AI in corporate philanthropy: An opportunity for nonprofits to lean in

Corporate grantmaking is evolving as new technologies emerge, and nonprofits that understand how to harness AI for good will ultimately create deeper, more meaningful relationships with funders. The 2026 Benevity State of Corporate Purpose Report, which surveyed more than 400 impact leaders, shows funders are already moving in this direction: 40% use AI in their corporate philanthropy across multiple program areas, and 16% say it’s a core driver of their impact strategy.

But there is a gap worth watching. Funders are adopting AI to lighten their own administrative load, while many of the nonprofits they support are carrying that same load largely without the help of AI. Closing that gap is where the real opportunity lies for both nonprofits and funders to maximize AI for good: When used well, AI can create space for even deeper human relationships that are at the center of effective grantmaking.

AI-assisted vs. AI-decided grantmaking

Fewer than a quarter (23%) of corporate funders support using AI to decide grant approvals and denials. That decision still sits with humans. Other AI applications in corporate philanthropy seem to be largely administrative: finding data points to support plans, identifying options for reporting and analysis or drafting copy for campaigns. That distinction matters. AI-assisted grantmaking looks very different from AI-decided grantmaking, where AI determinations are effectively final. Knowing which model a funder uses (and asking directly) is a practical starting point for any organization weighing the risks, the opportunities, and how to move forward.

The risks funders are naming, and why that matters

What’s notable is that corporate funders adopting AI are also openly naming its risks: 77% worry AI will reinforce existing funding biases, 75% fear it will exclude smaller and community-led organizations, and 68% are concerned it will amplify well-resourced organizations at the expense of emerging ones. That’s corporate funders signaling they want to get this right, and that door to dialogue is open. Nonprofits share these concerns: 51% say they’re concerned about corporate donors using AI to score grant proposals, and 64% say they fear AI lacks the human nuance required to understand their impact. When both sides name the same risks, the question shifts from whether to use AI to how to use it well together.

Nonprofits carry a burden AI could lift

Here is an underleveraged opportunity: 87% of CSR professionals believe AI can reduce the administrative burden on nonprofits—and that burden is significant. Nearly half (48%) of nonprofits report absorbing added reporting workload through unpaid overtime, and 49% say donors rarely or never fund those efforts.

Funders are already using AI to streamline the mechanics of grantmaking. There’s an opportunity for nonprofits to do the same on the application side, to manage mechanics, while focusing efforts on the human element. Ultimately, this will reduce the burden on nonprofits so they can prioritize the relationship building that is so important in funding. In the fall 2025 State of Corporate Volunteering report, only 3% of nonprofits were using AI extensively. In a survey of over 1,000 nonprofits, Goodera reports that 71% identified a specific, urgent need: the ability to leverage AI for operational efficiency. This could mean automating routine communications, drafting partner stories, analyzing data to support impact measurement, or surfacing new fundraising opportunities.

When AI reduces friction, relationships improve

Closing this gap between how funders use AI and how nonprofits do can help strengthen the human side of grantmaking. When funders use AI to handle the intake, screening, and summarization, program officers can redirect their attention toward work that requires human judgment, like reviewing for accuracy, understanding community context, weighing nuanced impact, and engaging organizations whose missions are harder to categorize.

When AI is used this way, it makes more space for the human relationships that make grantmaking work. But relationship building takes two. If program officers gain time to connect, nonprofits need to follow suit and create that same time and space for opportunities to build human relationships by leveraging AI for their own administrative work. AI integration in corporate philanthropy is still evolving, and the data shows that funders are aware of the risks and moving cautiously. The more exciting work begins now: showing what becomes possible when AI removes the operational friction between funders and the communities they most want to reach. Nonprofit leaders who understand this landscape and where it’s headed are positioned to engage funders not just as applicants, but as informed partners reshaping what the work can become.

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