You're Invited to Fund.AI
As AI continues to evolve at a rapid pace, so too must philanthropy. The second annual Fund.AI convening is a two-day, in-person gathering hosted by the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation and Fast Forward. This event is designed to help philanthropic leaders navigate and shape the future of AI for good.
Event Details
Join us to connect with peers, share insights, and shape the future of AI in philanthropy. We hope to see you there!
Where: Terra Gallery, 511 Harrison St, San Francisco, CA 94105
When:
- Tuesday, October 7 from 8:00am-4:30pm, directly followed by a reception until 6:30pm
- Wednesday, October 8 from 8:00am-5:00pm
Who: Senior leaders and decision makers in philanthropy who shape grantmaking strategy
Need Accommodations? Our hotel block at The Clancy still has rooms available at a competitive rate. To check availability and book, please email Junelle Hall at junelle.hall@marriott.com and mention you're with Fund.AI!
Questions? Reach out to the PJMF team at community@mcgovern.org.
What to Expect
Whether you joined us in New York last fall or are new to this conversation, this year’s convening will offer:
- A deeper dive into what’s changed in the fast-moving AI landscape — and how those shifts should inform funding strategies.
- Collaborative workshops designed to surface shared infrastructure needs, opportunities for joint investment, and actionable ways to accelerate impact.
- Candid dialogue with technologists, nonprofit leaders, and AI companies about how philanthropy can help unlock the potential of cutting-edge models for the communities that need them most.
And, lots of time for networking & connection!
"Funders and nonprofits are in the same boat, trying to navigate this AI moment in a responsible and ethical way. Fund.AI gave me practical, well-vetted tools that I continue to reference each time I receive an AI-related grant proposal. I’m excited to come back for year two!”
Agenda
Tuesday, October 7th
8:00 – 9:00 AM: Coffee & Connections: Registration and Breakfast
Fuel up and meet peers before diving into the program.
9:00 – 9:10 AM: Welcome: Why We’re Here
Setting the stage for two days of connection and learning.
With: Vilas Dhar, President & Trustee, Patrick J. McGovern Foundation
9:10 – 9:45 AM: AI for Humanity: The Big Picture
A candid conversation on how AI is reshaping society, and what philanthropy can do to steer its impact.
With: Vilas Dhar, President & Trustee, Patrick J. McGovern Foundation and Baratunde Thurston, Writer, Host, Comedian, Life With Machines
9:45 – 10:00 AM: AI Year in Review: What’s Changed, and What’s Next for Philanthropy
A look at how the AI landscape continues to shift—new capabilities, breakthroughs, and challenges—and what it all means for philanthropy.
With: Nick Cain, Vice President of Strategy & Innovation, Patrick J. McGovern Foundation
10:00 – 10:45 AM: Responsible AI in Action: From Principles to Practice
A hands-on session equipping funders with practical ways to support nonprofits in building and using AI responsibly.
With: Kevin Barenblat, Co-Founder & President, Fast Forward; Divya Siddarth, Executive Director, Collective Intelligence Project; Jacqui Watts, Learning & Insights Lead, Patrick J. McGovern Foundation
10:45 – 11:15 AM: Coffee & Connections: Snack Break
Stretch your legs and meet fellow funders
11:15 – 12:00 PM: Curiosity to Commitment: How Funders Are Embracing AI Grantmaking
Philanthropic leaders share real examples of how they’re approaching AI: what’s worked, what’s been hard, and how it’s reshaping their grantmaking strategies.
With: Pauline Fong, Chief Program and Impact Officer, Murdock Charitable Trust; Marie Groark, Managing Director, Schultz Family Foundation; Anu Malipatil, Executive Director, Overdeck Family Foundation, and Antoinette Marie, Director, Strategic Capital, Patrick J. McGovern Foundation
12:00 – 12:30 PM: Curiosity to Commitment: Mapping the Room
Interactive session where funders share where they are on the AI learning curve, surface common challenges, and identify opportunities to collaborate and support one another.
With: Shannon Farley, Co-Founder & Executive Director, Fast Forward
12:30 – 2:00 PM: Lunch: Networking & Connection
For those interested, find the Quiet Questions table, where you can ask all your pressing questions in a safe space.
With: Kevin Barenblat, Co-Founder & President, Fast Forward
2:00 – 3:00 PM: Insights to Action: Skill-Building Tracks
Trade insights and explore practical approaches to proposal review, grantee technical support, and internal AI adoption.
3:00 – 3:30 PM: Coffee & Connections: Snack Break
Stretch your legs and meet fellow funders
3:30 – 3:45 PM: Lightning Learn: AI-Powered Nonprofit Case Studies
Lightning demos from three AI-powered nonprofits showcasing real-world examples of impact
With: Kevin Barenblat, Co-Founder & President, Fast Forward, Alysia Garmulewicz, Co-Founder, Materiom; Liz Corbin, Co-Founder, Materiom; Dana Gunders, President, ReFED, and Kasumi Quinlan, Executive Director, Lemontree
3:45 – 4:30 PM: AI + Ops: Doing More With Less
Learn how funders can back operational AI that strengthens grantees’ systems, cuts inefficiencies, and fuels long-term sustainability.
With: Gozi Egbuonu, Director of Programs, Technology Association of Grantmakers; Chantal Forster, Independent Philanthropy Advisor, and Naomi Morenzoni, SVP, Climate & Innovation Philanthropy, Salesforce.org
4:30 - 6:30 PM: Shared Futures Happy Hour
Relax with colleagues, and explore what it means to be human in an age of intelligent machines.
With: Evo Heyning, Executive Producer & CEO, Realitycraft
Wednesday, October 8th
8:00 – 9:00 AM: Coffee & Connections: Registration and Breakfast
Fuel up and meet peers before diving into the program.
9:00 – 9:10 AM: Reflections and Directions: Looking Ahead
Reconnect as a group, recap key takeaways, and set the tone for Day Two.
With: Nick Cain, Vice President of Strategy & Innovation, Patrick J. McGovern Foundation and Shannon Farley, Co-Founder & Executive Director, Fast Forward
9:10 – 10:10 AM: Building Together: Platform Partnerships for Impact
Hear from OpenAI, Google, and Anthropic about how collaboration between tech platforms and philanthropy can maximize impact
With: Josh Achiam, Head of Mission Alignment, OpenAI; Shad Ahmed, Economic Mobility Lead, Anthropic; Alexander Diaz, Head of AI for Social Good, Google.org and Brigitte Hoyer Gosselink, Director, AI & Social Impact, Google; Aras Jizan, Principal, AI, NextLadder Ventures
10:10 – 11:00 AM: Impact Tracks: Climate, Workforce, and Health & Science
Continue the conversation from the platform firesides in small-group tracks across climate, workforce, and health & science.
With: Josh Achiam, Head of Mission Alignment, OpenAI; Shad Ahmed, Economic Mobility Lead, Anthropic; Nick Cain, Vice President of Strategy & Innovation, Patrick J. McGovern Foundation; Alexander Diaz, Head of AI for Social Good, Google.org; Adam Goldfarb, Executive Director & Co-Founder, Opportunity AI; Brigitte Hoyer Gosselink, Director, AI & Social Impact, Google; Aras Jizan, Principal, AI, NextLadder Ventures; Nisha Kadaba, Director, Global Impact, PagerDuty.org and Matt Zieger, Chief Programs & Partnerships Officer, GitLab Foundation
11:00 – 11:30 AM: Coffee & Connections: Snack Break
Stretch your legs and meet fellow funders.
11:30 AM – 12:00 PM: Future-Proofing the Ecosystem: Philanthropy’s Role in the AI Era
Discussion on risks, opportunities, and recommendations for how philanthropy can help nonprofits adapt and thrive in the age of AI.
With: Charles Duhigg, Writer at The New Yorker, Author at Random House; Shannon Farley, Co-Founder & Executive Director, Fast Forward, and Maggie Johnson, Global Head and VP, Google.org
12:00 – 12:45 PM: Insights to Action: Skill-Building Tracks
Continue trading insights and exploring practical approaches to this work together.
12:45 – 2:15 PM: Lunch: Networking & Connection
Enjoy time for lunch and connection
2:15 – 3:00 PM: A Last Look Forward: Fireside with a Leading Voice
Hear how radical, tech-enabled collaboration between like-minded nonprofits can help funders create leveraged impact.
With: Vilas Dhar, President & Trustee, Patrick J. McGovern Foundation and Stacy Palmer, CEO, Chronicle of Philanthropy
3:00 – 3:25 PM: Training Models, Building Coalitions: Scaling Climate Action Through ML
Hear how radical, tech-enabled collaboration between like-minded nonprofits can help funders create leveraged impact.
With: Former Vice President Al Gore, Co-Founder, Climate TRACE; Nick Cain, Vice President of Strategy & Innovation, Patrick J. McGovern Foundation, and Vilas Dhar, President & Trustee, Patrick J. McGovern Foundation
3:25 – 3:45 PM: Moving Forward Together: Collective Priorities for the Ecosystem
Together we’ll shape the key insights, shared priorities, and concrete actions that will carry Fund.AI forward.
With: Nick Cain, Vice President of Strategy & Innovation, Patrick J. McGovern Foundation and Shannon Farley, Co-Founder & Executive Director, Fast Forward
3:45 – 5:00 PM: Last Call: Closing Cheers
Wrap up Fund.AI with a final round of drinks, casual conversation, and connections before heading out.
Ready to dive into the future of philanthropy and AI?
Confirmed Speakers
- Josh Achiam, Head of Mission Alignment, OpenAI
- Shad Ahmed, Economic Mobility Lead, Anthropic
- Kevin Barenblat, Co-Founder & President, Fast Forward
- Nick Cain, Vice President of Strategy & Innovation, Patrick J. McGovern Foundation
- Alexander Diaz, Head of AI for Social Good, Google.org
- Vilas Dhar, President & Trustee, Patrick J. McGovern Foundation
- Charles Duhigg, Writer at The New Yorker, Author at Random House
- Shannon Farley, Co-Founder & Executive Director, Fast Forward
- Gozi Egbuonu, Director of Programs, Technology Association of Grantmakers
- Pauline Fong, Chief Program and Impact Officer, Murdock Charitable Trust
- Chantal Forster, Independent Philanthropy Advisor
- Alysia Garmulewicz, Co-Founder, Materiom
- Liz Corbin, Co-Founder, Materiom
- Adam Goldfarb, Executive Director & Co-Founder, Opportunity AI
- Marie Groark, Managing Director, Schultz Family Foundation
- Dana Gunders, President, ReFED
- Brigitte Hoyer Gosselink, Director, AI & Social Impact, Google
- Maggie Johnson, Global Head and VP, Google.org
- Nisha Kadaba, Director, Global Impact, PagerDuty.org
- Anu Malipatil, Executive Director, Overdeck Family Foundation
- Antoinette Marie, Director, Strategic Capital, Patrick J. McGovern Foundation
- Naomi Morenzoni, SVP, Climate & Innovation Philanthropy, Salesforce.org
- Stacy Palmer, CEO, Chronicle of Philanthropy
- Kasumi Quinlan, Executive Director, Lemontree
- Divya Siddarth, Executive Director, Collective Intelligence Project
- Jacqui Watts, Learning & Insights Lead, Patrick J. McGovern Foundation
- Matt Zieger, Chief Programs & Partnerships Officer, GitLab Foundation
- Baratunde Thurston, Writer, Host, Comedian, Life With Machines