What's Good in Tech: Headlines That Give Us Hope

[Originally delivered to inboxes on October 30, 2025. Subscribe here to read it first.]

Extra, Extra! Tech Nonprofits in the Spotlight

We usually save the latest press for the bottom of the newsletter (don’t worry, there’s still more below). But this month, the stories are simply too big to save for later. Tech nonprofits and the visionary leaders behind them are making headlines in major ways. Here are a few we’re especially excited about:

• Sal Khan, founder of Khan Academy, was announced as TED’s new Vision Steward. He’s the perfect fit because Khan Academy was built on the same values as TED: a belief in giving ideas away and amplifying human possibility. Sal has always thought outside the box, and we’re excited to see how he continues to lead TED and Khan Academy through an ever-changing technological landscape.
• TIME named WattTime’s Automated Emissions Reduction as one of the Best Inventions of 2025. WattTime went through Fast Forward’s Accelerator in 2015 — now, they’re on track to help prevent three billion tonnes of CO₂ emissions by 2030.
• The Chronicle of Philanthropy covered Fast Forward’s 2025 AI for Humanity Report. In the Chronicle, what our new data reveals about just how quickly AI is transforming the nonprofit field. Plus, what we stand to lose if philanthropy doesn’t meet rising need.
• The New York Times' The Interview podcast featured Jimmy Wales, co-founder of Wikipedia. He talked about trust, transparency, and why Wikipedia’s nonprofit model has helped it stand the test of time. Wales shared how the platform’s open, volunteer-led approach keeps it accountable to the public and rooted in its mission to make knowledge freely accessible to everyone.
• Quill’s two-year R&D journey from traditional AI to generative AI was documented in Project Evident’s newest playbook. After a seven-figure investment into R&D for traditional AI, Quill had to weigh continuing to use their original approach or start from scratch to build with generative AI. The playbook details the risks and challenges faced along the way and can serve as a resource for any nonprofits in the same boat.

A Challenge for Tech and Philanthropy

“Will we choose the hard right over the easy wrong?”

That’s the question former Vice President Al Gore posed to funders, philanthropists, and technologists at Fund.AI, a convening hosted by Fast Forward and the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation. The event brought together 150+ philanthropic and CSR leaders to explore how AI can drive social impact — and, yes, there were some fascinating conversations (did we mention Al Gore was there?). We shared five big ideas from Fund.AI and what they mean for the future of tech for good — read them here.

HPE Accelerates Impact with $1.2M

The Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) Foundation knows how to back a mission. Since 2019, HPE has run HPE Accelerating Impact, an annual campaign where each of their employees gets $25 to donate to tech nonprofits handpicked in partnership with Fast Forward. This year? They crushed it. 52% of HPE’s 60,000+ employees took part, donating nearly $1.2M to power mission-driven organizations. That’s a lot of lives impacted. Want to know where those dollars are going? Check out our blog to learn more about some of the incredible orgs.