AI in the Social Sector- Reflections from Udayan Care

AI in the Social Sector- Reflections from Udayan Care

Artificial Intelligence is no longer just a headline. It’s reshaping industries, sparking conversations, and transforming how work gets done.

Even the social sector, which has traditionally been slower to adopt new technologies, is beginning to feel its impact. 

At Udayan Care, we’ve been cautiously exploring how Artificial Intelligence can support our mission of social good, while keeping the human touch at the center of everything we do.

AI as a Support, Not a Substitute:

Our journey began small. Tools like Canva and Generativefill helped us speed up the design work, while Fireflies.ai and Otter.ai saved time by transcribing long meetings and events. ChatGPT and Perplexity became brainstorming partners for research and content drafts.

But even as these tools made us faster, they also reminded us of a crucial truth: AI can support our work, but it can never replace human emotions. Mentoring young people, empowering communities, and nurturing relationships, these are experiences no algorithm can replicate.

Every draft generated by AI is reviewed, refined, and contextualized by our team to ensure sensitivity, data accuracy, and alignment with our values.

This balance is what makes AI for social impact meaningful and trustworthy.

Team Experiments and Learning with AI:

As we experimented, one realization became clear: AI was not just as, it was a mindset shift. To harness it meaningfully, we invited our team to explore the tools we were already using, like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, Canva, Generativefill, and DeepSeek.ai. 

We organized small sessions where team members tested prompts, compared outputs, and shared insights.

One colleague tried ChatGPT to draft a program story, experimenting with different phrasing to see how tone and context affected the outcome.

Another explored GenerativeFill to bring a campaign idea to life visually.

These weren’t just exercises in efficiency; they became creative playgrounds where AI met human insight.

Through these experiments, the team learned a vital lesson: AI’s real power lies in amplifying thought, not replacing it. 

Questions emerged naturally, which tasks truly benefit from AI, and where is human judgment indispensable?

The takeaway was profound: AI becomes transformative only when paired with curiosity, collaboration, and reflection. It’s not about perfect outputs, but about learning together, iterating responsibly, letting technology enhance and never substitute the empathy, context, and creativity that define our work.

The Social Sector Dilemma:

The rise of AI in the nonprofit sector presents a unique challenge for NGOs.
On one hand, tools like Presentations.ai or Kapwing make it possible to create communication materials in minutes. On the other hand, the social sector has to ask harder questions: 

How do we preserve authenticity?

How do we avoid over-reliance? 

How do we ensure trust when our work is deeply human?

For us, trust is non-negotiable. AI can support operations and content creation, but empathy, judgment, and accountability; it remains human-led.

Authenticity cannot be automated. AI may produce polished drafts, but it cannot capture the lived experiences of a young scholar or the resilience of a caregiver. That requires human interpretation, storytelling, and heart.

Productivity Without Losing Humanity:

The productivity gains are undeniable. Tools like DeepSeek.ai help us sift through large volumes of information, supporting data-driven decision making.

Microsoft Copilot organizes workflows, freeing our team to focus on strategy, relationship building, and community engagement.

Combining AI efficiency with human empathy has unlocked new possibilities. AI doesn't replace people, it amplifies impact. By handling routine, time-consuming tasks it allows us to concentrate on what matters most: connecting meaningfully with people we serve. 

A Tool Box of Possibilities:

Towards the end of our early journey, we realized we had interacted with a surprisingly wide range of tools:

Napkin.ai, Perplexity, Canva, ChatGPT ,  Deepseek.ai, Freepik, Presentation.ai, Kapwing, Generativefill, Fireflies.ai, Copilot, QuillBot, Deepai, Gemini, Galaxy.ai, Claude, Gamma, Mermaid.ai, Otter.ai, Chrome.ai, and Grammarly.ai.

Do we use them all every day? No. But each has been part of our learning process.

Each experiment helps us ask better questions:

Where can AI add value?

Where must human values stay at the centre?

The Bigger Picture:

AI is here to stay, and its role in the social sector will only grow. But it must be approached responsibly.
For NGOs, the challenge isn’t adopting AI blindly but It’s learning to use it to enhance impact while preserving empathy, accountability, and authenticity.

At Udayan Care, our priority is clear:

Every innovation must serve the people we work with. It should strengthen human connections, not replace them. Whether it’s AI in humanitarian work, technology for social impact, or shaping the future of NGOs with AI, all point to the same conclusion: AI is powerful, full of potential, but it must be guided by human insight and values.

By encouraging experimentation, supporting team learning, and balancing speed with reflection, we’ve learned that AI can be more than a productivity tool, it can be a catalyst for social good. The human heart gives meaning to the AI draft, and together, they can help create a more equitable and empowered society.

How we choose to apply it, with care, insight, and a commitment to real-world impact, will define the future of social change.

The question we face now is not just what AI can do, but how we can ensure it helps create a more equitable and empowered society.