NTEN survey finds everyday AI use outpacing nonprofit governance
A survey of 917 nonprofit staff and executives finds frequent workplace use alongside uneven budgets, training and risk controls.
By NGO Tech News desk5 min read
GlobalAI governanceResearchLeadership
Editorial illustration of the gap between nonprofit AI use and organisational governance.
NTEN and The Bridgespan Group have released a sector benchmark based on responses from 917 nonprofit staff and executives during summer 2026. The study compares how staff and leaders experience AI adoption, governance and training.
Use is frequent among responding staff
Among 723 respondents to the day-to-day-use question, 45.37% said they used AI daily or more and 29.05% about once a week. Those figures describe survey respondents rather than every nonprofit worker.
Readiness remains uneven
Among 404 executive responses, 57.21% said a specific AI budget was not in place and 36.82% said staff training was absent. Fewer than half reported data-input rules or a named oversight owner.
Read the benchmark with its limits
Question response counts vary and participation was voluntary. The results are useful directional benchmarks, not a representative census of the global nonprofit sector.
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