The pro bono problem

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Every week, I talk to software agency founders who are burned out on routine. They’ve mastered the frameworks. They’ve scaled their teams. But what they’re really searching for—often quietly, sometimes urgently—is purpose. 

And then something happens. I show them a project where their skills can help thousands of people access healthcare, education, or safety. Their posture changes. The questions sharpen. “Wait, we can actually do that?” Yes. By doing what they already do best—ideate, build, solve—but on a problem that improves lives and even saves them. 

That moment is electric. 

The term that doesn’t match the work​?​ 

And yet, after more than a thousand tech-for-good matches—including over 100 AI-driven collaborations—I keep returning to one thing that still doesn’t feel solved: a term. 

Pro bono. 

It’s the term most often used to describe this work. But in tech, it rarely sparks that same excitement. It sounds like a gesture. A side project. Something small. 

That’s not the kind of work we’re seeing. 

At Tech To The Rescue, we facilitate projects where software teams build AI tools that process multilingual crisis data in real time to support emergency response; create AI chatbots to combat malnutrition in rural Ecuador; develop early-warning systems in conflict zones; or deploy tools that accelerate child abuse prevention or disease early detection. These aren’t feel-good sprints. They’re high accountability, impact-critical builds—solving problems that are urgent, complex, and impossible to address with off-the-shelf solutions. 

From courtrooms to code: The pro bono paradox 

In the legal world, pro bono is institutionalized and respected. In tech, it’s fuzzy. There’s no standard or incentive. Too often, it’s misunderstood as junior level or one-off. 

We’re not ready to throw the words out. But we are challenging it. 

In our world, “pro” already stands for professional. These are scoped, outcome-driven, expert-level projects. When we say pro bono, we mean fully committed tech partnerships—not side gigs. It’s time to reclaim the words. 

We call this “extreme matching.” We don’t pair teams with nice ideas—we match them with necessary ones. This isn’t volunteering. It’s strategic problem solving. 

The collaboration gap: When technology isn’t the problem 

At our recent AI for Health Matching Day, we brought together experts across sectors. Professor Angela Aristidou at Stanford’s Institute for Human-Centered AI and UCL School of Management said it plainly: “The gap is not tech—it’s collaboration.” 

It echoed something I hear often. Tech leaders often say, “We’d help—if someone asked, and if we actually knew how.” Nonprofits say: “We didn’t think a company like that would take our call”—or admit they don’t know how to start. 

At the same event, Radhika Batra, MD, founder of Every Infant Matters, showed how AI diagnostics and mental health tools are saving lives—but only through deep partnerships. Her organization has helped over 700,000 children avoid blindness. Norberto de Andrade, founder of Polipro.AI and Meta’s former AI policy director, emphasized cross-sector collaboration, experimentation, and prototyping legislation as essential tools in designing a more humane and sensible system for us all. 

These aren’t just technology problems. They’re narrative and systems problems. And the way we talk about this work shapes how seriously it’s taken. 

Beyond charity: The terminology trap limiting tech’s social impact 

In tech, language becomes culture: Agile. Open Source. DevOps. What we call something affects who shows up, how it’s funded, and what gets prioritized. 

Just like “vibe coding”—a buzzy term for playful AI experimentation—is trending on social media, maybe “impact coding” or “purpose coding” can describe something more vital: human-centered, real-world problem solving. Maybe it’s something we haven’t named yet—but urgently need to. 

What matters is that we start naming and understanding the work in ways that reflect its scale and transformative potential. 

From Google.org’s fellowship program to Salesforce’s 1-1-1 model​     ​, tech giants are implementing structured corporate giving frameworks. Meanwhile, smaller agencies and startups struggle to find similar models that fit their scale. Yet our internal data reveals something surprising: SMEs often commit proportionally more time, resources, and consistency to pro bono collaborations than larger companies do. It’s a counterintuitive finding that challenges conventional wisdom about who drives the most meaningful impact. We now need the language, recognition, and infrastructure to match. 

Talent wants alignment 

At the same time, this momentum is being fueled by a new wave of talent demanding greater alignment between their work and their values. According to Randstad’s 2025 Workmonitor report, which surveyed over 26,000 workers across 35 markets globally, 29% have already quit a job because they didn’t agree with their leaders’ viewpoints or stances. Nearly half (48%) said they would not take a job if the company didn’t share their environmental or social values. And 43% have considered quitting because of their company’s stance on political issues. 

Pro bono, high-skilled, social impact work is already happening. It’s not small. It’s not random. It’s not charity. These are long-term, mission-critical partnerships that demand rigor and deliver real results. 

Whether we keep the term pro bono or evolve it into something new, one thing is clear: The story needs to change—because the impact already has. And the companies that help rewrite it will define what tech-for-good truly means in the decade ahead. 

Jacek Siadkowski is the CEO and cofounder of Tech To The Rescue. 

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