County commissioners heard a presentation on Nov. 8 about a proposed pilot to use an AI chatbot, a voice assistant and an integrated customer-relationship system to automate routine resident requests and to create service tickets for county staff.

Dale Hollis, who introduced the project, said the pilot would "enhance constituent engagement, to streamline service delivery, and modernize internal workflows." Hollis said the proposal recommends deploying a "Polymercreek AI chatbot, an AI-powered voice assistant" and a tailored CRM for Houston County that would provide 24/7 support, reduce staff workload and improve data-driven decision making.

During a live demonstration, Polymorphic regional sales director Moe Khan showed a simulated exchange where a caller reported a pothole; the system captured an address, summarized the conversation and automatically opened a ticket routed to the correct department. Hollis and Khan said the system crawls the county website and public documents (including ordinances) so the chatbot can provide links and specific guidance; they said integration of GIS data would allow parcel- or address-level answers such as whether an accessory dwelling unit is permitted on a lot.

Presenters described typical early accuracy of about "85 to 90%" and said they expect accuracy to improve to the mid-90s after one to two months of tuning. Hollis said the system will also log unanswered questions so county staff can update the website or the model to cover gaps.

Commissioners asked practical questions about operations. One commissioner asked whether callers who prefer a human always could opt to speak to a person; Khan said the system supports an immediate transfer line and that callers can be routed to a department or to a live operator. Commissioners also asked about restricting the system to after-hours use; presenters said the county could schedule the AI to handle only the main line after hours or run it 24/7 and still permit direct dialing to department numbers.

Presenters cited examples from other municipalities to illustrate potential savings and workflow improvements, including use cases in permitting and animal services. Hollis said the product includes dashboards for case volume and service-level agreements so county leaders can monitor response times and workload.

Next steps discussed at the meeting included scheduling follow-up in-depth demonstrations and additional one-on-one briefings with commissioners. The chair said the commission would preview the pilot and consider a possible vote on a budget amendment at the next commission meeting; no final action was taken at the Nov. 8 session.

The presentation materials and demo were provided by Polymorphic; the county did not take a vote on contracting or on funding during this meeting.