Chip Kennedy
CivicReach.AI – MICRO Fall 2024
Published January 15, 2025
As part of our ‘Meet Our Founders’ series today, we introduce Chip Kennedy, CEO and Founder of CivicReach.AI based in Raleigh, NC. CivicReach.AI is a voice AI platform that helps governments better connect with their residents.
Q: What problem are you trying to solve and what influenced you to start your company?
A: One of the biggest lessons my family taught me growing up is the definition of service to others – the idea that empathy and understanding are the building blocks to a better society. When I grew up, I practiced this lesson as a non-profit director serving families in homeless shelters and across my career as a technologist. The idea of CivicReach.AI came many years ago – when I saw the gap in empathy and understanding between folks in need of help and those in local government trying to lend a hand. Our mission is to close this gap in understanding and empower public officials to help everyone in their communities with far less hassle, and technical bureaucracy.
The problem we are solving is that government communication channels often present significant barriers for residents (every one of us). From complex bureaucracy, to language barriers, to limited accessibility outside of standard business hours. This results in frustration and inefficiency for both residents and public officials trying to help us.
We are building CivicReach.AI to tackle these challenges by providing seamless, AI-powered communication tools that enable residents to interact with their local government more easily and effectively whenever.
Q: What are you most excited about right now? What keeps you up at night?
A: We (everyone) is in the middle of a technology revolution. AI innovation is already reshaping our relationships to computers, to how work gets done, and to how we communicate. I’m incredibly excited to harness this technology to help an industry and area of society that is too often left behind the curve.
Q: What does the road ahead look like for your company?
A: We’re currently pitching local governments across the country to build pilot projects and actively test our tools with public officials and residents. We’re excited to learn as we go and teach governments and residents as we do.
Q: When did you know you wanted to take an entrepreneurial path?
A: I think it’s innate. I come from and married into a family of entrepreneurs. At age 8, I built a business plan to sell my mom’s freshly baked bread to our neighbors, including real-time bike delivery.
I started my career building my first company in New York City. There I saw and became a big believer in social entrepreneurship and social capital – the idea that startups could focus on building toward a social mission and still aspire for the scale of a for-profit, high growth company.
Q: What is one thing you wish you understood about entrepreneurship before you ever got started?
A: Advice I give to many others and have a hard time taking myself – start sooner. Build something, sell something, tell someone your idea. Action drives ideas forward, even if it’s small actions.
Q: What other passions do you have besides your business?
A: I’m an avid runner and marathoner and I love running on the greenways around Raleigh. I also love cooking at home with my wife and trying new foods!
While visiting Raleigh, Chip recommends:
- Downtown Raleigh has so much more going on than many people realize. Our downtown coffee shop scene is the best and most interesting I’ve seen in any city – I recommend spending a Saturday and walk to a few. Our restaurants are amazing!
Support CivicReach.AI and Chip by:
- CivicReach.AI is a North Carolina startup with an ambitious mission to reshape how we all interact with local government. We’re looking to meet city, town, and county leaders to spread the word and learn more!
