Former Facebook engineer Lily Chen left big tech to found a government software startup named FSH Technologies, based in Philadelphia, USA. The company aims to improve complex administrative operations, such as school food services and public records management, using artificial intelligence technologies following a recent $20 million Series A funding round.
From Unconventional Path to Company Founding
The roots of this journey trace back to a difficult period in Chen's adolescence when she suffered from Graves' disease and was hospitalized repeatedly, prompting her and her mother to move to China and live as a nun for nearly two years. Upon her return, she taught herself and entered Colorado College without a high school diploma, graduating with a degree in mathematics and economics, and later working as an engineer at Facebook where she built infrastructure for training AI models. Following the January 2021 Capitol events, she decided to leave big tech in search of real-world impact.
What Practically Changes in Government Software?
The startup focuses on complex and sluggish government tasks hampered by fragmented data across various departments and bureaucratic red tape. The company does not merely place a superficial chatbot on existing systems; rather, it uses artificial intelligence as a tool within its software for tasks such as optical character recognition, translation, and natural language search. Its first projects include organizing K-12 school meals and managing paper archives and records.
Funding and Business Growth
The company secured a total of $25 million in funding, including a recent $20 million Series A round closed within a week with participation from Contrary fund and other investment firms such as General Catalyst and Ramp. Despite challenges and the lengthy sales cycles of the government sector—which generated less than $100,000 in its first year—the founder adopts a management approach inspired by her monastic period, relying on slow thinking and deliberate, consistent execution.