Artificial intelligence is becoming an increasingly important part of conversations around global health, development, and philanthropy. Now, a new funding opportunity is bringing these areas together and could provide up to $10 million for individual projects focused on preparing global health systems for a world transformed by AI.
Coefficient Giving has launched a Request for Proposals (RFP) focused on global health and wellbeing in an era of transformative AI. The funder expects to allocate $10 million to $30 million in total through the opportunity, with applications being accepted until August 21, 2026.
For NGOs, researchers, policy organizations, and development groups working at the intersection of technology and global health, this could represent an important new funding avenue.
What Is the New AI and Global Health Funding Opportunity?
The funding opportunity comes from Coefficient Giving, a philanthropic organization that supports evidence-backed work in global health and wellbeing.
The new RFP focuses on projects that can help ensure advances in artificial intelligence lead to better health and economic outcomes, particularly for people in low-income countries.
The funder is interested in areas including:
- Global health research
- Policy development
- AI-related preparedness
- Health systems and infrastructure
- Field-building
- Economic impacts of transformative AI
- Implementation in low- and middle-income countries
Coefficient Giving says it is particularly interested in supporting new organizations and direct implementation, alongside research and policy work.
How Much Funding Is Available?
The opportunity has several funding levels.
Exploratory Grants — Under $100,000
These grants can support:
- Research and writing
- Scoping studies
- Early prototypes
- Short policy projects
Standard Grants — $100,000 to $1 Million
These could support larger research programs, new staff, or the creation of small organizations.
Large Grants — $1 Million to $10 Million
Larger awards could support new organizations, institutional capacity-building, substantial policy work, or more complex infrastructure projects.
The funder expects to allocate $10–30 million overall, so this is not simply a single $10 million grant. The amount an organization could receive depends on the scale and nature of its proposed work.
What Kind of Projects Is the Funder Looking For?
One important point for NGOs is that this is not a general “AI for good” grant.
The RFP is focused on the wider implications of transformative AI for global health and wellbeing.
For example, a project could examine how global health funders should change their strategies as AI advances, help emerging economies prepare for AI-related changes in employment, or strengthen clinical trial and regulatory infrastructure in low- and middle-income countries.
This distinction is important.
An NGO shouldn’t simply add an AI component to an existing healthcare project and assume it will qualify.
The proposal needs to explain how the project responds to the broader opportunities or challenges that transformative AI could create for health and wellbeing.
Who Can Apply?
The opportunity is open internationally and is not limited to established NGOs.
The funder is interested in applicants with experience or strong knowledge of low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) and is also open to supporting new organizations.
This creates an opportunity for NGOs, researchers, policy groups, and other organizations with relevant expertise to develop projects around emerging AI and global health challenges.
Why This Matters for NGOs
The funding opportunity reflects a wider change in how philanthropy is thinking about artificial intelligence.
AI could influence healthcare delivery, medical research, employment, economic development, and access to essential services. For NGOs working in these areas, understanding these changes could become increasingly important.
Organizations may need to start asking:
- How could AI affect the communities we serve?
- Could AI create new inequalities?
- What systems need to be prepared before AI advances further?
- What policies could help ensure benefits reach poorer communities?
- What infrastructure will developing countries need?
These questions can help NGOs identify new areas for research, partnerships, and project development.
What NGOs Should Do Before Applying
A strong application should not use AI simply because it is a popular funding theme.
Instead, NGOs should establish a clear connection between:
AI → the global health challenge → the proposed intervention → measurable results.
Organizations should also consider:
Build the Evidence
Use credible research and existing data to demonstrate why the problem matters.
Define Measurable Results
Clearly explain what the project will achieve and how those results will be measured.
Demonstrate Local Understanding
For organizations working in developing countries, knowledge of local systems and communities can be particularly valuable.
Consider Partnerships
NGOs may be able to strengthen their proposal by working with universities, researchers, healthcare organizations, policymakers, or technology experts.
Think Beyond the Funding Period
Explain how the research, infrastructure, policy work, or organizational capacity created through the grant could continue producing value.
AI Funding Is Becoming a Larger Part of Global Development
This opportunity is also part of a broader shift in philanthropy.
Coefficient Giving says its global health portfolio has already made 300+ grants and provided more than $1.3 billion in funding. Its new AI-focused RFP shows that the organization is now exploring how transformative AI could change the priorities and bottlenecks facing global health.
The funder has also said that it wants to understand where future AI progress could create new opportunities—and where it could create new challenges for global health and economic development.
For NGOs, this suggests that AI-related funding may increasingly extend beyond software development and technology projects into health policy, economic development, research, infrastructure, and organizational preparedness.
The Bigger Opportunity for NGOs
The most important takeaway is not simply the possibility of receiving a large grant.
It is the direction in which funding is moving.
Artificial intelligence is increasingly being treated as a factor that could influence almost every area of development. NGOs that understand these changes early may be better positioned to identify new problems, develop relevant projects, and build partnerships with funders.
For organizations working in global health and development, AI knowledge could therefore become an important part of future fundraising and program strategy.
Final Thoughts
The new Coefficient Giving RFP offers a significant opportunity for organizations working on the intersection of AI, global health, economic development, and policy.
With grants ranging from exploratory awards below $100,000 to large grants of up to $10 million, the funding is designed to support projects at very different stages and scales.
But NGOs should remember that this is not simply a grant for using AI in healthcare.
The opportunity is about preparing for and responding to the larger effects of transformative AI on global health and wellbeing.
Organizations that can clearly demonstrate the problem, provide evidence, propose a practical solution, and measure the expected results may be well positioned to take part in this emerging area of global funding.
