Fundraising.AI
Episode 36
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OVERVIEW
Today’s Guest, Randima Fernando, is a prominent figure at the crossroads of technology, ethics, and social good. As a Co-Founder and former Executive Director of the Center for Humane Technology (CHT), he played a crucial role in advancing the global conversation on the ethics of technology. CHT’s work, including its pivotal role in the Emmy-winning documentary “The Social Dilemma,” has reached over 100 million viewers across 190 countries, highlighting the need for more humane technology practices.
Randima began his career at NVIDIA, leading award-winning projects and authoring three #1-ranked books on 3D graphics. He also helped establish the NVIDIA Foundation as a founding Board Member. Transitioning to the nonprofit sector, Randima served as the founding Executive Director of Mindful Schools, an organization dedicated to teaching mindfulness to millions of children and educators worldwide. Moreover, born in Sri Lanka, Randima’s early exposure to meditation from his mother and programming from his father laid the foundation for his diverse career.
During today’s conversation, Randima addresses the rapid pace of development, focusing on challenges like accuracy, transparency, and the concentration of power among a few companies. He warns of potential consequences for democracy and the environment without proper regulation. Furthermore, he argues that nonprofits play a vital role in addressing AI’s ethical and social implications, especially in supporting those affected by automation. Finally, Randima provides practical advice for nonprofits to stay informed about AI. He encourages them to assign individuals to track developments, collaborate, and experiment with ways to mitigate AI’s impact on society. Also, he stresses the importance of action, pushing nonprofits to integrate AI thoughtfully into their missions.
EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS
- [00:32] Meet Randima from CHT
- [02:49] Randima's Interest in Technology
- [05:00] Transition to Nonprofit Work
- [08:21] Impact of CHT and Media Influence
- [14:03] Current State and Future of AI
- [18:24] Role of Nonprofits in Addressing AI Challenges
- [25:33] Practical Tips for Nonprofits
TIPS AND TOOLS TO IMPLEMENT TODAY
- Incorporate mindfulness practices to maintain focus and well-being.
- Build or strengthen teams that share a clear, unified mission.
- Assign someone to monitor AI trends relevant to your organization.
- Take an iterative, experimental approach to new tech challenges.
- Learn about the misaligned incentives in social platforms.
- Stay informed about how AI impacts your sector and adjust accordingly.
- Use media like "The Social Dilemma" to educate others.
- Share AI best practices and encourage teamwork.
- Advocate for transparency, regulation, and responsible AI use.
- Don't wait; start addressing AI's societal and ethical effects now.
FAVORITE QUOTES
- "Even with the most popular technologies like ChatGPT or Claude, there are improvements that are going on behind the scenes all the time." - Randima Fernando
- "Distinction between today and tomorrow starts to become much smaller because everything is just unfolding at a pace we have never seen before." - Randima Fernando
- "A small number of companies are aiming to be the core technology that drives everything, from farming technology to Internet technologies, to banking, to intimacy and relationships, all this stuff." - Randima Fernando
- "It turns out AI is really good to listen to a large number of voices and synthesize, to group them, to cluster them, and kind of make sense of it in a way that we couldn't do before." - Randima Fernando
- "People tend to think of these technologies as, oh, we'll have some good stuff and some bad stuff, and we'll figure it out. But I think a better way of thinking about it is to ask, how do we make sure that we roll out these new technologies in a way that doesn't damage the things we depend on?" - Randima Fernando
- "When you have technologies that are changing quickly, the rules adapt very slowly. It's very hard to get the rules to keep up in a way that's productive." - Randima Fernando
- "Automation technology, by definition, produces some really big questions. Automating, by definition, means people are left behind. - Randima Fernando
- "Take an iterative, collaborative, experimental approach to technology. Learn with your team and share best practices." - Randima Fernando
- "A lot of teams don't have a plan or a person helping to keep up with the latest developments in technology. And so if no one's looking at it, you're not going to be able to compete by using these technologies wisely." - Randima Fernando
- "I think, a lot of times, nonprofits are the hands that catch people when they fall through the gaps." - Randima Fernando
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MEET YOUR HOSTS
Nathan Chappell
As a thought leader, public speaker, author and inventor, Nathan is one of the world’s foremost experts on the intersection between Artificial Intelligence and philanthropy. Nathan serves as Senior Vice President of DonorSearch AI, where he leads AI deployments for some of the nation’s largest nonprofit organizations. Nathan’s subject matter expertise has been featured in several publications, including Fast Company, University of Notre Dame and the Association of Healthcare Philanthropy. In 2021, Nathan founded Fundraising.Ai as a member-centric collaboration of nonprofit professionals with a focus on data ethics, data equality, privacy and security, sustainability. Nathan presented the first TEDx on the topic of artificial intelligence and the future of generosity in 2018. Nathan is a member of the Forbes Technology Council and holds a Masters in Nonprofit Administration from University of Notre Dame, an MBA from University of Redlands, a certificate in International Economics from University of Cambridge and a certificate in Artificial Intelligence from MIT.
Scott Rosenkrans
Scott Rosenkrans is the Assistant Vice President of DonorSearch Ai and has been with the organization for three years. He began his journey in the nonprofit sector twelve years ago as a prospect researcher. He quickly became fascinated with data as he noticed the organization that he previously worked for was amassing a wealth of information but was unsure how to efficiently use the data and resources to its full potential. This led him to become interested in predictive modeling and data analytics. During this time, he began to create an immense commitment to delivering tailor-made machine learning models to nonprofits.
The thing that Scott loves most about working for DonorSearch is the ability to prioritize what is best for the client and nonprofit sector above all else. He believes that growth is our most important core value because the DSAi team continuously evolves and brings a unique perspective that provides value to our clients. He stays ahead of industry trends because of his insatiable drive to constantly try out new things.
Favorite nonprofit: Shriner’s Children Hospital because of their extreme commitment to providing exceptional medical care, while also alleviating the financial burdens on families.
