Teen Genius Made An App To Help You Fight Parking Tickets
The app has successfully challenged 160,000 parking tickets since its launch last year.
Nothing ruins your day quite like a parking ticket.
Have you ever walked out of a delicious meal or successful day of shopping, only to have your mood ruined by the sight of a yellow sheet of paper mocking you on your windshield?
You're instantly annoyed and in denial of any violation you could've committed in the short period of time you were parked, hoping something could waive that hundred-plus dollar ticket you really can't afford right now.
Well, 19 year-old Stanford student Joshua Browder had the same problem back home in London, and he decided to do something about it.
Browder created the "DoNotPay bot" after receiving countless unfair, illegal tickets.
The "world's first Internet lawyer," as described by Browder, was created after he—like many people everywhere—received several parking tickets he felt were kind of bogus.
So, how exactly does this blessing of an app work?
Upon receiving a ticket, users log onto DoNotPay.co.uk and chat with a bot that asks them a series of questions regarding the circumstances of their ticket.
The questions range from asking if a sign was visible, the size of the parking space, and other questions that clarify the parking situation that resulted in a ticket.
After the bot assesses the case, it helps you create a general appeal for the ticket. If the appeal has merit, it will most likely be dropped due to the lack of participation from local government to continue fighting the violation.
The app took Browder just three months to program.
When you were 19 trying to create the perfect pizza, Joshua Browder was on a mission to relieve the world of parking ticket woes.
"I think the people getting parking tickets are the most vulnerable in society," said Browder. "These people aren t looking to break the law. I think they're being exploited as a revenue source by the local government."
Browder's on a mission to stop the exploitation across the world.
The app originated in the UK and launched in New York this past March.
According to Venture Beat, of the 160,000 successful parking ticket challenges, 9,000 were from New York.
"I'm very surprised it has been so successful," said Browder. "But I am not surprised that so many people have pushed back against their parking tickets."
We aren't surprised either, Browder. If you can pay a bill, order food, or send a video on your phone why shouldn't you be able to fight a parking ticket?
Browder hopes to extend DoNotPay to Seattle this fall.
Aside from saving people major headaches and major cash from paying parking violations, Venture Beat reports that Browder is also developing bots to help people with HIV understand their legal rights and a bot that helps refugees apply for asylum.
"I feel like there's a gold mine of opportunities because so many services and information could be automated using AI, and bots are a perfect way to do that, and it s disappointing at the moment that it s mainly used for commerce transactions by ordering flowers and pizzas," he said.
As much as we love flowers and pizzas we love saving money and helping the world even more. You rock, Joshua Browder.