I not too long ago spoke to a donor who reviewed a batch of proposals from completely different teams—completely different names, completely different logos, however almost the identical tasks. Groups had reinvented the identical wheel in parallel. Individually, a few of these tasks may get funded. Collectively, the sector missed the possibility to pool efforts and resolve a bigger piece of the issue. That felt incorrect, not as a result of anybody was unhealthy, however as a result of our methods make it simpler to duplicate than to unite.
Right here’s what ought to terrify donors: Whilst funding tightens, duplicated tasks nonetheless get financed whereas collaborative funds report backing organizations that found out easy methods to work collectively, with $2–3 billion in annual help.
WHY WE BUILD IN SILOS
First, complexity encourages focus. It’s human to take the issue you possibly can handle and attempt to good it. Constructing a consortium feels messy and dangerous. Second, funding mechanics favor tidy, single-org proposals—grant home windows, scoring rubrics, and reporting templates push groups into solo asks. Third, survival instincts kick in: Leaders defend jobs and short-term stability. Fourth, donors typically want neat comparables; it’s simpler to judge and talk a few single-organization proposal than to underwrite a messy, multipartner wager.
These incentives produce dozens of comparable pilots, fragmented knowledge, duplicated engineering, and wasted momentum. The associated fee isn’t simply administrative friction; it’s slower adoption of helpful instruments and weaker affect at coverage tables the place a unified voice would matter.
EVIDENCE: JOINT BETS WIN
There have been dozens of AI-for-good panels and aspect periods on the United Nations Common Meeting this 12 months, however no single calendar. Everybody scrambled, duplicating efforts, and losing hours attempting to trace what was occurring the place. We revealed an open record of occasions—a primary piece of shared infrastructure—and the aid was rapid. If we are able to’t coordinate a calendar, how will we synchronize shared fashions, knowledge requirements, or joint deployments throughout international locations?
This isn’t summary. Two different sensible instances present what coordinated work unlocks.
The Techniques Transformation Hub noticed a number of local weather organizations notice they had been spending most of their time fundraising somewhat than altering coverage. They pooled efforts, cocreated a shared roadmap, and unlocked much more capital and traction than any member might have achieved alone. That shift, from remoted asks to a joint technique, created actual ahead motion.
Google’s Flood Hub teaches a associated lesson on adoption: Constructing a mannequin isn’t the identical as embedding it into methods. Even with model and engineering muscle, tech wants coordinated deployment. Governments, native NGOs, and scientists fashioned a collaborative across the instrument so it could possibly be used operationally—not simply demoed. That adoption work turned functionality into influence.
WHAT REAL COLLABORATIVES MUST DO
Collaboration isn’t logos on a slide. It’s precise working alliances constructed on sensible selections:
- Shared infrastructure, not replicated widgets. Construct as soon as, deploy many instances—frequent fashions, APIs, and clear knowledge contracts so native groups adapt somewhat than rebuild.
- Coordinated fundraising, not competing pitches. One unified ask with clear allocation reduces transaction prices and unlocks deeper capital.
- Spine governance. Somebody should maintain procurement, compliance, and ops—the boring glue that retains companions transferring.
- Shared measurement and protected knowledge practices. Established metrics and knowledge agreements let companions iterate and credibly report joint outcomes.
- Funders who reward collectives. Change scoring rubrics to favor system change, and long-term stewardship over tidy outputs.
These are governance selections. They’re not glamorous, however they decide whether or not pilots plateau or scale.
WE’VE DONE THIS WRONG, TOO
I’m not writing from a pedestal. At Tech To The Rescue, we now have made the identical errors, matchmaking that at instances created extra iterations than methods. We additionally see the choice: tasks that plug into shared companies, undertake frequent requirements, and scale sooner. The tech aspect can be unlocking rapidly. Many off-the-shelf instruments now cowl a big share of operational wants, however that potential solely turns into influence if the sector coordinates adoption. That’s why we’re convening companions this season to check an AI-for-good ecosystem, a minimal viable product for shared infrastructure, pooled fundraising, and collective accountability. It’s operational testing, not optics.
DONORS: CHANGE THE INCENTIVES
Donors, this piece is for you. Should you fund this area, please study whether or not your types, timelines, and scoring favor tidy, single-org asks or whether or not they actively reward collective proposals, spine help, and multi-year, versatile capital. Contemplate creating grant strains particularly for collaboratives. Pool funds with different donors to underwrite spine organizations; fund the mixing work—procurement, ops, governance—that hardly ever appears glamorous however makes scale doable. Additionally think about directing funds towards coverage, watchdogs, and capacity-building—the methods layer that retains shared tech protected, accountable and efficient.
In case your group desires influence greater than visibility, ask whether or not the subsequent grant helps the sector or primarily your establishment. Should you construct tech, ask whether or not your subsequent dash will probably be helpful to 10 deployments, and in that case, design it to be shared.
We’ve got the instruments, expertise, and urgency. The remaining obstacles are cultural and structural: the humility to share credit score, governance to coordinate, and funding fashions to pay for integration. As a result of the issues we care about gained’t wait whereas every of us finishes our personal model of the identical factor.
Jacek Siadkowski is cofounder and CEO of Tech To The Rescue.
