This is pretty exciting -- I love closing the gap between "i have this idea..." and an actual finished, working thing. I've enjoyed seeing the way you're using these tools as an independent maker, and I look forward to trying out The Funding Fairy.
Here's a question. Someone types in their project into The Funding Fairy: can they feel confident their idea is protected, isn't being shared all over the place? I don't think you're a nefarious actor, not at all; it's a hypothetical question that comes from someone who has stayed away from allowing AI systems to scan their face in exchange for fun profile pics. I am super cautious about what we voluntary share, because they are black boxes. And really, our ideas (and our biometrics) are all we have.
Thanks Christian—I appreciate the kind words, and the thoughtful question!
Short answer: your idea is safe with The Funding Fairy, and she won’t publish or share it.
Right now, the tool doesn’t store project descriptions in a public database or make them searchable. When someone types in a short description of their film, it’s used in-session to match against funding opportunities, search for additional ones, and generate the “why this fits” note. It’s not posted, indexed, or redistributed in any way.
That said, you’re right to point out the broader issue: most AI systems are not fully transparent. I’m using third-party AI infrastructure (like most modern web apps do), and while they don’t train on individual user inputs in the way people sometimes imagine, users should still be thoughtful about what they paste into any tool especially if, say, you are under NDA or something like that.
That said, you can also use the tool and
leave the project description field blank (the tool still works - this field is optional), or
paste a high-level summary instead of detailed specifics, which I imagine is how most people would use it naturally
Creative ideas are valuable, and it’s worth being intentional about where we share them.
Longer-term, if this evolves beyond a scrappy prototype, I should probably include some info on privacy, data handling, and transparency of the tools I’m using on the site. For now, its more of a fun, quick project that I wanted to exist myself and thought others might enjoy too. It’s designed to be lightweight and helpful, definitely not extractive. Appreciate you raising the question!
I was at your Sundance Institute presentation, and very impressed. This confirms why:) Great AI use case. It's exciting and also daunting; it's really hard to keep up.
thx for creating this Kris. I wanted to know the database of grants that the fairy searches through, where is that from? How did you/Fairy come up with the list?
Hi Julian, thanks for the thx and the question! First, I gave the fairy a list of several (5-10) lists of grants to review and incorporate. These are places I’ve personally looked for grants before, and know to have large and helpful lists. Second, if people write more about their project, I’ve told the fairy to actually search the internet for any relevant/unusual search terms (for example, if someone is making a documentary about a Holocaust survivor, search for grants specifically for films about the Holocaust) and include any relevant findings.
This is pretty exciting -- I love closing the gap between "i have this idea..." and an actual finished, working thing. I've enjoyed seeing the way you're using these tools as an independent maker, and I look forward to trying out The Funding Fairy.
Here's a question. Someone types in their project into The Funding Fairy: can they feel confident their idea is protected, isn't being shared all over the place? I don't think you're a nefarious actor, not at all; it's a hypothetical question that comes from someone who has stayed away from allowing AI systems to scan their face in exchange for fun profile pics. I am super cautious about what we voluntary share, because they are black boxes. And really, our ideas (and our biometrics) are all we have.
Thanks Christian—I appreciate the kind words, and the thoughtful question!
Short answer: your idea is safe with The Funding Fairy, and she won’t publish or share it.
Right now, the tool doesn’t store project descriptions in a public database or make them searchable. When someone types in a short description of their film, it’s used in-session to match against funding opportunities, search for additional ones, and generate the “why this fits” note. It’s not posted, indexed, or redistributed in any way.
That said, you’re right to point out the broader issue: most AI systems are not fully transparent. I’m using third-party AI infrastructure (like most modern web apps do), and while they don’t train on individual user inputs in the way people sometimes imagine, users should still be thoughtful about what they paste into any tool especially if, say, you are under NDA or something like that.
That said, you can also use the tool and
leave the project description field blank (the tool still works - this field is optional), or
paste a high-level summary instead of detailed specifics, which I imagine is how most people would use it naturally
Creative ideas are valuable, and it’s worth being intentional about where we share them.
Longer-term, if this evolves beyond a scrappy prototype, I should probably include some info on privacy, data handling, and transparency of the tools I’m using on the site. For now, its more of a fun, quick project that I wanted to exist myself and thought others might enjoy too. It’s designed to be lightweight and helpful, definitely not extractive. Appreciate you raising the question!
I was at your Sundance Institute presentation, and very impressed. This confirms why:) Great AI use case. It's exciting and also daunting; it's really hard to keep up.
That’s so nice, thank you! Really appreciate it. And yes, it certainly is hard to keep up—I definitely feel that way too 🫠
thx for creating this Kris. I wanted to know the database of grants that the fairy searches through, where is that from? How did you/Fairy come up with the list?
Hi Julian, thanks for the thx and the question! First, I gave the fairy a list of several (5-10) lists of grants to review and incorporate. These are places I’ve personally looked for grants before, and know to have large and helpful lists. Second, if people write more about their project, I’ve told the fairy to actually search the internet for any relevant/unusual search terms (for example, if someone is making a documentary about a Holocaust survivor, search for grants specifically for films about the Holocaust) and include any relevant findings.
interesting! thank you.