ServiceConnected

Helping vets build stronger VA claims 🇺🇸 Claim builder + Rating Calculator + Benefits Info Built by veterans for veterans 🫡

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ServiceConnected - Hackathon Submission

Inspiration

Shelby is a veteran who has been navigating her VA claim process for about 6 years. There are numerous Facebook groups and Reddit communities where veterans share their frustrations with the VA's inability to provide clear help and these communities have created extensive knowledge bases. We wanted to build a free, centralized tool to help veterans effectively manage and understand their disability claims.

What it does

ServiceConnected is a platform that simplifies the VA claim process. We provide a simple UI with interactive tutorials on each page so that everyone can use all the available features without needing to read a FAQ.

Currently, our platform includes the following features:

  • Body Part Selector Tool: An intuitive visual way to identify and select conditions based on anatomy.
  • Disability Search Tool: A comprehensive search functionality that allows veterans to find all possible VA disabilities translated into plain English.
  • VA Math Calculator: A tool to estimate disability ratings and help veterans understand how their overall rating is calculated.
  • C&P Exam Prep Tool: Helps veterans prepare for their Compensation and Pension exams by explaining what to expect and what criteria examiners look for.
  • Lay Statement Generator: Assists veterans in writing structured and effective buddy or personal statements to support their claims.
  • VSO Prep Tool & Directory: Tools to find a Veteran Service Officer (VSO) and prepare the necessary documentation before meeting them, ensuring the time is used effectively.
  • Claim Organization: A way to save, track and organize potential claims and evidence in one place.

How we built it

First, we scraped the raw data from Title 38 regulations. We then used AI to clean this complex legal and medical text, identifying the categories each disability belongs to and translating dense criteria into accessible, plain-English guidance. Once we had the clean, structured data stored in a PostgreSQL database (using Prisma ORM), we built a modern Next.js UI/UX around it. The interface features the body part selector tool, the intelligent search tool and all the other tools designed to empower veterans. Our application leverages AI agents to continuously process and update regulatory data, ensuring the platform operates with minimal human intervention. (Note: Our infrastructure utilizes Google Cloud services to run our AI workloads and database).

Challenges we ran into

Extracting and cleaning the complex, dense legal data from Title 38 was incredibly challenging. The regulations are not easily parseable, requiring significant AI-driven data extraction and refinement to make the information useful. Now that the product is built, marketing is our biggest challenge. However, we are encouraged because the people who find us love using our website; our PostHog dashboard shows they spend an average of 8 minutes on the platform.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We have achieved strong engagement metrics with a 2-minute median permanence and an 8-minute average time on site. Additionally, our marketing efforts on TikTok have yielded over 50,000 views, showing that the demand for this tool is substantial.

What we learned

We learned that while the underlying technology and AI infrastructure are crucial, distribution is paramount. Building a great tool is only half the battle; we are currently focused on figuring out how to crack the TikTok and Facebook algorithms to reach the veterans who need this most.

What's next for ServiceConnected

Our immediate goal is to reach 1,000 daily active users. After establishing that user base, we plan to pursue defense contracts via TAPS (Transition Assistance Program) or directly with the VA. The VA and DoD are obligated to provide this type of information to service members who are being discharged and current VSOs often complain that veterans arrive at their offices without enough knowledge on how to build their claims. ServiceConnected will bridge this gap, ensuring every veteran is prepared and informed.

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