Polimorphic and Avalon Technologies recently hosted their first joint webinar, Government AI, Made Practical, bringing together leaders from cities, counties, and public agencies to explore a simple question:
What does AI look like when it’s actually useful?
Instead of focusing on hype, the session centered on practical implementation, measurable outcomes, and real-world examples. The throughline was clear: successful AI in government is not about novelty — it’s about service.
As John Doyle of Polimorphic put it during the session:
“Unless you are a political science major, people have no idea what they need to do or who they need to contact. The average person picks up the phone or navigates a website that’s essentially a maze.”
For most residents, something as simple as building a shed or registering to vote can turn into a frustrating loop of redirects, voicemail, and departmental handoffs.
Polimorphic’s focus is reducing that friction.
“What we’re solving for is direct, immediate responses. Things become accessible 24/7, 365.”
That accessibility — for both residents and internal staff — is where AI moves from experimental to practical.
Todd Johnson, President of Avalon Technologies, shared a framework for how public sector leaders should evaluate AI initiatives.
Instead of asking, “What can this tool do?” the better question is:
What will it take to make this successful?
He highlighted three core lenses:
“When we met with Polimorphic, customers didn’t need to purchase millions of dollars in GPUs, and they didn’t need in-house data scientists. That matters.”
If an AI initiative requires major infrastructure investment or heavy internal lift, adoption slows — and momentum dies.
“In the public sector we’re always asked to do more with less.”
Solutions must reduce burden, not add complexity. If staff need extensive technical retraining just to maintain the tool, it’s not truly scalable.
“If something bad happens to a town, city, or county because of a data breach, it’s on the news.”
For government organizations, security and compliance aren’t features — they’re prerequisites.
The conversation included real examples from current Polimorphic clients.
“We’re using technology to better serve our community and meet people where they are… ready to assist 24/7.”
— Yulia Carter, Assistant City Manager, City of Pacifica
“Our partnership with Polimorphic has transformed the way the Town of Pineville serves its residents, reducing call volumes, streamlining internal processes, and providing timely support… making local government more accessible, responsive, and transparent.”
— Riley George, Community Relations & Communications Specialist
These examples reinforce a key takeaway from the webinar: AI works best when it improves both the resident experience and internal operations at the same time.
During the session, John built a working example using real Hamilton County data — scraping over 1,300 website sources, integrating GIS layers, and deploying both AI Chatbot and AI Voice capabilities.
The setup timeline?
Overnight.
The key point wasn’t just speed. It was sustainability.
“If we’ve already built the knowledge base for chat, adding voice isn’t another heavy lift. It’s just making that knowledge accessible in a different way.”
AI implementation doesn’t need to be phased over years. With the right structure, it can scale incrementally without restarting from scratch.
As the session closed, Todd emphasized three priorities for public sector leaders moving forward:
“We’re looking at customer goals three to five years out. Technology is only effective if it’s sustainable and supported.”
The message was clear: AI adoption is not about trend-chasing. It’s about long-term operational improvement.
Government AI becomes practical when it:
If you weren’t able to attend the live session, or if you’re curious what this could look like for your own organization:
👉 Request a personalized walkthrough and see what practical AI could unlock for your team.
