government-payments
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Tyler Technologies
Tyler Technologies built a $2.3 billion business in the least glamorous corner of software: the machinery of government. Its advantage is not a single killer app, but a web of systems that makes switching difficult and public work increasingly connected.
Diana Frappier
Diana Frappier is the co-founder of Promise, an Oakland-based AI-powered government payment platform that helps municipalities and utilities distribute relief, recover revenue, and automate eligibility checks at scale. A UC Hastings-trained lawyer turned social entrepreneur, she co-founded the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights with Van Jones in 1996, helped launch the first Green Jobs Corps in Oakland, and then pivoted to fintech after years running operations at Green For All and Honor. At Promise, she and CEO Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins have raised over $48M and built a platform that has distributed $150M+ in government relief to hundreds of thousands of residents.
Promise
Promise is an Oakland-based govtech company that modernizes how government agencies and utilities collect payments and distribute benefits. Founded in 2017 by Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins and Diana Frappier, it offers flexible, interest-free repayment plans, AI-powered fraud detection, automated benefits distribution, and income verification - all designed to make public systems work better for both agencies and the residents they serve.