With the Humanitarian Leadership Academy, we published the first comprehensive baseline study of AI in humanitarian work back in 2025. Data Friendly Space helped bring this research to life because we believe the sector deserves real data about where it stands. This original research offered essential insights for practitioners, leaders, partners, funders, and collaborators navigating AI adoption and digital transformation. We're building on that foundation through a follow-up pulse survey conducted in January 2026, because one snapshot would never be enough.
Download the report in your language: English [EN] | French [FR] | Spanish [ES]
Insights from 1,729 respondents across 120+ countries
We designed this research with community participation at its core, because meaningful insights about AI in humanitarian work have to come from practitioners themselves. Three-quarters of respondents are from the Global South, bringing perspectives that are too often missing from global conversations about technology. AI development is moving fast, and the humanitarian sector is facing significant systemic shifts. This research represents the first attempt to map AI adoption at individual and organizational levels globally, complementing existing sector-wide initiatives on ethical AI.
The response was telling: practitioners from across the spectrum of attitudes and experiences showed up, signaling a genuine appetite to learn, align on values, and build shared standards.
Coordinated efforts, grounded in data and diverse voices like the ones reflected here,are what will allow the sector to move forward together. That's a goal we share: finding contextually appropriate, ethical AI solutions that strengthen humanitarian efforts and genuinely support crisis-affected communities.
We're continuing to build on these insights to help mobilize the sector and chart a thoughtful path forward in AI adoption.
Use this report as a conversation starter in your team or organization. The research and the user personas it includes are designed to spark dialogue, shape approaches to AI, and support digital transformation decisions that are grounded in real experience rather than assumption.
We encourage you to bring it into your meetings, your planning sessions, and your strategy conversations.
This research is here to convene, connect, and collaborate, and we welcome your thoughts, questions, and ideas as we continue this journey together.
Reach us at hello@datafriendlyspace.org, or connect with our partners at the Humanitarian Leadership Academy: info@humanitarian.academy
