One way to address the funding challenges faced by AI safety research and other longtermist causes could be to investigate donor behavior specifically for these causes. Unlike traditional charitable giving, these areas involve abstract, high-stakes impacts that may not resonate as strongly with donors. Understanding how to frame these causes more effectively could unlock additional funding and accelerate progress.

Research Approach

Key steps in this research could include:

• A review of existing studies on charitable giving to identify gaps related to long-term impact causes
• Controlled experiments testing different approaches to donor persuasion, such as alternative messaging or impact presentations
• Collaboration with AI safety organizations to analyze real donation patterns and test fundraising strategies

Initial work could focus on small-scale surveys and experiments before expanding to larger field tests with nonprofit partners if results are promising.

Potential Impact

This research could benefit multiple groups:

• AI safety organizations could gain actionable insights to improve their fundraising
• Donors might better understand how to maximize their impact
• The findings could potentially apply to other high-stakes, long-term causes

Implementation Considerations

While this approach focuses on research rather than direct monetization, partnerships with nonprofits could create opportunities to refine and apply the findings. Starting with small-scale tests would help validate the approach before investing in larger studies. The project's niche focus on longtermist causes could complement broader giving research while addressing unique challenges in this space.