Illinois Tech a Frontrunner in AI Fundraising

When it comes to the use of artificial intelligence, Illinois Tech strives to be on the forefront of not only research and instruction, but application as well.

“We teach the growing industry of AI in the classroom,” says Susan Lewers, Illinois Tech’s associate vice president of major and planned gifts. “We should look for ways to implement these practices for university operations, including advancement.”

It comes as little surprise, then, that Illinois Tech is part of an inaugural cohort of 13 universities across the United States that is utilizing an AI fundraiser to help reach out to prospective donors.

An autonomous “virtual engagement officer” named Scarlet is the newest member of the university’s fundraising team. It has already engaged with a portfolio of prospective 709 donors and closed 28 gifts. Appearing as a computer-generated avatar, Scarlet speaks to donors in a colloquial fashion about Illinois Tech.

The virtual engagement officer is being developed to become the world’s most experienced fundraiser. It learns from fundraising industry best practices and is combined with information from Illinois Tech’s channels of content, including the university’s website, LinkedIn account, and marketing communications.

Scarlet uses this knowledge and content to bring donors closer to the mission and impact of Illinois Tech. “This marks the first time in history that the nonprofit sector has used fully autonomous fundraising at scale. In general, technology is ‘launched’ to users. But Scarlet demonstrated so beautifully that autonomous fundraisers aren’t launched—they’re introduced to donors and supporters, just like any other valued member of the team,” says Adam Martel, founder and chief executive officer of Givzey, the creator of the AI software.

“Scarlet is designed to engage with the same care and responsiveness expected of traditional fundraisers,” adds Martel. “Scarlet is not an automated or segmented marketing campaign, but autonomous relationship building that adapts in real time to make donors feel heard and understood.”

Scarlet can send personalized, individual communications—and even gifts—to donors, and is able to engage with more donors than any one fundraiser could. Given real-world staffing limitations, the reality is that many prospects go unassigned and potentially unengaged by a human fundraiser. Scarlet provides the solution with the ability to personally connect with graduates and build a more robust pipeline.

“Illinois Tech is proud to collaborate with Givzey at the cutting edge of innovation in philanthropy. Innovation and entrepreneurship are essential components to an Illinois Tech education, and this partnership brings those elements to how we communicate with alumni,” adds Lewers.

Donors are informed that Scarlet is not a real person, and they have the option to connect with a human team member instead. Scarlet can thank donors for gifts using robotic handwritten notes, invite them to events, share relevant news and information about the areas of Illinois Tech that matters most to them, and connect donors with opportunities to support Illinois Tech in ways that are meaningful to them.

Scarlet also learns from each donor’s individual responses and is then able to provide more tailored content in the future.

Those who want additional information about Scarlet or AI fundraising can contact Lewers at slewers@illinoistech.edu.