Why I Co-Founded FireHire

Dear FireHire Community,

I hope this letter finds you well. I'm Tom, co-founder of FireHire.app, the AI-powered prep platform for aspiring firefighters, and I am writing to you to explain my motivations for co-creating the app alongside my brother, Daniel, as well as to provide insight into why we chose AI to serve as an engine for our fire-prep tools.

Before anything else though, I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to you, the reader, for your participation in the FireHire community. Whether you're preparing for your chief's interview at your dream department or just curious about the fire service in general, Daniel and I have built this app to aid you in your journey, and we're excited that you're here with us.

Now, why did I help build this app? Well, I can tell you that when my brother — an active firefighter in Aurora, CO — rang me up back in November 2025 to tell me about his idea for FireHire and to ask if I wanted to help him make it a reality, it took no hesitation for me to reply, "100%, let's do it." The reasons for my enthusiastic sign-on were many.

First, I knew that FireHire, as a concept — a system to help people prepare for the firefighter hiring process — represented a genuine service; it could lift people up. It seems to me in 2026 that there are so many applications vying for our time and attention and money that don't actually work in the best interests of their users. Defining "best interests," of course, is a challenge in itself (and I must note that FireHire does not guarantee readiness nor placement in the hiring pipeline), but generally speaking I believe that FireHire stands in opposition to the self-serving apps I've just described by helping people reach toward such an altruistic and rewarding career as firefighting.

Second, as a former resident-volunteer firefighter and ocean-rescue lifeguard, and now as a career software developer, I felt I had the experience and knowledge to help turn the FireHire vision into a reality. I might not be doing the job today, but I have lived it. And perhaps more relevantly to the app, I've been through the selection process, so I know what what it takes to get hired. FireHire's tools, in fact — including the oral board simulator, the CPAT workout generator and the resume analysis suite — draw on Daniel and I's successes, failures and lessons learned in those very areas. On the tech side, I'm no Steve Jobs, but since I traded in my lifeguard gear for a laptop about four years ago, I've learned a lot about how to make well-functioning, secure web applications, which is exactly what FireHire is.

Third, but far from least, building FireHire meant that I would get to spend quality time with my brother. Not only would we be building something great, but we'd be sharing lots of stories and laughs at the same time, and that's a reward in and of itself.

So, having explained my reasons for believing FireHire to be a worthy endeavor, allow me to follow with why we chose AI (specifically, LLM capabilities) to power the app's core functionality. This decision comes along three axes: availability, affordability and quality.

On the availability front, Daniel and I envisioned an application that could serve as many aspiring firefighters as possible, at any time of day, on any day of the week, and this could only be possible with the advantage that AI offers. While FireHire is far from the first platform offering aid in preparing for the fire department selection process, we are among the first (if not the first) that offers 24/7 access to preparation tools, meaning you can prepare on your terms. No scheduling oral board sessions, no waiting on an instructor to grade your (and 50 other candidates') responses, just instant structured feedback, thanks to our sophisticated implementation of AI models.

In a similar and actually overlapping vein to availability, FireHire was made to be affordable to the average user, which AI makes possible. Live training sessions can range up to hundreds of dollars per hour, and we know that for the average person trying to better themselves and their community by becoming a firefighter, such costs are prohibitively expensive. Meanwhile, FireHire can provide multiple prep tools at no cost whatsoever as well as advanced training services at affordable rates, all because the platform runs on AI. You can run through a custom oral board, take a practice written exam and generate a structured workout plan, all for a fraction of the price of other options.

Lastly, we chose AI because we did not want to sacrifice on quality. Modern AI models, combined with the tooling we've developed to configure those models specifically for fire-hiring purposes, are apt to not only generate novel, custom-tailored prep materials, but also to analyze user input on a personal level and respond with detailed, valuable feedback. That level of flexibility and specificity in FireHire's content is the direct result of consuming AI capabilities.

That said in praise of AI, and at the risk of getting on a soap box, I'd like to raise the closing point that while LLMs are fantastic tools, indeed ones without which FireHire would not exist, they are after all only that — tools. From a Halligan to a Pulaski, to the internet and our phones, when used appropriately tools can help us achieve results far beyond what would be otherwise possible; when used without sound judgment, however, they can become hindrances and crutches, obstacles to our own success. AI is no different.

Of course I believe in the power of AI and FireHire as an application to aid prospective firefighters in their preparation undertakings, but I would caution against it being seen as the entirely comprehensive solution to preparation. That is to say that just as the human element is absolutely crucial in the realm of firefighting, it should not be neglected in the preparation process. That's why FireHire, beyond being an application, is also a community, one in which Daniel and I are not only active, but stoked for your participation.

If you're trying to get hired, join our Discord channel and start interacting with all the other hardworking folks there who share your goals. It's a community for discussing the daily oral board questions, keeping one another motivated in physical readiness, sharing firefighter opportunities across the country and much more.

Thank you for your time and attention. If you're a member of the fire service, active or retired, then thank you very much for serving your community and neighbors. If you're training to join the service, then thank you for your willingness to serve; whether FireHire is the right prep platform for you or not (we think it is), Daniel and I are rooting for your success.

Sincerely,

Tom Latham

Tom

Co-Founder & Developer

Software developer and co-founder of FireHire. Tom builds the tools that help aspiring firefighters prepare smarter and stand out in the hiring process.

FireHire provides general preparation content and does not guarantee hiring, interview results, test scores, or employment outcomes. Content may be AI-assisted and should be independently evaluated.