Supporting nonprofit and community innovation

August 28, 2025

Supporting nonprofit and community innovation

$50M People-First AI Fund opens for applications Sept 8–Oct 8, 2025.

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At OpenAI, we believe AI should help solve humanity’s hardest problems—in partnership with the organizations already leading that work on the frontlines.

Last month, we announced a $50 million commitment to support frontline and mission-focused organizations working at the intersection of innovation and public good. This fund reflects the spirit of OpenAI’s humanity-facing mission as well as the input of the independent OpenAI Nonprofit Commission, which engaged more than 500 nonprofit and community leaders representing over 7 million Americans in a months-long listening process.

Today, we are excited to announce that applications for the first wave of grants will open on September 8, 2025 . Nonprofit and community-based organizations will have the opportunity to apply for support to help scale their impact and foster innovation. The application window will close October 8, 2025 and grants will be distributed by year’s end.

What we’re funding

Through this fund, we aim to make timely, impactful investments in the systems, networks, and services that help people and communities stay healthy and thrive. Grants will be unrestricted, reflecting our vision to support the expertise of nonprofit and community-based organizations. We are particularly interested in efforts that use artificial intelligence in creative ways to expand access, improve programmatic and service delivery, build resilience, and advance work in areas like education, economic opportunity, healthcare, and community-led research. That said, we know some of the most promising ideas may be untested or come from unexpected places and we expect to support both established and emerging organizations, including those without prior experience with AI.

The People-First AI Fund is intended for U.S.-based nonprofits with 501(c)(3) status. More detailed eligibility information will be available when the application opens.

First step in our larger vision

This fund is an early step in a larger vision: to ensure the Intelligence Age is shaped by listening, learning, and building with—not for—communities. We believe many of the answers to how AI can best serve humanity lie within communities themselves. We look forward to learning alongside our grant partners and sharing what emerges from their work.

This is the next step in a continuing journey—we’re just getting started.