We know that AI is already reshaping how charities communicate and operate, but adoption isn’t consistent across the sector.
According to the 2024 Charity Digital Skills Report, just 44% of small charities are using or planning to use AI, compared to 64% of larger charities. For many small charities, limited funding, time and capacity are holding them back.
What does it take to close that gap?
With support from the Centre for Public Impact and the Google AI Opportunity Fund: Europe and in partnership with NCVO, Media Trust delivered AI Essentials Bootcamps to 125 charities in 2025.
Through a blend of expert-led workshops, self-paced learning and peer collaboration, the programme gave charities the space, skills and confidence to start using AI in ways that actually work for them.
Something that literally took me 15 minutes was pulling all of those links into AI and saying: here’s our mission, which ones do we prioritise?
Bristol Autism Support
Charities aren’t adopting AI because it’s new, they’re using it to stretch limited resources further.
Across the programme, teams used AI to save time on admin, strengthen decision-making, and speed up tasks like drafting reports, analysing feedback and preparing funding bids. In many cases, work that once took hours is now done in minutes.
AI has sped up how quickly we can get a first draft framework together, enabling me to concentrate on the sign-off… rather than spending large amounts of time drafting responses from scratch.
Disability Positive
Just as importantly, organisations were clear about AI’s role. It’s not about replacing people, it’s about supporting them.
AI helps me break down complicated information… into clear, plain language summaries so we can… make confident decisions.
NCVA
Many described AI as helping them get “90% of the way there”, freeing up time for the final 10%, where human judgement, experience and relationships matter most.
The charities seeing the most value are those using AI with clear intent, as a practical tool within strong ethical frameworks, not a quick fix.
We’ve given it all the data and asked it to think of ways we could improve the efficiency of the project and what other things we could add into it.
The Purfleet Trust
Used well, AI is helping charities build capacity, work more strategically, and focus more time on the people and communities they support.
Our AI in Action case study report in partnership with NCVO brings these insights to life. It shares real experiences from charities who took part in the Bootcamps, highlighting how they’re using AI day-to-day, the challenges they’ve faced, and the impact it’s having across their work.
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