Humanity AI Awards $18M to Shape AI for the Public Good

Humanity AI, a collaborative philanthropic fund, announced more than $18 million in new grants. The goal: make sure artificial intelligence serves people, not just the organizations building it.

The first round puts $8 million into nine organizations working across AI governance, worker protection, investigative journalism, and public education. A separate $3 million funds AI Civics, a new program anchored by Data & Society and the Digital Public Library of America. Another $10 million open call is expected this summer.

Who's Behind It

Humanity AI is a pooled fund, meaning multiple foundations contribute to a shared pool and grant collectively. Founding partners include the MacArthur Foundation, Ford Foundation, Mellon Foundation, Mozilla Foundation, Omidyar Network, Kapor Foundation, Lumina Foundation, Doris Duke Foundation, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, and Siegel Family Endowment.

That's a significant coalition. Pooled funds like this are designed to reduce redundancy and move faster than each foundation could grant independently.

What the Research Says

The grants come at a moment of real public concern. A June 2025 Pew Research survey found that half of U.S. adults say AI makes them more concerned than excited. Another 55% say they want more control over how AI is used in their lives.

Those numbers matter for anyone building AI-adjacent products or advocating for responsible tech policy. The public appetite for accountability is there. The infrastructure to deliver it is still catching up.

The Inaugural Grantees

Each organization received $500,000. Here's who's in the portfolio and what they're working on:

• AI Now Institute -- research and policy on AI's impact on labor, climate, and government accountability

• Center for Democracy and Technology -- AI governance advocacy focused on civil rights and civil liberties

• Council on Foreign Relations LEAD AI -- policy analysis and public discussion on consequential AI issues

• Distributed AI Research (DAIR) Institute -- community-driven research to build grassroots power around AI

• Partnership on AI -- multi-sector collaboration across civil society, academia, industry, and philanthropy

• TechEquity -- holding the tech industry accountable for economic harms created by AI growth

The portfolio spans policy, journalism, education, and grassroots organizing. That breadth is intentional. Accountability in AI requires all of these working at the same time.

AI Civics: A New Program Worth Watching

Beyond the organizational grants, Humanity AI is seeding AI Civics with $3 million. The program addresses a specific question: how can communities have a real voice in how AI is created, deployed, and used?

Data & Society leads the effort, with the Digital Public Library of America as anchor partner. Phase one will bring communities together in public libraries across the country. Libraries are an underused civic infrastructure for this kind of work, and the choice of venue signals something about the intended audience.

The $10 Million Open Call

This summer, Humanity AI plans to launch a $10 million open call for organizations working at the intersection of AI and the public interest. Details on focus areas, eligibility, and application timeline will come in the months ahead.

If you're running or advising an organization doing this kind of work, it's worth tracking. Open calls at this funding level are uncommon. Sign up for updates at humanityai.ai.

Why This Matters for the Impact Sector

Most AI funding flows to infrastructure, models, and applications. Very little goes to the organizations holding those systems accountable or ensuring communities have input into how they're built.

Humanity AI is one of the few coordinated philanthropic efforts trying to close that gap. The scale isn't huge relative to what's being spent on AI development, but the coordination across 10 major foundations gives it more reach than the dollar figure alone suggests.

For impact founders and investors tracking AI governance, this is a signal about where institutional philanthropic attention is heading over the next few years.