As the CEO of chillibeanmedia Pty Ltd. and someone who has spent years immersed in the intersection of fundraising and technology, this is a question I’ve been grappling with. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is already disrupting industries, and fundraising is no exception. But, will it change fundraising in 2025?
My answer?
YES—but kinda…only.
Let me walk you through my thoughts on this, balancing optimism with pragmatism.
What is AI?
AI, to me, is like that ‘genius kid’ in the classroom who absorbs everything and keeps only getting smarter. It’s essentially machines mimicking human intelligence: they learn, adapt, and improve over time. AI’s building blocks are algorithms, machine learning models, and massive amounts of data. Technologies like natural language processing (NLP), predictive analytics, and generative AI are taking things to the next level, thanks to leaders like OpenAI and Google DeepMind.
But here’s the thing: while AI sounds like magic, it’s only as good as the data and goals we feed into it.
For fundraisers, that’s both an opportunity and a challenge.
How AI is currently used in fundraising
AI and fundraising are not new friends.
AI has been making waves in fundraising for years now. Here are some examples of how AI is already integrating with fundraising practices today:
- Donor data analysis: AI digs into historical donor behaviour, predicting who’s likely to give and how much.
- Personalised engagement: tools like chatbots create tailored experiences for donors.
- Automation: routine tasks—email segmentation, social media scheduling—get automated.
- Campaign optimisation: AI analyses campaign performance in real time and suggests improvements.
These are all impressive, but are they game-changers?
Let’s find out.
Why AI will/can change fundraising in 2025
- Enhanced personalisation
AI can craft hyper-personalised donor journeys. Imagine knowing exactly what message will resonate with each donor and delivering it at the perfect moment. That’s not just good—it’s powerful.
Imagine all the time AI can save…
Imagine your fundraising campaign being on ‘autopilot’ and achieving great results from highly personalised campaigns…[this potential gets my inner nerd so excited!]
The impact potential score I give ‘enhanced personalisation’ is: 9.5/10 – because it really does make a massive difference to all fundraising campaigns.
Yet, the adaptation score I’d give this for 2025 is a terrible 3/10 because while the tools exist, nonprofits around the world are playing a terrible version of ‘catch up’ and are making silly decisions to not adapt/integrate. They should make better decisions. - Scalability
Small teams can achieve massive reach with AI. Whether it’s segmenting donor lists or running multi-channel campaigns, AI can help scale nonprofits like nothing else really can.
The impact potential score I’d give ‘scalability’ is: 8/10. There is so much that can already be done with what is available in today’s market.
But, the adaptation score I’d give is a modest 4.5/10. Why? Some organisations, especially smaller ones, will struggle to afford these tools as they can be expensive and nonprofits aren’t really able to be aggressive in the ways they invest. - Cost-effectiveness
This is an area nonprofits can really feel the ‘blessing’ that AI can have on an organisation. Imagine assigning or automating all your labour-intensive tasks…this means more funds could be reallocated, or even go directly to a cause. It’s a no-brainer.
In my mind, how AI can help lower the cost of running organisations, means that the impact potential score of ‘cost-effectiveness’ is: 10/10. But here’s the catch: the
adaptation score is just a 2.5/10. Sadly, due to high upfront cost of AI can be a real barrier, but also is the lack of vision and leadership of CEOs and nonprofit Boards in this area. - Real-time decision making
Need to know something? AI gives you the answer instantly. Now, imagine having access to instant insights about the performance of your fundraising campaign. Wow, right! Get this – if a campaign isn’t working, AI can tell you what to tweak—and how to tweak it in a moment.
This is why I give AI the impact potential score of: 10/10 when it comes to ‘real-time decisions making’.
Yet sadly, I can only give nonprofits a terrible adaptation score of 2/10, because real-time applications demand reliable data, which most nonprofits just don’t have, plus it requires access to a number of tech platforms and an integrated tech network which most nonprofits today don’t have, and don’t even dream about having. - Donor retention and re-engagement
AI shines at winning back lapsed donors. By understanding their past behaviours, AI creates campaigns that feel personal and compelling.
My Impact Potential Score: 9/10.
The Adaptation Score I’d give it is 4.5/10, as it requires high-quality donor data, and not every organisation is there yet.
If AI does not fundamentally change fundraising in 2025, it’ll be because tech platforms and the nonprofit sector and charities all around the world, fail to make adjustments, improvements and, or adapt in the following areas:
- Access and equity
Many nonprofits won’t be able to afford cutting-edge AI tools. Nonprofits with small budgets will certainly get behind. This is an area tech players need to improve…and in the good news, chillibeanmedia is at the forefront of leading in this space.
The score I give this challenge is a 7.5/10. This is an area that can really be improved, and quickly for bigger impact to be generated globally. - Ethical concerns
Because AI has an innate need to be fed [and continually fed] real, current data, the dependency on data has generated a ton of discussion around privacy. As just about everyone understands the risks associated with data leaks, etc, this is not an area that tech giants can get wrong. Yet, I see the benefits of AI outweighing the negatives, and this is a negative that I see being eroded quickly from now on.
The challenge score I give ‘ethical concerns’ is 4/10. - Human connection
Because fundraising depends so heavily on what I call the ‘marriage between passion and missions’ – fundraising success really depends on a deeply personal connection between the mission of an organisation/cause and the passion a donor has to help solve an issue/help. AI has made massive leaps and bounds in the last 12 months – and as AI gets better and better, smarter and smarter, I think the day is quickly coming [it’s scary just how quickly this is happening, actually!] where we won’t feel the gap between ‘human connection’ and AI.
The challenge score I give ‘human connection’ is 3/10 because I just think that we are all not going to be able to tell what is AI and what is human – very shortly. - Dependence on Data
I alluded to AI’s need for data in point 2 [ethical concerns] earlier. We cannot under-evaluate the importance of data and ‘good data’ on AI.
Some say ‘rubbish in – rubbish out’.
To most nonprofits, I say: ‘no data in, definitely silence out’.
And because data practices are often such an ‘after-thought’ for so many nonprofits around the world, the biggest challenge I see for why AI cannot change fundraising in 2025 is…
DATA AND THE LACK OF DATA NONPROFITS HAVE/KEEP/ANALYSE.
This is the biggest hurdle we need to overcome in 2025.
And because this is such a massive hurdle to overcome, I am giving a challenge score of 9.8/10 for ‘dependence of data’. This, however, is an area that is very easy to improve on, and as an optimist, I am believing that nonprofit organisations and good causes everywhere will make massive inroads in the data space in 2025. - Resistance to change
This is the second biggest challenge to overcome in 2025.
Change is hard. Even when the benefits are clear, getting buy-in can be a slog.
Make no mistake about it – this is a leadership issue. This is a ‘failure to lead’ issue – and sadly, one that I see so darn often in nonprofit organisations.
Leaders don’t know what is possible.
Boards don’t know what is possible.
…and whilst that’s the case, Leaders and Boards continue to have opinions that don’t tolerate change and or high-risk appetites.
Because Leaders and Boards are leading from fear – the resistance to change is MASSIVE and so is my challenge score. I am giving this a 9.5/10.
I live with the optimism that a new wave of Leader/Board Director is coming and that the nonprofit sector and therefore, so many nonprofits around the world will/are about to begin benefitting from the value and impact AI can bring to fundraising…and may that be from 2025 and beyond…for the greater good of humanity and for more people that need desperate help to be helped.
So, my conclusion is this: AI IS going to shake up fundraising in 2025, but it won’t be a revolution, sadly. It’ll be an evolution, not a revolution.
Maybe 2026 will be the year.