Quick Tips
Before You Write Another Prompt, Build “Rooms” in the “House”
Most grant writers discover AI through prompting.
They type a careful instruction — "You are an experienced grant writer with 20 years of experience in foundation grants. Write a compelling needs statement for a literacy program targeting elementary school students in low-income communities." They get something back. It's pretty good. They edit it. They move on. They call this an AI workflow.
It isn't. Or rather, it's the beginning of one, but if you stop there, you’ll remain frustrated with AI being over hyped.
The barrier to consistent, high-quality AI output in grant writing isn't prompting skill. It's context and folder usage. Once you employ these approaches, your experience of AI will change rapidly.
AI in 2026 Federal Grants
As AI becomes an unspoken signal of “innovation,” the real question for 2026 is not whether AI will appear in federal grants, but who gains power, who bears risk, and whose voice is included when technology enters work meant to serve the public.
Seven Reasons Why AI Won’t Replace Grant Writers
I believe that grant writing is more than a deliverable. While AI may support parts of the process, it will never understand the call to serve, to advocate, and to lead through language.
Federal grants are not won by shortcuts or chance. They are won through clarity, alignment, storytelling, and trust. These are all things that begin and end with people. So if you’re wondering whether the rise of AI means the fall of professional grant writers, rest easy.
As long as grants are written for humans, by humans, the craft will remain in human hands.
F#ck AI and the Horse It Rode In On: 5 Ways AI Is Destructive to Grant Work
Guest blog by Melody Hernandez
We ultimately don't agree with the conclusion of this post, but we do agree that AI is being misused and that the misuse often hurts all of us. This blog includes many cautionary tales about AI being used as if it can think and make decisions independently.
AI Tools That Are Changing the Game for Grant Writers
AI, when used well, can actually expand your power as a grant writer and equip you with tools that give you a head start, offer clarity, and free up your brain for the strategic decisions only you can make. In this Quick Tips post, I introduce you to three CustomGPTs—field-tested assistants I’ve built for the reality of small, capacity-strapped nonprofits who are doing this work without a full grant team.