Kelvin Kiogora
Updated on: June 16, 2025
Each year, an estimated $140 billion in public benefits go unused – not because the funding isn’t available, but because millions of eligible people never enroll. Programs like SNAP and Medicaid, along with refundable tax credits like the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), are fully funded by public budgets, yet administrative hurdles and complex systems prevent many from accessing them.
That’s sadly not a glitch, it’s the norm for enrollment to drop off steeply from systems built on paper forms, clunky portals, and manual reviews. Submission errors and processing delays result in groceries unpaid, rent overdue, and trust eroded in the very institutions meant to help.
AidKit partners with governments and nonprofits to design and launch new benefits programs that deliver cash assistance securely, swiftly, and with dignity. Its text-first, privacy-respecting, multilingual platform helps get programs off the ground in weeks, not years.
No paper. No PDFs. Just real-time alerts and clear next steps, regardless of your language and quality of your internet connection.
In this exclusive Website Planet interview, CEO Brittany Christenson shares how AidKit was able to deliver over $325 million in benefits for over 100,000 people since 2021, and how it helped the state of Colorado launch a more humane unemployment system for excluded workers that reduced wait times and restored trust.
Why does your company exist? What’s the fundamental pain point or flaw in your industry it was designed to solve?
Systems intended to support people in crisis are built on outdated, insecure, and exclusionary infrastructure.
Despite well-intentioned policy and funding, the actual delivery of relief and public benefits is often hampered by paper or PDF forms, fax machines, weeks-long approval processes, and risky manual workarounds that create barriers for those most in need.
These broken operations don’t just slow things down, they erode trust, expose sensitive data, and make life harder for the very people these programs aim to help. What should be a safety net often feels bureaucratic, inaccessible, and dehumanizing.
AidKit bridges this gap between policy and impact.
We provide governments and nonprofits with a secure-by-design, privacy-forward platform plus expert professional services built for equity, safeguarding, and scale. From encrypted data flows and multilingual applications to real-time dashboards and automated workflows, we enable our partners to deliver aid quickly, transparently, and with dignity.
Can you recall a specific incident or personal story that illustrates the severity of this issue?
In Colorado in late 2023, it was reported that Lisa Craig spent 278 hours (nearly seven full work weeks) on hold, just trying to access the unemployment benefits she was owed. For five months, she received no clear guidance, no meaningful updates, and no path forward. She drained her savings, dipped into her 401(k), and woke up in the middle of the night fearing how she’d make rent.
She was one of thousands caught in a flawed system designed to root out fraud, but in practice, it locked out the very people it was meant to help.
One in four eligible Americans miss out on benefits each year due in part to access barriers like confusing applications, lack of documentation, digital exclusion, and flawed processing. At the same time, governments and nonprofits are under pressure to move faster and serve more people with fewer resources.
The systems we have, which are mostly built by massive consulting firms, are failing those they’re supposed to help, especially communities of color, immigrants, and people navigating poverty.
We built AidKit to fix exactly this kind of problem. When Colorado created a first-of-its-kind permanent unemployment assistance program for excluded workers, they turned to us.
We built and launched a complete benefits administration platform centered on listening to applicants, giving them visibility into decisions and status, and honoring timeframes–all to uphold dignity and build trust. Applicants receive text updates and can track their claims online, in their preferred language.
No long hold times, no endless frustration.
We proved you can build systems that are both secure and humane.
Why is this issue especially relevant today?
Over 25% of eligible Americans are blocked from accessing the benefits they qualify for due to accessibility challenges, technical issues, linguistic barriers, or documentation requirements.
At the same time, fraud and data breaches in public systems are escalating rapidly. AI-powered identity theft and automated fraud networks are exposing how fragile our legacy infrastructure really is.
We’ve already seen the consequences: massive unemployment fraud schemes, hacked agencies, and exposed sensitive recipient data. This has become more than an operational failure — it’s a full-blown trust crisis.
And the pressure is only growing. New federal policies tied to Medicaid, SNAP, work requirements, and immigration are adding complex administrative burdens that brittle systems weren’t built to handle. Governments are being forced to modernize under intense timelines and scrutiny.
That’s why we armed AidKit with the best-in-class fraud prevention, airtight data security, and radical accessibility, all with the agility to keep up as policies evolve and stakes rise.
Who is most affected by this issue, and why are they still stuck with it?
Marginalized communities, including low-income, low-literacy, and low-digital access populations, are hit hardest. They’re often asked to share sensitive information through insecure channels or interfaces never designed with inclusion in mind.
Meanwhile, public agencies are cobbling together spreadsheets, email threads, and patchwork tools just to keep programs running. This is not only inefficient, it introduces serious risks to both compliance and recipient safety.
What should organizations do instead, and how do you help?
Organizations need systems that are secure, scalable, and socially responsible. AidKit offers a platform that encrypts every data flow, limits data access with role-based permissions, and enables aid to be distributed with speed and sensitivity.
We also support edge cases most platforms ignore: people without email, ID, or bank accounts. We offer full offline functionality and real-time multilingual interfaces. Privacy is baked in from day one.
Our fraud detection logic is transparent and explainable, never black-box automation that leaves applicants in limbo. We pair automation with human review to protect both efficiency and empathy.
Where others sell generic SaaS or bloated consulting hours, we deliver purpose-built tech, backed by human-centered design and deep domain expertise. We aren’t just streamlining forms, we’re redesigning trust.
What’s one major milestone that proves your solution works?
A major milestone was our work with Los Angeles County and the City of LA in early 2025. After devastating wildfires, they needed to deliver emergency financial assistance fast. In just over two weeks, they used AidKit to launch and manage the Small Business and Worker Relief Funds, reaching thousands of impacted residents and businesses.
- Applicants uploaded documents, verified identity, and tracked status in real time — all in their own language.
- Our system matched addresses to evacuation zones using geocoded data and built-in fraud detection.
- Human reviewers made final decisions, preserving compassion in high-stakes situations.
This process helped LA turn chaos into coordinated, dignified response.
What’s the long-term vision for AidKit?
We’re reimagining how public benefits and relief are delivered. That means fast, human-centered systems that scale with equity in mind.
Our roadmap focuses on:
- Self-service tools for smaller agencies to launch programs faster with less administrative burden.
- Compliance modules to help large agencies meet complex mandates to change eligibility criteria confidently and to increase transparency and auditability in the process.
- AI tools that reduce staff burnout and improve applicant experience — without sacrificing human oversight.
We’re not just building software. We’re building the future of public care infrastructure — one where dignity, trust, and inclusion are the default.
What’s the one thing you wish people took away from this?
Delivering aid is not just a transaction, it’s a moment to build trust. When systems respect that, they become more than functional. They become human.
That’s what AidKit is all about — helping dedicated yet overworked public servants serve people with dignity and care.
Want to make your aid delivery faster and more dignified?
Reach out to Brittany Christenson:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/brittany-christenson-62889120a
