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Your Public Record, AI’s Version — with Civly Founder Dan Barkhuff
Description
A court filing. An old social post. A campaign donation. Something you said in a podcast years ago.
They’re scattered pieces of information—until AI puts them together.
Civly founder Dan Barkhuff joins Jason AI Wade to talk about what happens when researching people and organizations gets faster, cheaper and easier. A former Navy SEAL and emergency physician, Dan explains how a business built to automate political compliance became a research platform with applications across companies, athletics and nonprofits.
The conversation moves from public records to public perception: what AI assistants say about you, where reputation management crosses into manipulation, and whether reducing the cost of research could change who can afford to run for office.
We get into:
Dan’s journey from the SEAL teams to the ER to founding Civly.
The compliance idea customers didn’t buy—and the research tool that followed.
What becomes possible when AI connects scattered public information.
How research tools extend beyond political campaigns.
The tension between AI visibility, accuracy and influence.
Why donor lists and fundraising calls still drive campaign economics.
Dan’s case for making political participation less expensive.
Daniel “Dan” Barkhuff is founder and CEO of Civly, an AI-powered research and intelligence company. A Naval Academy graduate, former Navy SEAL and Harvard-trained emergency physician, he practices in Vermont and founded Veterans for Responsible Leadership. Civly applies research and monitoring tools to politics, business, athletics and nonprofits.
Jason AI Wade of BackTier hosts the AI Visibility Podcast, exploring how AI discovers and describes people and businesses—and what happens when those answers shape real decisions.
Guest: Dan BarkhuffHost: Jason AI WadeExplore