Social Impact

A major public-sector welfare agency serving 20 million vulnerable citizens partnered with Version 1 to transform fraud detection into a force for social good. By preventing $13.4 billion in annual fraud and error leakage, our AWS-powered solution protects essential funding for society’s most disadvantaged populations while pioneering sustainable technology practices that benefit both communities and the environment.

Challenges

The agency faced a crisis threatening society’s social safety net: $13.4 billion annual leakage through fraud and error ($12 billion over-disbursed, 75% fraud-related, and $1.4 billion under-paid) that deprived vulnerable citizens of vital support. This financial hemorrhaging meant reduced funding for disabled individuals, unemployed families, and elderly citizens who depend on these services. Legacy reactive fraud detection was costly, slow, and often unrecoverable, leaving genuine claimants without proper support while criminals exploited systemic weaknesses. The solution needed to:

• Protect public resources for legitimate beneficiaries in real time
• Ensure equitable treatment regardless of citizen background or circumstances
• Maintain strict privacy standards protecting vulnerable populations’ personal data
• Enable rapid response to emerging threats without disrupting service delivery
• Demonstrate environmental responsibility through sustainable technology practices

Solution

Version 1 engineered an AI-powered Fraud & Error Detection Platform that exemplifies technology serving social good:

• Ethical AI Framework: Dual processing pipelines on Amazon EMR and ECS (Fargate) with XGBoost/GBM models trained in SageMaker Studio, ensuring bias-free risk assessment that protects all citizens equally
• Privacy-First Architecture: End-to-end encryption, IAM least-privilege access, and VPC endpoints safeguard vulnerable citizens’ sensitive personal information
• Real-Time Social Protection: Sub-200ms risk scoring via Amazon API Gateway enables caseworkers to protect legitimate claimants while preventing fraud before funds leave Treasury
• Sustainable Innovation: AWS Graviton3 and Trainium deployment achieved 80% energy reduction and 40% lower AI training costs, demonstrating environmental stewardship
• Community Capacity Building: Joint “Cloud Center of Excellence” cross-trained 200 civil service engineers in sustainable DevSecOps practices, reducing external dependency by 25%
• Open-Source Social Impact: MIT-licensed risk-scoring library donated to benefit three additional government departments, multiplying positive impact across public services

Real differences, delivered

We delivered social impact capabilities that transform how technology serves society:

• From Harm to Help: Proactive prevention protects vulnerable citizens from wrongful debt collection while ensuring criminals cannot steal resources meant for society’s most needy
• Equitable Access: 100% real-time coverage ensures every citizen receives fair, consistent treatment regardless of background, location, or personal circumstances
• Environmental Leadership: Serverless architecture with 99% lower emissions than legacy systems sets new standards for sustainable public sector technology
• Community Empowerment: Skills transfer to 200 civil servants builds long-term public sector capability, reducing reliance on external consultants while improving service delivery
• Systemic Change: Open-source contributions enable other government departments to replicate our social impact model, creating waves of positive change across public services
• Trust Building: Enhanced privacy measures and faster processing restore citizen confidence in government systems designed to help them

Delivered

• $1.66 billion saved in FY 2024 protecting funding for legitimate social programs, with $8.4 billion projected savings by 2028 ensuring sustained support for vulnerable populations
• 20 million citizens receive equitable, real-time risk assessment with zero discrimination and 100% service availability
• 6,000+ counter-fraud staff transformed from debt collectors to citizen advocates, enabling more time supporting those in genuine need
• 80% reduction in environmental impact through sustainable AWS architecture, demonstrating public sector leadership in climate responsibility
• 200 civil servants equipped with modern technology skills, building sustainable capability that serves communities for years to come
• Three additional government departments adopting our open-source innovations, multiplying social impact across the entire public sector ecosystem