When artificial intelligence becomes proximity. Mirta Michilli's contribution to Agenda Digitale
The latest article by Mirta Michilli, Director General of the Fondazione Mondo Digitale, dedicated to the role of artificial intelligence in the Third Sector, is now online in the magazine Agenda Digitale. In the article, entitled Solidarity algorithms: when artificial intelligence becomes proximity, generative AI is reinterpreted not only as a lever for productivity and efficiency, but as a social and relational infrastructure capable of influencing educational, healthcare and territorial contexts.
From “neutral” AI to civic AI
Ideally drawing on the imagery of Isaac Asimov, the article starts from a crucial question: can artificial intelligence really be “good”? And above all, for whom? In public debate, AI is often discussed in terms of industrial and financial categories. But there is a less visible and equally decisive perspective: that of civic AI, designed in a situated way, within real relationships and concrete needs. Not a technology imposed from above, but a tool that accompanies, personalises and makes services and rights accessible, strengthening human relationships.
The Digital Bridge laboratory
Among the experiences mentioned in the article is the Digital Bridge project, coordinated by the Italian Red Cross in collaboration with Fondazione Mondo Digitale and supported by the Fondo per la Repubblica Digitale (Fund for the Digital Republic) as part of the “Digitale sociale” (Social Digital) call for proposals.
The project aims to reduce the technological divide within the organisation through:
- assessment of digital skills
- personalised training courses
- multi-level modules adaptable to operational contexts.
In this case, technological innovation becomes an object of learning, evaluation and continuous adaptation: a concrete example of AI as a social, measurable and governable process.
Beyond technological philanthropy
A central passage in the article concerns the criticism of a purely philanthropic view of innovation. AI is not a solution to be “donated”, but an infrastructure that requires skills, governance, maintenance and stable alliances between public bodies, the third sector, businesses and local communities.
It is in this perspective that the third sector is not considered a mere beneficiary, but a co-designer of civic artificial intelligence, capable of directing technologies towards the common good.
A political issue, rather than a technological one
The article closes with a broader reflection: artificial intelligence is a political issue because it concerns the organisation of collective life, access to rights, the quality of services and forms of participation. If we want AI to be truly “for the good”, we need to invest in widespread skills, transparent governance and experimentation focused on people and territories. Only in this way can it become a lever for social innovation and democratic quality.
AI in the third sector
Solidarity algorithms: when artificial intelligence becomes proximity
Generative AI is not just about productivity: in the third sector, it becomes a social and relational infrastructure, to be designed “situated” in educational, health and territorial contexts. From the Digital Bridge project to a critique of philanthropy, the centrality of governance, skills and alliances for the common good emerges.
by Mirta Michilli
Digital Agenda, 26 February 2026
