It was costing the administration around half a million dollars. That, in and of itself, is not something that can bridge this kind of a gap, but it's an indication of the ways in which money has been spent while refusing to account for the actual costs of what these programs are.
Every December, roadmaps get locked, budgets get approved, and board decks are polished until everything looks precise and under control. Underneath, many CTOs and VPs are still working with partial visibility. They have a feel for their teams, but not a reliable view of how work moves through the system, how AI is really changing delivery, or where time and money actually go.