This is taken from my recent webinar during CMA’s Ministry Fundraising Week. It looks through a Christian lens at my article published in F&P Magazine “AI can’t do donor relationships… can it?”. (You can find the original article linked at the bottom of this blog.)

AI is rapidly changing the way we live and work. It’s everywhere. From emails that write themselves to chatbots that sound human. But can AI build relationships with your donors?

For years, the answer seemed obvious. Many fundraisers (including me!) have long said that the one thing AI can’t do is the “R” word: relationships. After all, relationships are about trust, empathy, and care – things which are uniquely and entirely human. Still, new “AI companions” are now challenging this belief.

AI companions were designed as a means of emotional support for people who are lonely and cut off from others. They can mimic intimacy, learn personal preferences, and even simulate empathy.

So the question is no longer, “Can AI simulate a relationship?”,  because it already does. The real question is, “What are the ethics of using AI to build relationships.  Or maybe even more simply…

As a Christian fundraiser, should you really outsource love to a bot?

It’s not just a practical question, but a theological one too. Because are we truly imitating Jesus when our connection with others is not something we personally experience?

If a bot prays with someone, does that make it less “effective” than when another human does? Can you even call it authentic prayer?

And are we replacing God with technology – making an idol that offers instant comfort without the discipline of waiting on Him?

Loving Your Neighbour in a Digital Age

As Christians, we are called to “love your neighbour as yourself” (Mark 12:31). Charity and fundraising are practical outworkings of that love, built on authentic human connection. But technology has a long history of reshaping how Christians live out that call.

The printing press, radio, television, the internet, streaming platforms and global social media networks – all have changed how the Church connects with people. And now AI is the latest tool for us to discern and test.

Used thoughtfully, it’s possible for AI to extend the reach of Christian organisations when resources and people are stretched thin. Imagine…

AI donor care

Consider this. Say you have an incredible major gifts officer named Joan Smith. She develops strong relationships with donors and thoughtfully cultivates them to a point where she knows their motivations for giving and what they’re most interested in donating to. She regularly brings in significant money to your organisation.

But no matter how good she is, she can only manage a caseload of 150 major givers… yet you have more prospects in your database.

What if you could train an AI companion using Joan’s voice and her processes to manage more of these donors? To cultivate them using the questions she asks and the answers she would give? Or even use JoanSmithAI as a way of screening which donors are worth prioritising for a follow up from Joan Smith the human.

Given how time poor we all are, would it be so bad if Joan Smith were to outsource some of her simpler tasks to an AI companion? And if she did, should she disclose it?

Virtual ambassadors

Or what about AI companion versions of celebrities aligned with your cause?

Celebrities are busy people and if you’re fortunate enough to partner with one, chances are you’ll be hard-pressed to get much of their time in person. Think of Taylor Swift who has donated large sums to foodbanks in many cities she visited as part of her Eras Tour. What if donors could have a conversation with TaylorSwiftAI about what motivates her to give and what she loves about the city she’s visiting?

Or say your charity has a beloved and charismatic founder. With enough transcripts, interviews or documents in his or her voice for a chatbot to learn from, you could conceivably create an AI companion version. Imagine a donor talking to FredHollowsAI as he explains the intricacies of eye surgery or reports back on what their generosity has made possible!

Cultural personalisation

With AI Companions, you have the chance of making your communications more relevant even more relevant. Perhaps you’re trying to reach Chinese donors or the Chinese churches? Then maybe LucyWongAI could help you.

Yes, it may be argued that you should employ someone who speaks Chinese to do this work for you, but the reality is, most charities aren’t doing this. So you’re not taking someone’s job, you’re filling a gap that rarely ever gets filled anyway. (And the same can be said for JoanSmithAI, too. Most charities never employ the second or third major gifts officer they need).

Another way you could apply this is to train AI bots to speak for you using Christian language. It’s very hard to personalise a message to donors in an email or letter when you know some of them may not be Christians. Or you’re worried about losing government funding. But you could conceivably train an AI bot to speak tailored to the nuances of your donor’s preferences and even denomination! Or even audience – pastors and ministers vs. regular donors.

Deeper storytelling

Often people don’t understand the factors leading to the experience of mental illness, family violence and even homelessness. This can end in victim blaming and (sometimes) an unwillingness to give. But an AI companion who has “experienced” one of these vulnerabilities could be trained to have direct conversations, teach empathy, and deal with common objections. Such as, “Why didn’t you just leave your abusive partner?”

This offers an enhanced storytelling (and learning!) experience in real time for your donors.

Now let’s talk about children, especially child sponsorship. If the right precautions were taken to protect identity and locations, donors could build a deeper relationship with an actual sponsored child as an AI companion. Donors could share and compare their own experiences, allowing them to forge closer connections. And SponsoredChildAI could explain interactively that when they learn handwashing at school, they teach it to their families at home. Or that when their parents learn how to grow drought-tolerant crops at home, it means they have a livelihood to support the child themselves.

These scenarios are all “what-ifs”, but they are by no means absurd or far off.  We are barrelling headlong into a world where it’s not only accepted, but expected, that AI is used to improve efficiency in every sphere of your life.

A Christian Framework for AI?

While AI in these contexts may feel foreign or off-putting to your older donors, younger generations are growing up with AI. So what should generosity in digital discipleship look like in this context? And what will donor care with AI look like in future?

As Christian fundraisers, we ought to approach AI wisely. With an ethical framework that is grounded firmly in our faith:

• We value human creativity and thinking over AI creativity and thinking because we recognise the value in human imperfection, individuality, slowness and being ie. God’s unique design of each of us.
•  God has called us to human relationships that are more authentic, powerful and preferable to AI relationships. But there may be times when AI could be used as a substitute due to lack of human resources to fulfill relational/ community needs.
• We don’t want to move fast and break things, we want to move thoughtfully with care for God’s creation, both people and planet.

The question isn’t whether AI can love our neighbours. It can’t. But you can choose whether to use AI as a tool to help you love more people, more thoughtfully, and more inclusively.

If you keep Christ at the centre, perhaps it’s possible to navigate the risks of AI while exploring its redemptive possibilities.

Original article published in F&P Magazine “AI can’t do donor relationships… can it?”