Change.org invests $100M to enhance platform with AI

by@axios

Summary

Change.org is investing approximately $100 million to enhance its core petitions platform using AI technologies. This investment follows the organization's 2021 restructuring into a nonprofit, supported by notable backers like Reid Hoffman and Sam Altman. The initiative aims to improve civic engagement by increasing the effectiveness of petitions, which the platform currently hosts over 500,000 of each year, signed by millions. As part of this AI integration, Change.org has introduced a beta AI copilot to assist petition creators while also implementing internal audits to ensure political balance in outreach. However, founder Ben Rattray has noted that petitions relying on AI-generated content tend to be less effective than those created by humans, prompting the platform to prohibit AI agents from auto-signing petitions to maintain trust among users.

Tokens

$AI

Analysis

Change.org: Change.org is an online petition platform that empowers users to launch campaigns and gather signatures to influence decision-makers on civic and social issues. The organization, originally founded as a venture-backed company, restructured in 2021 into a nonprofit-supported model. In this development, it is investing $100 million of its own funds to rebuild its core platform using AI, beginning with a beta AI copilot for petition drafting and endorser identification. Ben Rattray: Ben Rattray is the founder of Change.org who returned as CEO three years ago to lead the organization's strategic direction. He is directing the $100 million AI investment to enhance petition effectiveness and build greater trust in democratic processes. Rattray has emphasized maintaining political balance in AI amplification features and noted limitations of AI-generated content in petitions. AI Integration: Change.org is deploying AI in phases, starting with a copilot tool for creators and expanding to aggregate data for scaled human outreach on qualified local petitions. Platform Policies: The platform prohibits the use of AI agents for auto-signing petitions to preserve trust between citizens and decision-makers. Content Effectiveness: Petitions relying on AI-generated images, text, or supporter videos have shown lower effectiveness compared to those created directly by humans.

Categories

aitechmachine_learningpolitics
View Original Tweet