Accelerate your democratic impact

The squeeze—and a reason to act. Freedom House and V-Dem document a sustained global democratic decline. The sudden contraction of democracy assistance has intensified that pressure: as the When Aid Fades report details, civic organizations are reducing staff, suspending programs, or closing altogether. Credible voices are being shut out of consequential debates. The pressure is real, but it also makes new ways of working urgent.

An unequal information environment. Authoritarian uses of AI are not confined to authoritarian states: any actor can use these tools to confuse, manipulate, or manufacture the appearance of public support. Freedom House has documented the growing use of paid commenters, automated accounts, false outlets, and AI-generated content to warp public discourse, while investigations of covert influence operations show how generative AI can support false personas and multilingual messaging. AI did not create manipulation, but it increases its speed, volume, and adaptability. Democratic actors cannot afford to cede that terrain.

A strategic opening. Civil society should adopt AI now—not because every organization needs more technology, but because it can help smaller teams work around new constraints, amplify credible voices, reach more people, and explain this moment in language that resonates with their lives. AI cannot replace trusted relationships, local knowledge, courage, or judgment. AI can help people with those qualities travel farther.

The adoption gap. Civil society’s caution is grounded in real concerns. Research on civil society AI adoption points to limited skills and resources, uncertainty about useful applications, privacy and security concerns, ethical questions, and a lack of organizational policy. The barrier is not simply willingness. Organizations need practical guidance that helps them move from isolated experimentation to responsible, mission-aligned practice.