A new Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) has recently been announced. Click the link below for additional information and to read the respective flyer.
Title: Cities Deliver: AI Solutions for Public Services (2026 Call for Proposals)
Agency: The Rockefeller Foundation and OpenAI Foundation; managed by RF Catalytic Capital (RFCC), an affiliate of The Rockefeller Foundation
Deadline: November 29, 2026
The Rockefeller Foundation and OpenAI Foundation have announced the 2026 Cities Deliver: AI Solutions for Public Services Call for Proposals, a $50 million initiative designed to help cities leverage artificial intelligence (AI) to better anticipate and meet residents’ needs. Managed by RF Catalytic Capital (RFCC), an affiliate of The Rockefeller Foundation, the program supports nonprofit and civil society organizations partnering with city governments to develop and implement AI-powered solutions that improve public services, particularly for underserved and vulnerable communities. The initiative aims to reach up to 100 million city residents worldwide and offers two funding tracks: Seed, providing $500,000 to less than $1 million for early-stage concepts ready for an initial city pilot, and Scale, providing $1 million to $2 million for solutions that have already been piloted and demonstrated early results. Awards will support projects over a 24-month period, with 50 percent of funding distributed at the start and the remaining 50 percent following a midterm milestone. Eligible projects must meaningfully incorporate frontier AI capabilities and address challenges in public health, economic mobility, environmental resilience, or civic engagement, including areas such as healthcare access, workforce development, emergency services, energy infrastructure, digital access, and permitting.
Eligible applicants include nonprofit organizations, university laboratories, fiscally sponsored organizations, and public benefit corporations. For-profit organizations may qualify in limited circumstances when projects serve a charitable purpose and provide no more than incidental business benefits. Government entities cannot apply directly, but all applicants must have a committed city government partner and demonstrate that their proposed project benefits underserved communities or promotes social welfare. Round 1 applications are due November 29, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) and must include an eligibility screening, proposal questions, and a short video submitted through the online application portal. Selected applicants will be invited to advance to Round 2, with full proposals due March 1, 2027, at 11:59 p.m. ET, and final selections anticipated in April 2027. Proposals will be evaluated based on demonstrated community and government demand, the significance of the problem being addressed, meaningful use of AI, implementation readiness, long-term sustainability, responsible AI practices, and plans for evaluating outcomes and social impact.