DOI: 10.69554/lgie3209 ISSN: 2633-5638

The AI-augmented humanitarian: Responsible automation across the global development and humanitarian aid programming cycle

Kristian Dalsgaard Svendsen
Show PDF Cite
Humanitarian agencies, donors, and technologists are increasingly embedding artificial intelligence (AI) and automation within humanitarian and development programming. Driven by donor fatigue amid never-ending aid flows, operational demands for agility and speed, and promises of improved efficacy, some see AI as the answer to the sector’s crisis, epitomised by the Trump administration’s 2025 US foreign aid pause,1 often referred to as part of the wider Global Aid Reset.2 While the sector maintains institutional caution rooted in its ‘do no harm’ principles, AI-enabled practices are quietly entering the operational infrastructure of global development, from large language model-assisted e-mail and report writing to international non-governmental organisations headquartersprototyping programming cycle automations, predictive analytics, anticipatory action,early warning systems, and generative mediation tools. This paper proposes a frameworkfor the AI-augmented humanitarian, emphasising AI as augmentation of human decisionmaking rather than replacement, grounded in participatory governance, adaptive learning,and ethical accountability. Drawing on philosophy of technology, sociotechnical systemstheory, and applied case evidence from the global development sector, the paper arguesthat AI’s greatest potential lies in enhancing humanitarian experts’ judgment, amplifying marginalised local voices, and enabling more timely and responsive action, while rigorously attending to risks of bias, automation dependency, and power asymmetry. The framework offers practical pathways for responsible AI integration that honour both ethical commitments and operational imperatives. This article is also included in The Business & Management Collection which can be accessed at https://hstalks.com/business/.

More from our Archive