Yolo Food Bank was one of 163 recipients nationwide selected for the People-First AI grant awarded by the OpenAI Foundation. Yolo Food Bank is the only Yolo County-based awardee, and the only California food bank to receive the grant.
The OpenAI Foundation published an open call for proposals that closed on July 15, 2026. The People-First AI Fund is supporting three key areas this year: community support services, community arts and cultural organizations, and community journalism and media.
The grant funds are unrestricted and left to each organization’s discretion for use in a manner that best serves its community.
It was a competitive grant pool with nearly 1,700 applicants. Recipients were notified of their awards on Sept. 30, 2026.
“These funds come at such a critical time.,” Executive Director of the Yolo Food Bank Karen Baker said. “Simply put, our community needs food to work, study, and to thrive. Helping us meet this most basic need in the most impoverished county in California shows that the OpenAI Foundation is aware of this reality.”
This grant will help ensure the future of Yolo Food Bank is secure, enabling them to continue fulfilling their mission to meet Yolo County’s food and nutrition needs for many years to come.
“I’m grateful to the OpenAI Foundation for recognizing one of our county’s most impactful nonprofits, the Yolo Food Bank, with this generous grant,” Yolo County Supervisor Lucas Frerichs said. “The need for the services the food bank provides is greater than ever, so giving funds to help support our community members in need is so relevant in this moment.”
Prior to the grant announcement, at its Sept. 23 meeting, the Yolo Food Bank board of directors approved an AI Use Policy for the organization, which will ensure the responsible, safe, and ethical use of artificial intelligence technologies by its staff, board, and volunteers.
This policy was put in place to recognize the prevalence of AI technology and the need to safeguard Yolo Food Bank’s sensitive data and records.
To learn more about the OpenAI Foundation and see the rest of the 2026 People-First AI Fund grant recipients, please visit https://openaifoundation.org/news/2026-people-first-ai-fund-grantees.
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