A free, mobile-first AI resource navigator that helps people find verified resources, understand the next step, and get there with RTD transit and walking directions — for shelter, food, hygiene, documents, EBT, legal help, crisis support, and more. Not just a directory; a guided path to help.
I’ve been building so fast that the public app at app.fieldcompass.site hasn’t kept up — what’s live there right now is well behind where the project actually is. A major update is coming soon with the full technical details, exactly where the build stands today, and where it’s headed next. Thanks for your patience while I catch the public version up to the work.
Available as a web app and Android app, with funding needed to build the App Store version.
To give people experiencing homelessness, case workers, outreach teams, first responders, shelter staff, volunteers, and concerned citizens accurate information they can actually use — when they need it most.
The model can be adapted to other cities, states, and countries. Every community has people trying to find shelter, documents, food, transportation, and help. Field Compass can become a framework for local verified-resource systems worldwide.
Funding supports verification work, Spanish translation, hosting infrastructure, Android app maintenance, App Store development, AI support integration, field testing, documentation, and public release.
Field Compass is free to use and moving fast. Here’s what’s actually built right now, how it’s made, and where it’s going — written plainly, not marketing.
Built as a modern web app (React, Vite, Tailwind) and packaged for Android with Capacitor. The Android app is live and updates in lockstep with the web app from a single codebase — so a fix or new resource shows up in both at once. The iOS / App Store version is funding-dependent.
I’ve integrated some of Denver’s RTD (Regional Transportation District) data, because getting to a resource is half the battle. Transportation is one of the biggest barriers people face, so routing and transit context are built in rather than left as an afterthought.
The in-app assistant runs on OpenAI’s models to help someone describe their situation in plain language and get pointed to the right place. I’m currently self-funding that usage out of pocket while the project grows.
The interface follows Android (Material) and Apple (Human Interface) best practices, so it feels native and fast on the devices people actually carry — not a clunky website squeezed onto a screen.
Field Compass supports voice and Spanish (Español), because the people who need it most aren’t all reading English on a big screen. Accessibility and language are core features, not add-ons.
There are practical guides already live in the app — all written by me, firsthand, from actually navigating these systems. Real steps from someone who has been through them, not recycled boilerplate.
Resources live in a database on my own server — not a frozen list. Every resource is verified, and there’s a report button right next to each one so anyone can flag something that’s wrong or out of date. That feedback loops straight back into verification, so the data keeps getting more accurate the more it’s used.
Resources are gathered from multiple sources — 211, careful web scraping of official listings, direct user submissions, and outreach — then cross-checked before they go live. Many sources in, one verified result out.
Where it’s going: a full public update with the complete technical details, the current state of the build, and the roadmap ahead — plus continued verification work, more transit coverage, expanded Spanish, and the App Store release once funding allows.
