civia.com Open in urlscan Pro
108.138.106.105  Public Scan

Form analysis
0 forms found in the DOM

Text Content

FAQ Technology Webinars Contact Trust Center
Login Register for free


GOVAI: AI ASSISTANT FOR 🇺🇸 GOVERNMENT STAFF

We believe that AI will have a more transformative impact on government staff
and leaders than any tech innovation of the last twenty years - but it needs to
be made safe and adapted to your governmental context. Our unique GovAI
Assistant wraps the underlying AI/LLM with a compliance and safety layer, and
provides deep gov contextual knowledge to help you best.


🔐 Safe - No Data Access Required & No Retention
🏛️ Knowledgeable - Knows Your Gov Context
🦾 Advanced - Based on GPT-4o with No Limits
 


SEEING IS BELIEVING:

Click for sound



3:23
●●●●
Knowledge Inquiry
Creative / Generative
Task Automation
What-If / Brainstorming








Knowledge Inquiry

LEARN  
Ask technical questions in your functional area, research adjacent topics,
explore policy questions, and ask gov career questions too.
Creative/Generative

MAKE  
Produce emails, outlines, proposals, interview questions, and more - all
informed by your specific regional, organizational, and role contexts.
Task Automation

STREAMLINE  
Proof-read and edit text, summarize articles, translate language, create
alternative versions, etc. Quickly understand and easily add polish.
What-If/Brainstorm

EXPLORE  
Predict the outcome of actions, generate fresh ideas, get analysis, ask a
devil's-advocate, and interactively explore any topic.
 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


WHAT IS AN 'AI ASSISTANT' AND WHAT CAN I USE IT FOR?

An AI assistant, or Artificial Intelligence assistant, is like a virtual helper
designed to make life easier by providing information through conversation and
automating tasks. Imagine having a smart friend you can talk to on your computer
or phone, who can answer your questions, help you find information online, and
help streamline or automate many work-related tasks.

AI assistants are usually interacted with via a chat window which is why they
are also sometimes called 'AI chat bots'. The user simply types in a question or
request, and the AI assistant responds with an answer or action. GovAI also has
an 'email interface', which allows you to simply send an email to
GovAI@Civia.com and it will reply back to you.

Typically AI assistants like GovAI are used for:
 1. knowledge inquiry (learning something specific)
 2. creative/generative tasks (writing, creating, or producing something)
 3. task automation (editing, summarizing, translating, etc.)
 4. what-if/brainstorming (exploring ideas, predicting outcomes, etc)


In a government context, the most common use of AI assistants is to learn or
explore specific topics -- often outside of the user's day-to-day functional
area -- although GovAI is used across all the above categories.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


IS GOVERNMENT ADOPTION OF AI ALREADY UNDERWAY?

Yes. While there are various forms of AI-in-government gaining ground (AI
assistants being just one example), the data indicates a significant surge of
usage happening across public sector organizations, especially among front-line
staff and managers. GovAI's usage at municipalities, for example, is doubling
every 20 days - an astronomical growth rate for 'govtech' software.

Based on this data, we believe that 'the horse has left the barn' on this
powerful new technology and it's time for government to have a better option
like GovAI vs the commercial / industry-first solutions being used in the wild.
Both ideological extremes -- blind optimism and outright denial -- obscure the
reality of this technology's powerful impact already.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


WHY WAS GOVAI CREATED?

GovAI was created so that government would have a better option for AI
assistants than the industry-first solutions largely on offer, as well as the
very expensive, very complicated and invasive platforms being pushed by major
tech companies (ChatGPT, Copilot, etc). Public Sector is so unique in its
context and constraints that off-the-shelf AI systems range from inappropriate
to downright dangerous.

We founded Civia to help government staff unlock their collective wisdom, boost
their noble spirit, and forge a better future for their communities - and we
discovered that AI assistants can be a powerful tool in helping individual staff
members and leaders do just that.

We built GovAI in constant dialogue with government staff, and we continue to
evolve it based on your feedback and needs. We believe that AI can be a force
for good in government, and we're committed to making that a reality.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


WHO IS THE TEAM BEHIND GOVAI (AND CIVIA)?

We're the founding team of Civia, a group of technologists and builders who are
passionate about the potential of AI to help government staff. We've worked in
and with government for decades, and we've seen first-hand how the right
technology can help public sector staff rise to their challenges.

Previously, we founded Bonfire, a successful 'govtech' procurement platform that
handled terabytes of highly confidential buyer/supplier data, $100B+ of
procurement projects, and was used by thousands of government users. Through the
10+ years of building that platform and company we saw first-hand how
knowledgeable, hard-working and virtuous government staff are.

But we also saw how silo'd and fragmented best-practices and specialized
knowledge was across public sector. We'd see that one group had a problem
'solved' while another group on the other side of the country was just beginning
to tackle the same issue.

We were inspired to create a platform that would allow government staff to
connect, share, and learn from each other. The advent of AI added powerful
possibilities to how knowledge is categorized and shared. We're excited to be on
this journey with you, and we're committed to making GovAI and Civia the best
possible platform for government staff.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


WHAT IS THE "🚫3 ZEROS" CONCEPT FOR AI SAFETY?

We pioneered and developed a safety framework for AI assistants -- and AI/LLMs
more generally -- with privacy advocates, public sector CTOs and CIOs, and AI
researchers. Our goal with the 3 Zeros framework is to provide a simple guide
for users to understand and trust AI systems.

The "3 Zeros" concept is a multi-layer approach to improving the safety and
trustworthiness of AI systems:
 1. 🚫 Zero Ingestion - the AI system should proactively prevent users from
    loading in PII or other sensitive data via prompts, files, or through file
    imports (including to RAGs e.g. as part of a MSFT Copilot 365 installation).
    
    GovAI prevents PII ingestion via our Data Shield feature, where user prompts
    and files are pre-scanned and blocked or sanitized if they contain sensitive
    data.
    
    
 2. 🚫 Zero Retention - there should be a formal, contractual Zero Data
    Retention agreements in place between any system provider whose system
    incorporates AI and is used by your government employees. This prevents the
    system provider from utilizing your data for training, commercialization, or
    any other use.
    
    GovAI has Zero Data Retention agreements with our underlying AI/LLM
    providers, including OpenAI, and we explicitly state that your data won't be
    used for training or any other purpose.
    
    
 3. 🚫 Zero Ignorance - there are two elements of this principle, which are two
    sides of the same coin:
    
    For users: an AI system should provide in situ feedback and guidance to
    users about how to safely and effectively use AI systems. This 'trains' them
    for not only the system in question but also improves their fluency with AI
    systems more generally.
    
    For the AI/LLM itself: as much governmental contextual data should be
    brought to bear, so that the AI better can perform the task in your unique
    context vs. the best-effort responses based on being trained on the public
    Internet. This reduces errors and hallucinations and makes the AI far more
    likely to perform the task well.
    
    GovAI includes both of these aspects - it guides users, warning them of PII
    and suggesting prompts and use-cases; and it has access to governmental
    contextual data to improve its responses.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


WHY IS GOVAI LIMITED TO GOVERNMENT STAFF & LEADERS?

In order for GovAI to be the best possible platform for government staff, we
need to focus on the unique context and constraints of public sector work. By
limiting access to government staff, we can ensure that GovAI is optimized for
the specific needs of government users.

This is why we require users to register with their government work email - that
way, we verify that users currently work at a qualifying public sector
organization.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


IS GOVAI FREE? IF SO, HOW CAN THAT BE?

Yes, GovAI is free for individuals in government - we call this the 'GovAI
Individual' tier, and it's what you register for on this page.

Why is it free? We believe that in order for government to continue evolving,
transformative technology and tools should be available for leaders and staff
without expensive subscriptions or lengthy procurement cycles.

Isn't "free" usually bad with tech platforms? Yes in almost every case
(including free ChatGPT and free Copilot), because 'free' platforms are
generally funded by selling user data or by using the platform to sell other
products/services. But GovAI is different - we're funded by our GovAI Enterprise
tier, which is a paid tier for government agencies that want central user
management, visibility/reporting, and fine-grained policy and data controls for
their users.

What's the GovAI Enterprise tier? See next question for a summary and detailed
comparison.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


WHAT IS GOVAI ENTERPRISE?

GovAI Enterprise is our paid product tier for government agencies that wish to
deploy GovAI across their organizations, and want central user management,
visibility/reporting, and fine-grained policy and data controls for their users.

Here is a comparison between GovAI Individual and GovAI Enterprise:


GovAI Enterprise licensing is priced based on the number of users and the level
of customization and support required (and is typically significantly less
expensive than ChatGPT or Copilot). Contact us at Sales@Civia.com to discuss
Enterprise licensing.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


WHO CAN I CONTACT FOR MORE DETAILS?

Reach out to us at Hello@Civia.com with any questions, concerns, or feedback and
we'll respond quickly. You can also register for an account and message us from
inside the platform.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


HOW CAN I SAFELY TRY GOVAI OUT?

The quickest way to try GovAI is to simply send a gov-related question to
GovAI@Civia.com from your government work email. GovAI will respond to you with
a helpful answer or action (note that the best experience is inside the
platform, where GovAI can bring more of its contextual understanding to bear, so
if you get a partial response try re-running it inside GovAI).

To get the full experience, just register here for a free account and you'll be
able to use GovAI with no limits.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


HOW GOVAI WORKS

GovAI takes your unique context in government -- your organization
type/size/sector, geographic region, functional role and seniority -- and uses
that to optimize an underlying Large Language Model (LLM) trained on public data
and with access to our proprietary set of government contextual data. No private
data sources are required. See here for more details »


SECURITY & PRIVACY

GovAI is safe and secure for government staff to use. Specifically, GovAI
incorporates the '🚫3 Zeros' framework for AI safety (see FAQ).
 1. GovAI Data Shield can identify and sanitize PII in user prompts prior to
    ingestion into the AI/LLM - reducing the risk of inappropriate data going
    into the system
 2. User data is NOT retained for training or utilized beyond responding to the
    questions and operating the platform, and Civia has Zero Data Retention
    agreements with underlying AI/LLM providers;
 3. Our strict policies and procedures are documented in our Trust Center;
 4. GovAI doesn't require any access to a user's local system, files, or data;
    
 5. IT teams can 'claim' their organization through our GovAI Enterprise tier
    and implement custom policies for their users - contact us.

 


HOW IT WORKS: TECHNICAL OVERVIEW

Click for sound



4:51










--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


REGISTER FOR FREE TO GET ACCESS TO GOVAI

Have a question or need help? Contact us at Hello@Civia.com
 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


UPCOMING WEBINARS:

We offer regular non-promotional webinars on our research and data on GovAI
usage trends and learnings for government and public sector audiences. See below
for upcoming webinars.

🗓️ Jul 11 / Jul 25 @ 2pm ET -- [Research] Has the GovAI Horse Already Left the
Barn? »
Join us to see detailed data and statistics about how our GovAI Assistant is
being used across 425 local governments, state/provincial agencies, and other
public sector organizations in the US and Canada.

🗓️ Jul 18 / Aug 1 @ 2pm ET -- [Demo] GovAI Enterprise Tour »
Curious about the extra visibility, control, and functionality that you could
bring to your organization with GovAI Enterprise, the world's best and safest AI
Assistant for gov staff/leaders? Join us for the overview.

🗓️ Jul 30 @ 2pm ET -- [AI Safety] The '3 Zeros': Making AI safer for gov
organizations »
Join us to learn more about the '3 Zeros' approach to securing AI/LLM systems,
developed in partnership with public sector CTOs and CIOs due to the rising use
of AI Assistants in government.

If you'd like a custom webinar for your organization or association, contact us
at Hello@Civia.com.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


OUR ASSOCIATIONS & PARTNERS:


If your association members would benefit from learning about AI and real-world
examples, contact us at Partners@Civia.com to schedule a non-promotional webinar
on GovAI trends for your next meeting.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


CONTACT US:

We'd love to hear from you - reach out via one of the following:
 * General inquires: Hello@Civia.com
 * Support: Support@Civia.com
 * Sales / GovAI Enterprise: Sales@Civia.com
 * Security: Security@Civia.com

Phone: (249) 444-2484

Mailing Address: Civia Inc. c/o Catalyst Commons,210-137 Glasgow St, Kitchener
ON N2G 4X8 Canada


TRY IT NOW: EMAIL GOVAI@CIVIA.COM AND IT WILL RESPOND!

Send from your government work email (GovAI is exclusively for gov staff). Your
email address will not be shared / sold.
LinkedIn
Find us on:

Civia Inc., c/o Catalyst Commons
210-137 Glasgow St, Kitchener ON N2G 4X8

Privacy Policy Terms and Conditions Trust Center

© 2024 Civia Inc., All rights reserved.