Frequently asked Questions

AI for Impact Fellowship is 3 months, part-time, project oriented program which is designed for individuals passionate about leveraging AI to imagine and create impactful solutions to address critical development and societal challenges in India. This is designed to provide a platform for tech-savvy individuals to design AI-based solutions for social issues that they care about!

The fellowship is a part-time engagement for 3 months and open to individuals who meet the following criteria:

• People in India
• Have access to reliable, high-speed internet
• Care deeply about some social impact issue
• Able to commit 10+ hours per week for 3 months from Jan-April’25
• Students, professionals, or individuals on a sabbatical
• Working on or eager to develop a high-impact AI idea Familiarity using AI tools to write code, create media or solve problems
• Have ideas about how AI can positively impact life on Earth
• Enthusiastic about technology’s role in social impact
• Eager to learn, collaborate and create change
• Excited to experiment and innovate

During the fellowship period, the Fellows will be paid a monthly stipend of INR 10,000/-.

The fellows are expected to:

• Commit Time Dedicate 10+ hours per week for 3 months to build impactful AI solutions, including some weekends
• Learn and Engage Be curious and actively participate with the fellowship community
• Generous with time helping other participants and arranging study groups and workshops
• Gracious in interactions with other fellows, guests, and staff
• Prototype Create and test a prototype that uses AI to address a social problem you care about! This can be a chatbot, or media, or anything that captures your imagination and ideas!
• Demo Day Showcase your solution on ‘Demo Day’

The Fellowship provides a platform to individuals who are passionate about using AI to address some of our time’s most critical challenges. During the program, the Fellows can expect:

• Practical Experience using the current generation of strong AI tools to create meaningful projects that represent your abilities and vision.
• Friends, Collaborators, Potential Partners get to know other people passionate about this technology and its potential for positive change.
• Develop Relationships 3 months is long enough to develop real relationships, in the context of doing something challenging and meaningful.
• Structure a defined path from concept exploration, through project design and implementation. This includes deadlines and accountability towards the creation of amazing demos you can be proud of.
• Exposure get recognized as someone with ideas and agency in the most consequential industry of our time.
• Funding Receive a stipend of 10k INR / month. Pitch for follow on funding at the final showcase / demo day

No, you need not be a student to apply. Individuals either working, pursuing higher education or are on a sabbatical but with a deep interest in working in the intersection of Technology and Impact are encouraged to apply.

Prior experience of working with a social impact organization is not required but will be preferred. Having a keen interest and understanding of the different challenges of the development sector will be immensely beneficial to the Fellows.

This is a 3 months long part-time program that will officially begin from 25th January 2025 and is expected to close on 26th April 2025.

We are looking at identifying a total of 20 Fellows for the 1st cohort.

It is essential for the applicant to have some basic background and experience in working with AI for this program.

Stage 1: Exploration

• Onboarding and orientation
• Getting to know the community
• Gaining insights into AI, its applications, and its relevance to social impact
• Engaging with the partner organization to understand their challenges

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Stage 2: Co-Design

• Engaging with the partner organization to understand their challenges
• Defining the scope of work and aligning AI solutions to the identified real-world problem organization's context
• Testing and iterating project ideas
• Initiating prototype development
• Mid-term review and progress check

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Stage 3: Prototype

• Creating the prototype
• Presenting the developed prototypes
• Documenting the project journey and outputs
• Conducting a debrief to capture learnings and outcomes

Once the candidate has submitted their application, the application will undergo the following process:

Application Screening-> Application assessment-> Shortlisting of applicants for interview-> Fellow selection.
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The candidates will be assessed on the followings:

• Your knowledge and experience of of having worked with AI-based tools that you have demonstrated in the past
• Your understanding and interest in a social cause that you wish to solve
• Your ability to imagine, critically think and solve problems
• your ability to commit time to the fellowship
• your communication skills