Why financial inclusion is now an AI story

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When funders and charitable organizations make decisions about where to direct funding and support, good data matters. Understanding where funding is concentrated, which causes and communities receive less, and how that’s changing over time can help funders and nonprofits make more informed decisions. Yet for many of Canada's charities, nonprofits, and the organizations that fund them, this data remains fragmented, difficult to access, and incomplete.That challenge is what inspired the development of the Funding Intelligence Ecosystem, a new platform in development by <a href="https://imaginecanada.ca/en" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" class="">Imagine Canada</a> with support from <a href="https://www.mastercard.com/ca/en/for-the-world/people/community-impact.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" class="">Mastercard Changeworks</a>™, Mastercard Canada's social impact program dedicated to helping not-for-profits harness the power of technology and data to create positive change. The platform is designed to help funders and nonprofits gain a clearer picture of Canada's charitable funding landscape, helping them understand where funding is concentrated, where less flows, how trends have evolved over time, and how their own funding strategies compare to broader sector patterns.The need is significant. Canada's nonprofit sector accounts for <a href="https://imaginecanada.ca/en/About-the-sector" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">more than 8% of Canada’s GDP</a>, yet organizations often operate without a comprehensive source of truth for funding data. Without reliable information, charities and funders can struggle to identify emerging needs, benchmark investments or make strategic decisions with confidence.

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To help ensure the platform meets the needs of its future users, employees from Mastercard Canada recently came together for a volunteer-led testing party. The event brought together Mastercard employees alongside representatives from organizations including Ronald McDonald House Charities Toronto, Oceana Canada, and Definity Foundation to test early versions of the platform before its wider rollout.Participants explored key features and provided feedback on platform usability, navigation, and functionality. They also shared perspectives on how additional data sources could further strengthen the insights available to users. The testing session included demonstrations of emerging capabilities, such as an AI-powered question feature designed to help users more easily access and interpret complex funding data. As Imagine Canada prepares to launch the Funding Intelligence Ecosystem, the insights contributed by volunteers will help refine a tool that has the potential to make charitable funding more transparent, accessible, and actionable.

The event highlighted the power of Mastercard Changeworks' integrated approach to social impact. Through its Grants &amp; Partnerships and Employee Volunteerism pillars, Mastercard supports organizations like Imagine Canada in building innovative tools that strengthen the charitable sector while employees contribute their expertise and perspectives to make those solutions more effective and impactful. Since launching in July 2022, Mastercard Changeworks has granted more than $2.7 million CAD and hosted four datathons and change-a-thons in support of not-for-profit partners. In 2025 alone, employees took part in 35 volunteer engagements across nine organizations, contributing volunteer hours valued at nearly $500,000 CAD. The program has strengthened the resilience of Indigenous and immigrant small business owners, with nearly 1,300 reporting improved digital capabilities.Beyond providing valuable feedback, the session also created an opportunity for employees to learn more about the work of the participating organizations and the challenges they are addressing in communities across Canada. It served as a reminder that meaningful innovation happens when technology, data, and people come together around a shared goal.

When funders and charitable organizations make decisions about where to direct funding and support, good data matters. Yet for many of Canada's charities, nonprofits, and the organizations that fund them, this data remains fragmented, difficult to access, and incomplete.

Shaping the future of charitable funding intelligence