Event: September 26, 2024 · Lansing, Michigan
Nonprofits have important work to do and limited resources to do it. Finding donors, managing relationships, communicating a mission, and keeping daily operations moving all compete for a team’s time and attention.
How can artificial intelligence help?
That was the focus of Tommy Onyx’s presentation at the Synergy Conference on September 26, 2024, at the Lansing Center, hosted by the Michigan Community Service Commission.
Tommy brought the perspective of a creative and technology professional whose company, Loudbaby, has served nonprofit organizations for decades. His session connected that experience with practical applications of AI, helping attendees explore what the technology could mean for their own organizations.
Practical AI for Nonprofits
The presentation started with the fundamentals, then moved into the challenges nonprofit teams face every day.
Topics included using AI to support donor research and outreach, assist with proposals and grant writing, develop website and social media content, and make information more accessible. The emphasis was on finding useful starting points that attendees could bring back to their work.
One idea ran throughout the session:
AI is your co-pilot, not your autopilot.
AI can help people brainstorm, draft, research, and consider new approaches. The people doing the work still provide the judgment, creativity, and understanding of their communities. For organizations built on relationships and trust, that human role remains essential.
Meet Alistair
After exploring those practical applications, Tommy closed the session with something a little less conventional: a fireside chat with AI.
Our guest was Alistair, powered by Gemini and given the voice and personality of a very proper English butler.
Audience members asked questions, which were typed into the AI. Alistair’s spoken responses played through the room’s speakers, turning the demonstration into a shared conversation.
People were engaged and got a kick out of his personality. The playful delivery gave attendees a comfortable way to explore a technology that could otherwise feel abstract or intimidating.
Hearing Alistair respond to their questions brought the possibilities of AI to life and gave the session a memorable finish.
Taking the Ideas Back to Work
Attendees received a link to an online resource page containing a presentation recap and the tools discussed, giving them somewhere to continue exploring after the conference.
For Loudbaby, that was the purpose of the session: help nonprofit teams understand the possibilities, identify practical uses, and feel ready to take a first step.
Alistair supplied the personality. The opportunity was helping people put AI to work in service of their missions.
Interested in exploring practical AI applications for your nonprofit? Let’s talk.
