Applying for government benefits is a slow, tedious process that often leaves applicants in limbo for several months.  Advocate () looks to help. Today on Found Becca and Dom are talking with Advocate’s founder Emilie Poteat, the company that helps Americans engage with federal benefits programs through its technology-enabled services platform. In this episode they discuss how the Advocate team is using AI to automate advocacy and get the wait time for people seeking aid to nearly nothing.They also talked about:
 

• Where Poteat ultimately found fundraising success
• How the government has reacted to a small startup seeking to automate such an embedded bureaucratic process
• Why AI is the best tool in the technological shed to work with the mass amounts of rules and data required to navigate the social security system
• How the team is implementing the security measures needed when dealing with such sensitive information

(0:00) Introduction

(4:16) the status quo of applying for government aid

(8:56) Automating government services

(13:13) using AI to automate advocacy

(18:29) Finding the right investor fit

(24:13) Hiring for a social impact company

(30:00) Collaborating with government agencies

(32:00) Host discussion

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