According to Mashable, nonprofits are slowly embracing AI despite significant barriers, with a Candid report finding 65% of organizations expressing interest in the technology while most remain at “beginner familiarity” levels. A Bonterra survey revealed over half of partner nonprofits have already adopted AI in some form, while Fast Forward’s research showed smaller organizations with under 10 employees are utilizing AI the most, primarily through custom chatbots and LLMs trained on public data. The landscape is complicated by the Trump administration’s executive order allowing agencies to terminate funding that doesn’t “advance the national interest,” creating additional pressure on organizations already facing historic funding challenges. Despite growing adoption, only 9% of nonprofits feel ready to adopt AI responsibly, and a third can’t articulate how AI connects to their mission, with most organizations using AI for less than a year primarily in internal operations.
Funding threats meet tech adoption
Here’s the thing: nonprofits are caught between a rock and a hard place. They’re facing increasing political pressure on traditional funding sources while simultaneously being told AI could help them do more with less. But the reality is that most organizations simply don’t have the infrastructure to implement AI responsibly. They’re worried about costs, about exacerbating the very inequalities they’re trying to solve, and about data privacy when working with AI companies. And honestly, can you blame them?
The readiness gap
What really stands out is the massive disconnect between interest and actual readiness. 65% of nonprofits are interested in AI, but only 9% feel prepared to use it responsibly. That’s a huge gap. Most organizations lack internal training budgets, policies, or guidance for AI use. They’re concerned about bias, privacy, and security issues that could undermine their work. And nearly all nonprofits worry about how AI companies might use their data. Basically, they want the benefits but don’t trust the technology enough to dive in headfirst.
Community-driven approach
What’s fascinating is how smaller organizations are leading the charge. While you’d expect bigger nonprofits with more resources to be AI pioneers, it’s actually the tiny shops with under 10 employees that are most actively using the technology. And they’re taking a community-first approach – 70% of AI-powered nonprofits use community feedback to build their tools and policies. That’s smart. They’re not just slapping AI on top of existing processes; they’re building it from the ground up with the people they serve in mind. It’s a bottoms-up revolution rather than a top-down imposition.
The funder dilemma
As Fast Forward’s Shannon Farley pointed out, “nonprofits can only do what funders allow them to do within their budgets.” That’s the crux of the issue. Tech funders and AI developers haven’t kept pace with nonprofit needs. There’s a massive gap in training, resources, and support systems. Organizations serving BIPOC communities and people with disabilities are especially cautious, worried that AI might worsen the very problems they’re trying to solve. So while AI might theoretically help nonprofits do more with less, the practical implementation requires funders to step up and provide the resources for responsible adoption. The technology itself isn’t the barrier – it’s the ecosystem around it that needs to evolve.
