Published guide · By Doug Liles
Beyond the Hype
A practical starting point for district leaders: the policy to establish before a purchase, useful applications, and the questions to ask a vendor.
Read the field guide →Doug Liles · Applied AI & public service
Put AI to work.
Keep people in control.
I help special districts, local governments, and nonprofits turn a real operational problem into a useful AI project—with human review, clear limits, and a record you can inspect.
Founder, builder, and elected special-district commissioner.
Based in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida.
Selected work
Start with something you can examine.
A field guide, a delivered conference session, and a public comment. Each opens the work and the context behind it.
Delivered session · June 9, 2026
Unmasking AI for Special Districts
My presentation at the Florida Association of Special Districts Annual Conference in Orlando: a commissioner's 90-day roadmap for operations automation.
Public comment · July 22, 2026
Florida's mitigation banking rules
My published comment on proposed rule changes, asking for site-specific ecological and hydrological findings before wetland functions are replaced with mitigation credits.
What brings you here?
Work with Doug
Find a useful first project, plan a careful pilot, or equip your board to make an informed decision.
Explore engagements →Explore public service
Follow the commission work, inspect the public record, and understand how Florida special districts operate.
See the public record →Read, watch & listen
Practical guides, conversations, and presentations on putting AI to work responsibly.
Start with the writing →The person behind the work
A builder's perspective.
A public servant's responsibility.
I'm Doug Liles—founder and CEO of the Good Samaritan Institute and founder of Good Combinator. Three decades of building homes, companies, and a nonprofit research institute shape how I approach new work: start with a real need and make something useful.
I also serve as an elected Special District Commissioner in South Walton County, Florida, host AI for Good: Transforming Communities, and bring people together at Point Preserve.
The podcast
AI for Good: Transforming Communities
Conversations with builders, public servants, and researchers putting AI to work for real communities.
Explore the episodes →The Ecosystem
One mission, many roots
Nonprofit AI institute
Accelerator for mission-driven AI ventures
AI-assisted expertise across eight domains
Private 30A venue for weddings, retreats & the AI-founder campus
Civic & govtech AI
Environmental monitoring
AI for education
Research commercialization
Applied AI case studies
Auditable ops software for special districts
New to special districts? Start with Florida Special Districts, Explained.
Bring one problem worth solving.
Start with the workflow, the people it affects, and what a useful result would look like.