AI and the Future of Philanthropy

Concerns and Hopes in Using AI to Expand the Culture of Giving

AI is becoming a source of hope for vulnerable groups, helping people with visual and hearing impairments communicate and aiding the development of treatments for intractable diseases. More than 90% of nonprofits already use AI in their work, yet in just two to three years the gap between large and small organizations has widened dramatically. There is an urgent need for ongoing support for small organizations and activists, and for establishing AI ethics standards for the nonprofit sector.

• Former reporter for the Dong-A Ilbo and CBS; founded the Purme Foundation in 2005 to support the rehabilitation and independence of people with disabilities, where he currently serves as Standing Representative
• Chair of the NPO Category Jury, Asia Philanthropy Awards (APA); writes the “Dong-A Square” column for the Dong-A Ilbo
• Grand Prize, Asia Philanthropy Awards (2023); Civil Merit Medal (2014); Yonsei Social Service Award (2010)
• Author of The Power That Changes the World (2025) and We Build Farms Where Everyone Wants to Work (2020)

The Fundraiser's Role AI Will Give Back — From Fundraising Technician to 'Authenticity Producer'

Over the past ten years, data-driven fundraising strategies have been brought to some 1,000 nonprofits in total, yet this leaves a sobering reflection: paradoxically, it pushed fundraisers into becoming 'fundraising technicians' confined to on-screen metrics. By entrusting fundraising techniques and simple repetitive tasks to the AI agent 'Nulli', this lecture redefines the fundraiser's role as an 'Authenticity Producer' who helps donors contribute to the world in the way that is most true to themselves.

• Founded Nuguna Data in 2017, a social venture that analyzes fundraising data for nonprofits
• Has provided fundraising and marketing data solutions to some 1,000 organizations in total, including Good Neighbors and Save the Children
• Kakao Impact Fellow; recipient of the Fundraiser of the Year Award at the Asia Philanthropy Awards and the Korea Changemaker Award

Philanthropy Education at Universities in the Age of AI

Drawing on ten years of teaching the liberal arts course “Understanding Philanthropy” and its practical case studies at university, this lecture presents the importance of philanthropy education at universities and the way forward.

• Professor of Arts and Cultural Management, Sangmyung University; Professor, Department of Global Cultural Contents, Graduate School
• Director, Cultural Policy Research Institute; Board Member, Island Biennale Organizing Committee Foundation
• Vice President, World Federation of Arts Management; President, Asia Center for Arts Management

Beyond the Right Answer, Toward the Right Path — The New Role of Corporate Foundations in the Age of AI

Drawing on global philanthropy research and the direction of K-Philanthropy, this lecture examines the new role of Korean corporate foundations in the age of AI. Through the case of the Hyundai Motor Chung Mong-Koo Foundation, including long-term risk-taking, ecosystem building and strengthening the capacity of frontline organizations that may be left behind by technological change, it proposes a role for corporate foundations in working with others to shape not just the 'right answer' but the 'right path' that society should follow.

• Head of Strategy and Communications, Hyundai Motor Chung Mong-Koo Foundation — responsible for mid- to long-term strategy, external relations and new business development
• Researches the role of Korean corporate foundations and the development of the philanthropy ecosystem, based on case studies of global foundations
• Develops and researches impact measurement frameworks for measuring and managing the foundation's social value and outcomes
• Experienced in planning and running a range of public-interest programs, including education, social innovation and global talent development

From Algorithm to Altruism: Beyond Algorethics toward Technodao

From Algorithm to Altruism: Beyond Algorethics toward Technodao

We need to move beyond the question “What must we not do?” to a question of direction: “Where should we go together with technology?” From control to nurturing (wuwei), from isolation to relationality (ren and li), from exploitation to harmony (ziran), from autonomy to communion (perichoresis), from efficiency to flourishing (shalom): this lecture presents Technodao, built on these five principles, as a compass for AI civilization.

• Professor of Theology, Kangnam University; former Dean of the College of Theology and of the Graduate School of Theology
• Ph.D., Graduate Theological Union (GTU); former Distinguished Asian Theologian in Residence
• Founding Member and Fellow, International Society for Science and Religion (ISSR); researches East Asian thought, Christian theology and AI ethics
• Author of A Theology of Dao (Korean edition), A Theology of Dao, and Techno-Dao: A New Path for AI Civilization

Giving Infrastructure in the Age of AI: Four Years of Digital Asset Giving at World Vision, and the Next Step

In 2022, World Vision became the first nonprofit in Korea to receive an Ethereum donation, launching its digital asset giving, and it went on to broaden its experiments with NFTs of children's drawings and AI-enabled social contribution. The key lesson from the field was not technology but trust. In June 2025, it became the first nonprofit in Korea to officially convert virtual assets into cash and, adding a donation from Dunamu, delivered KRW 1.04 billion to some 2,000 children and young people. The task in the age of AI is to build systems that explain growing asset donations transparently and connect them through trust.

• Head of the Asset Fund Team at World Vision (Ph.D. in Engineering), responsible for giving programs based on digital assets, stock donations and gifts in kind (GIK), and for building an asset-giving ecosystem
• Led the four-year effort from the first Ethereum donation received by a Korean NGO in 2022 to the first conversion of virtual assets into cash by a Korean nonprofit in 2025
• Master's degree from Soongsil University with research on blockchain technology adoption; Ph.D. with research on cloud-based security services (SECaaS)

Media's Philanthropy Partner — Giian AI: A New Heart Beats at SBS

Broadcasters have always had the good intention of making quality content, but production cost pressures, ratings competition and staff shortages have stood in the way of that intention. SBS has begun using AI as a tool to break through these structural barriers, cutting production costs by creating explosion and chase scenes with AI in the drama 〈Manager Kim〉.

The key question is a single one: where will we spend the time and money that AI saves? If a structure is built to reinvest that margin in public-interest programs, content for underserved communities and investigative journalism, AI will become a new channel for broadcaster philanthropy.

• Ph.D. in Media and Communication, Hanyang University; researches media journalism and social responsibility
• Spent 11 years on the Coway PR team, handling social contribution, media relations and marketing communications
• Joined SBS in 2013, working in the New Media Department of the News Division, and now on the PR Team of the Programming Office

Celebrity Giving, Between Sincerity and Business — Giving Motives as Seen by Celebrities and Agency Staff

Celebrity giving involves a complex structure of motives, somewhere between genuinely giving back to society and managing one's image, and its timing, amount and method are sometimes decided in consultation with the agency. Drawing on in-depth interviews with 10 celebrities and 10 agency staff, this presentation reveals the differences in perception between the two sides and offers practical implications for charities seeking to communicate effectively with celebrities and their agencies.

• Began artist PR and marketing work in the Korean and Chinese entertainment industries in 2016
• Has carried out PR, marketing and media communications in the Greater China region for Korean and Chinese artists and cultural content
• Co-founded Renyi Dongxi Culture Media Co., Ltd., which runs a Korea–China cultural content business

Philanthropy That Turns Back to People in the Age of AI — What Should We Keep, and What Should We Change?

16:25 – 16:55 · Moderator: Professor Kwon Soo-young · With 5 panel speakers

The moderator draws together the answers the five speakers gave from their respective fields (the frontline, data, education, foundations and ethics), and the session closes with a practical discussion of what participants can begin doing in their own fields, starting today. The five speakers join as panelists to continue an in-depth conversation with the audience.

• Professor, United Graduate School of Theology, Yonsei University; Director, Artificial Emotional Intelligence Convergence Research Center, Institute for Future Convergence Research
• Chairperson, Korea Counseling Promotion Association; Board Member, CBS Foundation
• Ph.D. in Psychology of Religion, Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley