing a new economic sector, city governments are increasingly searching for tools that surface new talent, invite new ideas, and accelerate progress.
Carrot has been at the center of this shift for more than a decade.
Through next-generation procurement models rooted in open innovation, competition, and community engagement, Carrot partners with cities to design and run programs that deliver outcomes traditional RFPs cannot. These programs widen participation, increase transparency, improve fairness, and create momentum that extends far beyond the final award.
Carrot’s track record with cities is deep, diverse, and nationally recognized. While some engagements are directly contracted by municipal governments, many others are privately sponsored initiatives where cities play a central role as regulators, partners, or long-term implementers.
Carrot is currently partnering with the City of Las Vegas and the Las Vegas Redevelopment Authority on the BioHealth Innovation Challenge, a global competition designed to attract biotech and pharmaceutical companies to the region with a $10 million relocation and development incentive.
This is not the first time Carrot and Las Vegas have collaborated. More than a decade ago, Carrot worked with the U.S. Department of Commerce to run the SC2 Challenge in Las Vegas, a program that helped establish new economic development strategies for the downtown core. Brian Knudsen, now Mayor Pro Tem, credits that early work as the foundation for the city’s renewed confidence in competition-based procurement.
Applications for the BioHealth Innovation Challenge are now open at:
https://biohealthinnovationchallenge.org/
Through the U.S. Economic Development Administration, Carrot helped launch early federally backed challenge programs for three cities: Las Vegas, Nevada; Hartford, Connecticut; and Greensboro, North Carolina. These initiatives demonstrated that community-driven competitions could accelerate economic revitalization, build public-private coalitions, and reduce risk for city governments.
The SC2 case studies remain some of the earliest and most influential examples of challenge-based procurement in the United States.
Carrot has partnered with Los Angeles County and the City of Los Angeles on multiple innovation challenges addressing homelessness, housing, service coordination, and technology modernization. These efforts brought together city and county agencies, private funders, and community organizations around systems-level solutions.
Carrot is now an ESMA-certified contractor for Los Angeles County, positioning us to expand support across new departments and initiatives.
Working with the Greater New Orleans Foundation, Carrot delivered the Next 100 Years Challenge, a competition focused on infrastructure resilience and disaster preparedness. The proposed projects required coordination with city, state, and federal regulatory bodies, demonstrating how competition can help advance solutions in highly complex civic environments.
Carrot designed and managed the Chicago Prize, a $10 million economic development competition sponsored by the Pritzker Traubert Foundation in collaboration with key leaders across the city. Carrot continues to engage with Chicago officials about replicating aspects of the program for city-led initiatives.
Through a contract with NYSERDA, Carrot supported $90 million in clean transportation and clean neighborhoods prizes. These programs focused on equitable electrification and sustainable mobility solutions, many of which directly served New York City communities.
Carrot has partnered with local foundations and governments to address issues ranging from aging and public health to sustainability, storm resilience, water scarcity, and community cohesion. In each case, city governments played critical roles in implementation, regulatory oversight, or community participation.
Cities turn to Carrot for three reasons:
1. Broader Participation and New Talent
Competitions open the door to innovators who might never respond to a traditional RFP.
2. Transparent and Fair Decision-Making
Carrot’s scoring tools, peer review models, and governance structures build trust and reduce risk.
3. Solutions that Extend Beyond a Single Contract
Challenge-based procurement creates a pipeline of ideas that cities can implement long after the award is announced.
From Washington State’s NASCIO award-winning modernization initiative to Las Vegas’ BioHealth Innovation Challenge, next-generation procurement is proving to be one of the most powerful tools available to cities committed to bold, community-driven transformation.
Carrot is honored to be a trusted partner in that work.
To explore how next-generation procurement can support your city’s goals, schedule a time to talk with the Carrot team today. Schedule a Demo
