Young Futures and Bukhman Philanthropies launch £4M UK partnership to help young people thrive in an AI-shaped world

Bukhman Philanthropies will serve as catalytic anchor partner for a multi-year UK pilot combining funding, youth listening, leadership support and shared learning.

LONDON, Sept. 16, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Young Futures and Bukhman Philanthropies today announced a new partnership to support UK organisations helping young people thrive in a world increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence.

The partnership will establish Groundwork UK, a multi-year pilot rooted in the experiences of young people and the strengths of the UK's youth-serving sector. Bukhman Philanthropies will serve as the programme's catalytic anchor partner.

Groundwork UK will identify and support promising organisations working across youth mental health, wellbeing, AI, belonging, agency and learning. It will combine catalytic funding with leadership development, youth listening, research and collaboration — strengthening individual organisations while helping build a more connected field around young people and AI.

Young people's experiences will help shape the programme from the outset. Groundwork UK will also prioritise charities that design their work with young people, helping ensure that young people have a meaningful role in shaping the responses — and the futures — being built around them.

"Young people are already living through profound technological change, and they deserve a meaningful role in shaping how society responds," said Daria Bukhman, co-founder and chair of Bukhman Philanthropies. "The UK has extraordinary charities, researchers and educators who understand young people's lives and communities. By listening closely, investing in their work and creating opportunities for collaboration, we hope this partnership will help young people flourish in an AI-shaped world. We are proud to provide the catalytic support that will bring this work to life."

A programme shaped by the UK

Groundwork UK will begin with a period of landscape research, youth listening, partnership development and programme design. Young Futures will listen directly to young people about how AI is affecting their learning, relationships, agency and wellbeing, and use those insights to help shape the programme's priorities and funding approach.

These insights will inform an open funding challenge to select the programme's inaugural cohort. Participating organisations will receive catalytic, two-year grants and join the Young Futures Academy, which offers leadership development, fundraising support, communications coaching, subject-matter expertise and peer learning.

The programme will be delivered by a lean, UK-based team, supported by the full Young Futures team in the United States, and will be designed in close partnership with people and organisations already leading this work. Details of the funding challenge — including eligibility, grant amounts, key dates and the application process — will be announced following the initial research and listening phase.

Supporting human development in a changing world

AI is rapidly changing how young people learn, create, communicate and make sense of the world. Public discussion has largely focused on issues such as safety, academic integrity and workforce readiness. Groundwork UK will complement those conversations by addressing an equally important question: How can young people develop the judgment, relationships, agency and wellbeing they need to flourish alongside intelligent technologies?

The programme begins from the premise that this is not simply a technology challenge. It is a human development challenge — and the strongest responses will be built with young people and the organisations and communities that know them best.

"What do young people in the UK need to thrive in a world increasingly shaped by AI? Safety matters, but it is only the floor. We also need to protect and strengthen the things that make us human: judgment, agency, curiosity, creativity, connection, and the experience of struggling through something difficult and emerging with an idea that is truly your own. Through Groundwork UK, we will explore that question alongside young people and the organisations closest to their lives, then invest in what we learn," said Katya Hancock, chief executive officer of Young Futures.

The UK is well positioned to lead this work, with exceptional charities, world-class researchers and growing national attention to both youth wellbeing and AI. Groundwork UK will connect these strengths by identifying promising practice, supporting organisational leaders and sharing emerging insights across the sector.

Young Futures will also use storytelling, practical resources and research to capture what participating organisations are learning. This will create a feedback loop in which youth voice and frontline experience inform future action, funding and partnership.

Building a collaborative UK funding platform

Bukhman Philanthropies' anchor support will provide the foundation for Groundwork UK and enable Young Futures to develop a broader collaborative funding platform. Throughout the pilot, Young Futures will engage additional UK and international funders and strategic partners interested in shared learning, co-investment and the programme's future development.

During the second year of the inaugural cohort, Young Futures and its partners will assess what is working, identify opportunities for wider collaboration and determine the appropriate scope of a potential second phase.

Groundwork UK draws on Young Futures' experience supporting youth-serving organisations in the United States, while being designed specifically for the UK's communities, institutions and charitable landscape. The UK and US work may also create opportunities for learning across borders, helping organisations, researchers and funders distinguish shared challenges from those that require locally tailored responses.

Groundwork UK is intentionally designed to learn before it grows. Its future direction will be shaped alongside the young people, organisations, researchers and funders leading this work across the UK.

To learn more, visit youngfutures.org/initiatives/groundwork.

About Young Futures
Young Futures (YF) is a nonprofit seeking to make the digital world an easier place to grow up. YF provides a social compass for teens and families navigating the tech-driven world by supporting emerging nonprofits working tirelessly to help young people and their families not just survive but flourish as a team when navigating the uncertainties of the digital wilderness.

Young Futures combines catalytic grantmaking with youth listening, research, storytelling and cross-sector partnerships to identify what is working, translate emerging practice into actionable learning and help funders, practitioners and policymakers navigate one of the defining shifts facing young people today.

About Bukhman Philanthropies
Bukhman Philanthropies was founded by Dmitri and Daria Bukhman, reflecting their shared commitment to creating meaningful change and building a brighter collective future. Its core focus areas include neonatal and maternal support, the mental health and wellbeing of children and young adults, and literature.

Bukhman Philanthropies supports innovative research, provides grants to effective charities and launches initiatives designed to create lasting, positive impact. The foundation believes philanthropy has a unique ability to take risks, address overlooked or underfunded needs and help build stronger, more resilient communities.

Registered charity no. 1211736.

Media Contact:
Brooke Messaye
Communications Associate
brooke@youngfutures.org