The Humanitarian Leadership Academy and Data Friendly Space are pleased to share our initial insights report on our global AI in the humanitarian sector survey conducted May-June 2025.
The insights are gleaned from 2,539 survey responses from practitioners in the humanitarian sector and allied fields from across more than 140 countries and territories.
This global engagement has created what is believed to be the largest dataset of its kind and is expected to inform strategic decision making, policy development, and resource allocation for AI initiatives across humanitarian organisations worldwide. This collaborative project is delivering one of the first comprehensive snapshots of AI adoption across the sector in 2025, combining HLA’s extensive global learning networks with DFS’s technical expertise in humanitarian data.
This initial insights report provides a global snapshot ahead of the full report launch in August 2025.
Register to join us for the full report online launch event on 5 August
🗓️ 5 August 2025
🕛 12.00 – 13.30 UTC | 08.00 – 09.30 EDT | 13.00 – 14.30 BST | 14.00 – 15.30 CEST | 15.00 – 16.30 EAT
📍 Zoom Webinars
This is your opportunity to be among the first to explore findings from the largest global study on AI in the humanitarian sector. You’ll gain insight into how humanitarians are using AI, how organisations are responding to the challenges and opportunities emerging. Take part in a growing global conversation on ethical, practical and locally grounded uses of AI in humanitarian work.
Speakers
- Project co-leads Ka Man Parkinson, Communications and Marketing Specialist and Lucy Hall, Data and Evidence Specialist from the Humanitarian Leadership Academy, and Madigan Johnson, Head of Communications at Data Friendly Space (DFS)
- Expert panellists Dr Cornelia C. Walther, Humanitarian leader and senior fellow, University of Pennsylvania/Wharton School, C. Douglas Smith from Data Friendly Space, and Ali Al Mokdad, senior strategic humanitarian leader (independent).
Related AI learning resources and further reading
- News article – 28 May 2025: The HLA and Data Friendly Space launch landmark survey on AI in the humanitarian sector
- Podcast – 28 May 2025: Shaping humanitarian AI: why every voice counts – Ka Man Parkinson and Lucy Hall from the HLA discuss the research launch and aims together with Madigan Johnson from Data Friendly Space
- News article – 23 June 2025: 70% of humanitarians use AI regularly, but organisational uptake still emerging – HLA and DFS global study of 2,500+ finds
- Podcast: ‘Double literacy’: harnessing AI for humanitarians and social change – Ka Man Parkinson in conversation with Dr Cornelia C. Walther
Tools & online learning
- AI platform: GANNET humanitarian tools created by Data Friendly Space
- Course: Community Crisis Intelligence on Kaya
- Course: AI For Everyone from Coursera
- Videos: AI Fluency from Microsoft hosted on our Response Learning Hub (EN, AR, ES, FR)
Further reading
- Website: UKHIH Directory of AI-Enabled Humanitarian Projects
- Website: Data & Society: Research and policy for the public interest
- Article: Participatory AI? Begin with the Most Affected People | Meg Young
Contact
Email us:
Humanitarian Leadership Academy at info@humanitarian.academy
Data Friendly Space at hello@datafriendlyspace.org