The DonorAtlas platform uses AI to make donor research more efficient (learn more about why we started DonorAtlas and our commitment to responsible AI). Beyond our platform, we wanted to share five smart, practical ways we’ve seen fundraisers use AI recently to cut hours off their workload, sharpen their outreach, and raise more money.

These are real things fundraisers are doing right now, often with free tools, to move faster and work smarter:

1. Turn messy donor meeting notes into action items

Paste messy donor meeting notes into tools like Otter.ai or Fireflies.ai, and get a clean summary of the meeting including action items like follow-ups, gift intentions, or other next steps. Both tools also integrate directly with Zoom so you can use them automatically in future virtual meetings!

2. Quickly research donors

Paste a donor’s name into Perplexity.ai and add a prompt like “tell me more about this person’s history as a donor, board member, and wealth indicators.” You’ll quickly see results with sources from across the Internet. Perplexity can be a very helpful starting point for research, but it’s ultimately not designed for fundraising and will often generate limited or false information. Learn about how Perplexity compares to other donor research tools and other ways you can research donors for free.

3. Find patterns in donor behavior

You may be familiar with ChatGPT for drafting emails or appeals—but it can also analyze your donor data. Upload a CSV export from your CRM into ChatGPT ask something like: “What trends do you see in donation timing, frequency, and amounts?” It’s an easy way to spot year-end spikes, recurring gift cycles, or lapsed donor patterns—no spreadsheet formulas required.

4. Translate thank-you notes to reach multilingual donors

Translation models have seen major improvements thanks to recent developments in AI. Try copying a donor acknowledgment into DeepL for fast, high-quality translations—great for Spanish, French, and more.

5. Summarize dense RFPs in plain English

Paste a grant opportunity into a free AI like Claude, ChatGPT, or Gemini and ask: “What is this funder looking for, and are we a fit?” This can save hours scanning PDFs and help you decide where to focus.