OpenAI’s People-First AI Fund: Supporting U.S. Nonprofits with AI

At OpenAI, it is in our bones to ensure that our benefits are widely deployed and that we are iterative in our approach to innovation. We are of the opinion that AI ought to assist in solving the most difficult challenges that humanity faces, and we ought to hear and learn with organizations that are already leading in that area and work on the front line.

We declared a pledge of 50 million dollars in July 2025 to fund nonprofits and mission-driven organizations operating at the intersection of innovation and the common good. This effort is based on the feedback of ordinary citizens, community leaders, and professionals engaged in making our communities stronger-collected during the Nonprofit Commission listening sessions with 100+ organizations and 500+ individuals representing over 7 million Americans the nationwide OpenAI Nonprofit Jam and continued collaboration and consultation with groups on the ground such as the American Federation of Teachers and Older Adults Technology Services at AARP.

We are happy to announce today that the first wave of grants applications is open. Grants will be open-ended as this will show our desire to embrace the expertise of nonprofit and community-based organizations. The application period will end at 11:00 p.m. PT on October 8, 2025 and grants will be disbursed at the end of the year. The applicants do not have to use AI tools at present to qualify.

The portal to the grants is available to interested organizations here (opens in a new window). Instructions, including eligibility criteria, are provided below in detail.

What we’re funding

We accept applications of organizations at all levels of AI implementation, exploration to pilots and active deployment. We understand that the most effective opportunities can be new events, strategies that have not been broadly tested, or even those which appear in the most unlikely locations.

The People-First AI Fund will support organizations directly working in three areas:

AI literacy & civic awareness:

We would like to fund organizations that assist communities to develop the knowledge, skills, and confidence to manage the era of artificial intelligence. This involves education work, media campaigns and the ability of people to interact and learn more about the technology. Of special interest to us are those efforts that prepare people with practical skills. This can include educating trusted local leaders, e.g. educators, faith leaders, youth mentors or artists, to make AI discussions more accessible and relevant.

Community innovation:

We are interested in funding groups that collaborate with communities in shaping how AI could be molded and applied in their lives. We are focused on supporting initiatives in which communities are at the forefront of participatory design and decision-making to make sure AI reinforces civic life and assists people to remain healthy, connected, and prosperous. It covers efforts that apply AI to increase access to and enhance delivery of vital services, and community co-designed efforts in domains like health, mental well-being, and community trust. Organizations operating in place-based contexts (e.g. schools, libraries, clinics, or community centers); those that actively engage residents (including youth) in the design of programs; and those that serve a population historically marginalized by digital innovation, like older adults, rural communities, or language-isolated communities, will be given priority consideration.

Economic opportunity:

We aim to help organizations increase access to meaningful work in ways that are equitable, inclusive, and community-based by taking advantage of the potential of AI. This may involve initiatives to equip individuals (and youths in particular) with the skills of the future; resources to assist caregivers and local enterprises; and efforts to enable workers to establish economic security. We also have interest in shared value models, including cooperatives or community-based platforms, which honor the local culture and place worker needs at the center. In all our activities, we will put a strong emphasis on strategies that complement instead of displace human labor and make sure that the fruits of AI are widely shared, not limited to the few.

This Fund is a tentative move toward a bigger vision: to make the Intelligence Age one in which the communities are listened to, learned, and built with, not against. We are excited to collaborate with our grant partners and to learn about the strategies they are undertaking.

Eligibility criteria

The People-First AI Fund specifically supports nonprofits in the United States that qualify under the 501(c)(3) status.Organizations can apply only once to be eligible to the Fund. Specifications are:

Organizations should be a U.S.-based public charity that has an active 501(c)(3) status, and that meets the 501(c)(3) requirements.Organization should be based in, and mainly be working in, the 50 states in the U.S. or the District of Columbia.

The main companies we will be looking at are those whose annual operating budget is more than $500,000. An annual operating budget of the organizations should not exceed 10 million.
There is no prior AI experience requirement and organizations at all levels of AI adoption (exploration to pilots and active deployment) are welcome to apply.

We shall not take into consideration organizations that will regrant these funds.We shall not take into consideration fiscally sponsored projects.September 10, 2025 update: We have gotten several questions about eligibility. In order to explain this, we will not yet accept applications of programs, centers or departments located within larger institutions, even though they may have separate operating budgets of less than 10 million dollars.

Also, any suggested work should be U.S.-oriented. We understand that not all organizations that perform valuable work are within these requirements and we look forward to the prospects of making them part of it in the future.

How to apply

You can create a profile and access the grant application in the grantee application portal here(opens in a new window). Organizations can only make a single submission, although you can name several people as co-workers on your proposal.

Note: Only completed applications that are submitted through the application portal will be taken into consideration. You can contact peoplefirstfund with questions about the application process at peoplefirstfund@openai.com. Please remember that we cannot provide individual discussion of proposals.For readers interested in understanding how AI works and the different types of AI these organizations might use, explore What Are the 4 Types of AI?

Frequently Asked Questions

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