Nonprofit Management Blog
The Grant Work AI Leaves on Your Desk
AI can make grant writing easier, but it doesn’t replace the expertise of a qualified grant professional.
LLMs and other AI-powered tools can help you write a convincing proposal for a grant your organization shouldn’t pursue. It can also produce a polished draft for an excellent opportunity while leaving important work unresolved: developing the strongest funding case, determining what the request should cover, and preparing your team to deliver what’s proposed.
Funders Say They Can Tell When You Use AI
“When it comes to AI, we can tell who’s using it and who’s not.” That comment came from a funder during a roundtable discussion I recently attended. Other speakers raised concerns about AI removing important information from narratives or producing responses that didn’t adequately tell an organization’s story. Nobody called for a blanket prohibition on using it, but the overall sentiment about applicants’ use of these tools was fairly skeptical.
If you’re a nonprofit leader exploring how AI can support your grant writing, that’s worth knowing.