Inviting proposals to build technology tools that advance housing for a more affordable and thriving Bay Area.
Background:
For over 75 years, the San Francisco Foundation (SFF) has been a leading philanthropic voice and funder, responding to the most pressing issues facing communities in the Bay Area. One of the nation’s largest community foundations, SFF partners with community leaders, nonprofits, and donors to ensure that everyone in the Bay Area has a chance to get a good job, live in a safe and affordable home, and be civically engaged.
The SFF is all in on solving the region’s housing crisis. We are working on housing through several different paths. Our complementary array of housing-focused programs, grantmaking, investments, and initiatives builds toward large-scale and long-term solutions. We seek to bring together the Bay Area’s diverse wealth of talent and expertise while centering the perspectives of those who have been hardest hit by the housing crisis.
As a part of those greater efforts, SFF is launching the Community Tech Fund, which is focused on leveraging technology and community wisdom to address the Bay Area’s most pressing issues.
Purpose:
Our inaugural open call seeks projects that leverage AI to address critical technical infrastructure and capacity gaps in the Bay Area housing ecosystem. We’re particularly interested in approaches that recognize housing as a social issue first and foremost, and are:
- building systems and tools that enable housing leaders to collaborate, strategize, and transform the Bay Area housing ecosystem,
- advancing one or more of the 4Ps of housing: tenant protection, affordable housing preservation, affordable housing production, and homelessness prevention, and
- supporting impacted communities to envision and determine their housing futures
We invite applications from technologists and community organizations with projects at any stage of development, from ideation to pilot to scaling.
Examples include:
- Data systems that aggregate and standardize housing data from disparate sources, making it accessible for community organizing and advocacy
- APIs and platforms that enable community organizations to access and use housing data without technical expertise
- Model evaluation frameworks that help communities audit and build new, more equitable algorithms
- Data pipelines that transform bureaucratic housing data into actionable intelligence for tenant organizing
- Open datasets that document housing conditions, displacement patterns, and affordability trends
- Tenant organizing platforms that help communities track eviction cases, coordinate responses, and share resources
- Affordable housing preservation tools that identify at-risk properties and support community acquisition efforts
- Community land trust management platforms that streamline stewardship of permanently affordable housing
- Participatory planning tools that help communities envision and demand equitable development
Learn more: 90‑minute informational session
On Wednesday, 5/27 at 9:00 am PST, we will host a 90‑minute informational session for interested applicants where we will provide an overview of the fund, share what we’re looking for in applications, and answer any questions you might have about project fit and the application process.
Key Dates:
- Information Session: 5/27 9:00 – 10:30 am PST
- Application open: 5/18 at 12:00 am PST
- Initial Project Proposals Due: 6/14 at 11:59 pm PST
- Invitations for Full Proposals: 7/22
- Full Proposals Due: 8/21 at 11:59 pm PST
- Final Decisions: 10/9
- Fund Disbursement and Grant Term Start: 11/1
Eligibility:
- Geography: Funding requests must serve residents in one or more of the following nine Bay Area counties: Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo, Napa, Santa Clara, Solano, and Sonoma.
- Tax-exempt status: Recipients are limited to organizations with a IRS 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status or those which are a fiscally sponsored project of another nonprofit entity. 501(c)(4) organizations and for-profit entities are not eligible in this round of funding.
- Open-source: Projects must make intellectual property supported by grant funds available under CC BY-NC 4.0 International License
Total Awards:
- Type of Award: Awards will be structured as project grants and will be given to organizations, not to individuals
- Number and Amount of Awards: This Fund will award a combined total of up to $800,000. We anticipate funding several projects up to $100,000 over one year and/or up to two projects of up to $400,000 over two years, depending on project stage and transformative potential. The number and size of grants to be awarded will be determined based on the number, size, and scope of the projects proposed. Applicants are encouraged to request budgets that reflect the scope and needs of their work.
- Award Duration: Awards will be between 12 and 24 months.
- Prohibited use of Grant Funds: Nonprofit general operating support, Ongoing program support, Proprietary systems that don’t benefit the broader housing ecosystem, and Projects without a potential impact on the Bay Area.
Selection Criteria (successful submissions will demonstrate the following):
Projects will be evaluated based on the following criteria, with larger awards receiving increased scrutiny:
- Housing & Technology Innovation
Project uses technology to build systems and tools that advance housing across one or more of the 4Ps: Tenant Protection, Affordable Housing Preservation, Affordable Housing Production, and/or Homelessness Prevention. - Rooted in Community
Project demonstrates a clear framework for responding to the lived experiences, strengths, and needs of communities most impacted by housing. - Deep & Accountable Community Partnership
Project is developed and implemented in close partnership with impacted communities, including meaningful opportunities for non‑technical community stakeholders to shape direction, provide input, and hold the work accountable. - Increasing community voice in housing policy
Project realizes the potential of impacted communities to influence and determine their housing and technological futures. - Accessibility, Adoption, and Field Utility
Project outputs are accessible, usable, and supportive of nonprofit service providers and advocates to advance the 4Ps of housing across the Bay Area. - Responsible and Ethical Use of AI and Technology
Project employs a thoughtful approach to mitigating negative externalities of AI and technology use, including algorithmic bias, environmental impacts (e.g., carbon emissions, water use), and displacement of critical human labor.
How We Evaluate Proposals
Proposals will be evaluated through a three-stage review process designed to ensure both technical excellence and deep community alignment:
Stage 1: Community Review: Initial Project Proposals are evaluated by community housing leaders and organizers, focusing on:
- Potential for concrete impact on the 4Ps – tenant protection, housing preservation, affordable housing production, homelessness prevention
- Understanding of Bay Area housing challenges
- Ensuring all voices, and especially those from impacted communities, are heard and valued in decision-making
- Capacity-building for the broader housing ecosystem
- Meaningful community partnership and participation
Stage 2: Sociotechnical Review: Full proposals are evaluated by technical experts with sociotechnical expertise, focusing on:
- Technical appropriateness and innovation for housing context
- Ethical design, development, and deployment with a focus on supporting community agency and mitigating harm to impacted communities.
- Technical feasibility and realistic execution plans
- Commitment to open-source deployment and knowledge sharing
Stage 3: Final Selection: A committee of community housing leaders and technical experts makes final decisions based on:
- Integration of technical and community elements
- Transformative potential for housing justice field
- Strength and sustainability of partnerships
- Efficient use of resources for maximum impact
How to Apply:
- Submit your Initial Project Proposal here by 6/14 at 11:59 pm PST
- On 7/22, following the Stage 1 Community Review Panel, all applicants will be notified if they are being invited to submit a full proposal
