Practice Disrupted by Practice of Architecture 209: Digital Twin Cities, My Town AI
What happens when a public servant becomes a tech founder to solve the problems they face every day?
This week, we're joined by Nichole Sterling, the Mayor Pro Tem of Nederland, Colorado, and the founder of MyTownAI. Her journey offers a unique perspective on how technology can reshape civic decision-making from the inside out.
Nichole shares the origin story of MyTownAI, a venture born from the "pain" of watching her own small-town staff navigate a maze of disconnected sources - zoning maps, municipal codes, county websites, and even Zillow, just to answer a simple question like, "What can be built on this parcel of land?". To address this, she developed MyTownAI, an intelligent data hub that consolidates information and utilizes low-cost digital twins to enable municipalities to run simulations, ranging from modeling the impact of zoning changes to exploring economic development strategies.
The platform is designed to serve the vast, often-overlooked majority of American communities: the 83% of towns with fewer than 10,000 people. By providing accessible AI tools to under-resourced governments, Nichole is driven by a powerful vision for the future of the public sector.
"I want to see local governments become the next wave of innovation. If you think about it, just that a very small disruption at the local government level has the potential to make huge waves." - Nichole Sterling
This episode concludes with an exploration of how a tool built for government can create a more transparent and collaborative ecosystem for all. MyTownAI aims to enhance civic participation by giving citizens direct access to information and a platform to co-create ideas for their communities. For architects and developers, it represents a future where they can quickly find community-aligned opportunities, accelerating a process that is often opaque and slow. Ultimately, Nichole's work challenges architects to evolve their value proposition from being navigators of a complex system to becoming strategic partners in a data-empowered, citizen-driven future.
Guest:
Nichole Sterling is the Mayor Pro Tem of Nederland, Colorado, the founder of MyTownAI, and the co-founder of the nonprofit Women Defining AI. As a public servant and civic tech founder, she is focused on leveraging artificial intelligence to empower small and under-resourced municipalities. Her work aims to make government more efficient, transparent, and innovative by providing accessible tools for data analysis, scenario planning, and civic engagement.
Is This Episode for You?
This episode is for you if:
✅ You are an architect or planner who feels the pain of navigating fragmented municipal data. ✅ You are interested in how AI and digital twins can be applied at the local government level. ✅ You want to understand the unique challenges and opportunities facing small towns.
✅ You are inspired by stories of non-technical founders solving real-world problems.
✅ You believe technology can enhance civic participation and create more collaborative communities.
📍 Show Links:
- Connect with Nichole LinkedIn
- Visit MyTownAI’s Website
- Visit Woman Defining AI’s Website
- Listen to the Previous Episode with Nichole
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