The Quick-Start AI Guidelines for Democratic Campaigns—an initiative spearheaded by Zinc Labs, in partnership with DigiDems, the Cooperative Impact Lab, and Higher Ground Labs—offer insights and strategies to empower Democratic organizations and campaigns to generative AI. The guide aims to capture:
The most important guardrails that will help campaigns and Democratic political staff get the most from generative AI while mitigating risks
Practical steps for how campaigns and organizations can use AI for the long haul
Low-investment, high-value uses of generative AI that campaigns can use during the 2024 election and beyond
It represents one of the most ambitious attempts yet to make AI accessible and the result is a practical, actionable, and easy-to-use guide for those working in the Democratic ecosystem.
Interested in supporting the Quick Start AI Guidelines?
We invite other organizations in the Democratic ecosystem to sign on to our Quick Start AI Guidelines. Please note that submissions will be reviewed and are subject to approval by Zinc Labs. We prioritize co-signers who have contributed to the development of the guidelines, provided community guidance or expertise, or demonstrated the application of these principles in practice.
Complete the form below to submit your organization for consideration. If approved, your logo will be featured alongside other supporters from across the space.
Zinc Labs' Matt Hodges and Ben Resnik discuss their vision for AI on Democratic campaigns and dig into the Quick Start AI Guidelines with NBC News' Chuck Todd.
Zinc Labs is a center for tech and talent innovation within Zinc Collective that innovates on vital infrastructure across the Democratic Party to address challenges across the ecosystem that impact campaigns and organizations. Our investments in early-stage pilot programs and electoral tech strategy fill critical gaps in tech and talent, helping drive Democratic wins and secure persistent Democratic majorities.
Matt Hodges is the Executive Director of Zinc Labs and sits on the Advisory Boards of political tech accelerator Higher Ground Labs, and of political AI co-pilot Quiller. Previously, Matt was the Director of Engineering for President Biden's 2020 campaign. Matt worked in the tech industry as a Software Engineer and Infrastructure Engineer at companies like Datadog, Lisnr, and Cardinal Solutions.
Ben Resnik is the Deputy Director of Tech Strategy at Zinc Labs, where he has helped lead the development of AI strategy across the Democratic tech ecosystem. Ben is also a Political Partner at the Truman National Security Project and an advisor to the Higher Ground Labs Progressive AI Lab. Previously, Ben was Senior Director of Insights & Innovation at Main Street One and Product Manager at Swing Left.
About our partners
DigiDemsrecruits, trains, and embeds skilled, full-time technologists on the most competitive Democratic campaigns to fill talent gaps, find efficiencies, make them more secure, and help them win. Since 2018, their flagship electoral program has placed over 200 technologists on Congressional battleground Coordinated campaigns. Year-round, DigiDems' also help campaigns and candidates implement and stay up to date on cybersecurity best practices, secured hundreds of Democratic organizations from potentially damaging threats.
Founded in 2018, The Cooperative Impact Lab (CIL) aims to find the needs and gaps in the progressive movement — often unglamorous and under-invested — and experiment with solutions grounded in the cooperative model. As an incubator for new approaches to building power & capacity, CIL utilizes a 3-pronged approach to grow projects from an initial idea into a replicable solution for the movement as a whole. As of 2024, CIL has worked with over 100 local, national, and international organizations & campaigns.
Higher Ground Labs (HGL)is the leading funder of political tech. We specialize in catalyzing effective, high-impact initiatives that can scale. Since 2017, we have invested over $35MM across 70+ companies and initiatives that make up core Democratic and progressive infrastructure including Mobilize, BallotReady, and Grow Progress. We have also incubated core ecosystem programs and technologies such as Trestle, All Hands, Quiller, and more. HGL works in deep partnership with key ecosystem partners to create sustainable, collaborative solutions.
