Funding the Gap: Why Capital Funders Can No Longer Afford to Stay Neutral on AI

Algorithmic systems already shape who gets hired, financial access, and care; in the exact sectors philanthropy has spent decades transforming. Yet according to CEP’s 2025 AI With Purpose report, nearly 90% of foundations have staff with limited to no understanding of grantees’ AI-related needs, and fewer than 20% of nonprofits report any meaningful AI conversation with a funder.

Funder neutrality on AI is not neutral, and every foundation avoiding this conversation is compounding the inequities it was built to address.

This session challenges funders to reckon with their role as strategic actors with the resources, relationships, and moral authority to shape whether AI becomes an equalizer or an accelerant of inequity.