Your whole congregation now has a faster way to give, regardless of their device.

See it in action

Why this matters

Card entry is where churches often lose first-time donors. Someone feels moved to give, pulls out their phone, and has to dig out a credit card. Some finish the process. Some don’t.

Google Pay removes that hurdle. A donor taps Google Pay, confirms with the card already saved in their Google Wallet, and the gift is complete. 

Removing every barrier between your congregation and generosity is at the heart of what we build. Google Pay is the latest step in that work.

What this means for your church

• Fewer abandoned gifts. First-time donors are more likely to complete their gift when they don’t have to enter card details.
• Fast giving for your whole congregation. Not just iPhone users.
• A better first impression. A new visitor’s first giving experience is fast and familiar.

What’s coming next?

This is only Phase 1. Later this summer, Google Pay comes to QuickGive, so first-time visitors can give without creating an account or verifying their phone number. QuickGive with Apple Pay already delivers this for iOS donors. Android is next.

The goal has always been to build the best giving experience in the industry. One where every donor can give on any device, with no barriers in the way. We’re not done yet.

Getting started

Google Pay is already live on your web giving page, no setup needed. Donors will see Google Pay as an option the next time they give. 

You planned the weekend service, made a few announcements, printed a bulletin, and trusted that the important stuff would travel by word-of-mouth. That world is gone.

Today, churches are expected to communicate like full-scale organizations, with the same speed, consistency, and personalization people experience everywhere else. And every week brings a familiar list: new events, ministry updates, volunteer needs, giving moments, pastoral care follow-ups. None of it is optional, and all of it feels urgent.

If you feel behind, it’s not because you don’t care. It’s because the communication demands multiplied.

And your people feel it too. Barna research conducted with Gloo found that 69% of Christians say churches would benefit from better digital communication.

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The communications problem churches can’t ignore

Most churches are trying to keep up across email newsletters, social media platforms, text messaging, website updates, Sunday announcements, and still, somehow, printed materials. Each channel made sense when it was added. Over time, though, they’ve stacked on top of one another.

More channels should create more connection. Instead, they often create more noise.

StudioC described what’s happening in plain terms: “Most church communication is simply a flood of every message to every person across every channel.”

Most churches don’t have a communications team. They have a communications person.

In many churches, communications belong to one staff member, a volunteer who already has a full plate, or a pastor juggling multiple roles. The expectations look like those of an enterprise marketing department. The reality is one human being trying to keep up.

That mismatch shows up clearly in the 2025 Church Communications Roadshow Survey, where leaders consistently named lack of time and lack of help as their biggest challenges. One respondent, serving two campuses and more than a thousand people alone, summed it up simply: “It’s just me. I’m exhausted.”

The real cost: burnout, missed moments, and disconnection

When communication lives in a constant state of urgency, the impact compounds. Staff burn out because there’s never a sense of being caught up. Messages get thrown together at the last minute, which leads to inconsistencies in tone and details. Follow-ups slip, not because anyone forgot their importance, but because something louder demanded attention first.

Over time, people miss key opportunities to engage: a guest doesn’t hear back quickly, a volunteer forgets a shift, a giving reminder arrives too late to matter. Communication gaps quietly turn into connection gaps, and the cost is felt on both sides of the relationship.

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Why church communication matters more than ever

People can’t respond to what they don’t know about. Clear, consistent communication directly affects attendance, volunteerism, giving, and a sense of belonging. When information is timely and understandable, participation follows.

This connection shows up in longitudinal data as well. A decade-long study from Vanco found that churchgoer satisfaction with church communication rose from 46% in 2015 to 57% in 2025, tracking closely with churches adopting more consistent digital communication tools.

Different generations want different things

A multi-generational church requires a multi-channel approach. Younger adults expect digital-first communication through email, social, apps, and text. Older adults still value traditional touchpoints like printed materials and in-service announcements. Text messaging cuts across nearly every age group because it’s immediate and hard to miss.

The challenge isn’t choosing one channel over another. It’s coordinating them without overwhelming people. Churches don’t need more messages. They need clearer ones, delivered where they’ll actually be seen.

The shift happening right now: Churches are starting to use AI

AI is no longer theoretical for ministry leaders. According to Pushpay’s 2025 State of Church Technology research, 45% of church leaders now use AI tools, representing an 80% year-over-year increase from the previous year.

If current trends continue, Pushpay projects that a majority of churches will be using AI within the next year.

Churches are using AI to support ministry, not replace it

The most common uses of AI today are practical and behind the scenes. In Barna’s research on faith and AI, 88% of pastors said they are comfortable using AI for graphic design and 78% for marketing and outreach content, while far fewer are comfortable using it for sermon creation.

AI isn’t replacing the pastor’s voice. It’s helping teams move faster through the work that surrounds it.

What’s holding churches back?

Even with growing adoption, hesitation remains. In the 2024 State of AI in the Church survey, 41% of church leaders cited lack of training or expertise as the top barrier to AI adoption, followed by ethical and theological concerns.

One concern comes up again and again: will this feel fake?

Authenticity doesn’t disappear when AI enters the workflow. It erodes when messages lose pastoral oversight. Churches that use AI well treat it as a starting point, not a stand-in. Leaders review and refine drafts, add context, and remain transparent about how tools are used. When people understand that technology supports communication rather than replaces care, trust tends to grow.

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From overwhelmed to automated: What AI makes possible for church communications

Automation isn’t about becoming a content factory. It’s about building systems that carry weight when staff capacity is limited.

Automation creates time, and time creates ministry

AI cuts the time it takes to produce and manage communication by accelerating repeatable work. In broader workplace research, automating communication tasks saves 6+ hours per week on average.

Churches are seeing similar gains when AI handles tasks like drafting announcements, summarizing content for multiple channels, or surfacing insights from existing data. For example, tools like Pushpay’s AI People Search allow staff to find the right group of people using natural language instead of manually building filters, which reduces friction and speeds up targeted communication without sacrificing accuracy.

The result is margin. Fewer hours spent assembling information means more time for planning, creativity, and pastoral presence.

Better communication can be more personal

Speed alone doesn’t improve communication. Relevance does.

Personalized communication works because people respond when messages clearly apply to them. Research on church email performance found that personalized emails generate 29% higher open rates than generic church-wide messages.

AI-supported workflows make this practical at scale by helping churches send messages aligned to a person’s involvement, stage of life, or interests, while still keeping tone and intent firmly human.

Consistency builds trust

Consistency is one of the most underrated aspects of communication. When people know what to expect and when to expect it, trust deepens.

Automation supports that consistency. Guest follow-ups go out within hours instead of days. Volunteer reminders arrive when they’re useful. Giving thank-yous land while gratitude is still fresh.

Text messaging boasts a 98% open rate—far exceeding email—making it one of the most reliable communication channels across generations.

Metrics that matter for churches

If churches are going to invest in AI and automation, the outcomes should be measurable in ministry-relevant ways.

Healthy benchmarks help set expectations:

• Email open rates: 25–40% is typical for churches, with 40%+ considered excellent for targeted sends
• Email click-through rates: 2–5% is common, with higher rates for clear, action-oriented messages
• Text engagement: near-universal opens, with response rates often exceeding 40%
• Guest follow-up speed: same-day contact consistently outperforms next-week outreach
• Volunteer reliability: automated reminders correlate with lower no-show rates
• Staff workload: hours spent per week on communication tasks before and after automation

Success isn’t measured by volume. It’s measured by connection sustained without chaos.

How churches can start using AI wisely

You don’t need a full overhaul to begin. One or two changes can relieve real pressure.

It helps to distinguish between AI and automation, because they solve different problems:

• AI supports creative and cognitive work: drafting a weekly email, generating social captions, or creating a first pass at an announcement that staff refine and personalize
• Automation handles repeatable workflows: scheduling emails, sending guest follow-ups, triggering volunteer reminders, and coordinating giving communications based on timing and rules

Starting small might look like using AI to generate drafts while relying on automation tools to ensure those messages are delivered consistently to the right people. Over time, these pieces connect into a system that works even when the week gets heavy.

A more sustainable future for church communication

Churches don’t need to say more. They need to say the right things, clearly, at the right time.

Picture a Tuesday afternoon where the week’s communications are already scheduled, guest follow-ups are handled, and the next conversation gets your full attention. That’s the quiet promise behind automation: fewer frantic moments, more intentional ones.

You’re confident the answers exist. But getting to them means pulling reports, cross-checking numbers, and double-checking filters, all while hoping one missed detail doesn’t change the story.

You have the data. What you need is clarity when the moment calls for it. We’re building AI that removes the steps between question and answer.

Help every person feel known and connected

Create space for relationships to flourish beyond Sunday morning, turning fleeting faces into a deeply connected church family.

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A focused approach to AI at Pushpay

Pushpay is building AI with a clear purpose: to reduce the friction that slows leaders down in everyday ministry work.

That emphasis matches what church leaders are already doing with technology more broadly. In Pushpay’s State of Church Technology 2025 research, 86% of church leaders say technology increases connection in their community, and 70% say technology boosts generosity. Those aren’t abstract benefits: they’re the outcomes leaders are protecting when they evaluate new tools.

AI is part of that same story when it’s applied in the right places. And adoption is accelerating. That same 2025 research reveals “nearly half” (45%) of church leaders say they currently use AI, representing an 80% increase from the prior year’s findings.

The takeaway: churches are moving quickly, but they’re moving carefully.

Finding the right people without rebuilding the search

People Search inside ChMS has always been powerful, but it has also required precision. Selecting the right combination of filters takes time, especially when the question changes week to week.

AI People Search removes that friction by letting leaders type what they’re actually trying to find.

Instead of navigating menus, users can ask:

• “Find people who gave for the first time this year”
• “Show families with missing contact information”
• “Find people who haven’t attended recently”

The AI translates those questions into advanced filters instantly.

The outcome is faster follow-up, better preparation for meetings, and fewer people slipping through the cracks because finding them took too long.

Getting answers from giving data when decisions are due

Church leaders ask straightforward questions about giving, often with a deadline attached. The problem is the path to the answer: exporting reports, cross-referencing totals, and double-checking assumptions before a finance team huddle or a board meeting.

AI for Giving Data removes those steps. Leaders type what they want to know, and the system returns clear summaries, charts, and tables directly inside Pushpay Giving.

Common questions include:

• “How does giving this month compare to last month?”
• “Which funds are growing fastest this year?”
• “What percentage of donors are giving recurring gifts?”

Results appear visually, with an “interpreted as” explanation that shows how the question was understood. Leaders can adjust the query, change the visualization, or expand the underlying data as needed.

This changes the rhythm of financial conversations. Leaders spend less time assembling data and more time discussing what it means.

Built into existing workflows, not added on top

A critical design choice behind Pushpay’s AI features is where they live. These tools aren’t separate dashboards or standalone experiences. They exist inside ChMS and Giving, alongside the workflows teams already know.

That matters because the church’s relationship with AI has been defined by caution as much as curiosity. Early research from Gloo showed that 62% of church leaders rarely or never used AI in their work, and ethical concerns were widespread. Even as adoption has surged since then, the “make it simple and make it trustworthy” requirement hasn’t changed.

There’s no new system to manage and no technical setup required. AI functions as an interface layer that speeds up work leaders are already doing. Small reductions in friction compound over weeks and months.

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Security and trust remain foundational

Church data requires care. Pushpay’s AI features operate within the same enterprise-grade security environment as the rest of the platform.

AI interactions respect user permissions, do not alter underlying data, and function as filter-building and insight tools. Results are designed for review before action. This aligns with the line many people draw around AI: support operational work, protect the relational and spiritual center, and stay transparent about what’s happening.

What comes next

AI adoption in the church is no longer fringe. It’s mainstream, and leaders are asking better questions about how to use it wisely.

Pushpay’s next steps stay focused on the same problem they started with: helping church leaders move from question to clarity faster, without adding complexity. Expect continued investment in natural-language ways to interact with giving and engagement data, plus AI experiences that save time in the workflows churches run every week.

Now, the work looks different. The search takes seconds. The answer is clear. The laptop closes earlier, and tomorrow’s meeting starts with confidence instead of scrambling.

Sunday feels close, even though it’s only Tuesday. The worship leader needs updated volunteer confirmations. The kids team is still waiting on a clean attendance list. Someone new gave online last weekend, but no one’s quite sure whether they also signed up for a small group or filled out a connection card.

This isn’t a failure of effort or commitment. It’s the reality of ministry built on disconnected systems.

Most churches didn’t plan this. Tools were added one by one, often to solve a real problem in the moment. Online giving here. Event registration there. A different system for email. Another for accounting. Over time, those helpful decisions quietly turned into a daily juggling act.

The cost shows up in small ways at first. Extra steps. Manual workarounds. A few late nights. Eventually, it shows up in bigger ways that impact your staff, your leaders, and the people you’re trying to serve.

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Why most churches are drowning in disconnected tools

If you asked your staff how many systems they touch in a given week, the answer might surprise you. For many churches, it’s five to seven different tools just to keep ministry moving.

A typical setup might include:

• A church management system for people and attendance
• A giving platform for tithes and offerings
• A website CMS
• Email marketing or text messaging software
• Event registration tools
• Volunteer scheduling
• Accounting software

None of these are bad tools. The problem is that most of them don’t talk to each other.

That disconnect creates a quiet but constant burden. Staff re-enter the same information multiple times. A new family updates their email address, but it only changes in one system. A volunteer signs up to serve, but the worship leader never sees it because that data lives somewhere else.

Those manual handoffs introduce errors. They also eat time. Many church teams lose several hours each week just reconciling data between systems. That’s time pulled away from planning, pastoring, and being present with people.

There’s also an engagement gap that’s harder to see but just as costly. You might know someone gave last month. But do you know they also joined a small group and volunteered at the food pantry? Or that a regular attender stopped serving and hasn’t checked in for a few weeks?

When engagement data lives in silos, no one sees the full story. Ministry leaders end up making decisions based on partial information, not because they don’t care, but because the systems won’t connect the dots for them.

What software fragmentation is really costing you

Disconnected systems don’t just create inconvenience. They create real costs that compound over time.

Staff time and burnout: Administrative work expands to fill every gap between systems. Tasks that should take minutes stretch into hours. Pastors and ministry leaders find themselves buried in spreadsheets when their calling is shepherding people. Over time, that tension wears teams down.

Missed engagement opportunities: When you can’t see the full picture of involvement, people slip through the cracks. A change in giving patterns might signal a life transition or a growing need for care. A drop in attendance could be the first sign of disengagement. Without connected data, those signals go unnoticed until it’s too late.

Leadership blind spots: Boards and executive pastors are asked to make big decisions with incomplete insight. What’s really driving growth? Where is engagement stalling? Which ministries are thriving, and which need support? Fragmented data makes clarity harder than it needs to be.

None of this shows up on a budget line item, but the impact is felt every week.

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A better way: consolidating your church tech stack

The solution isn’t chasing a mythical single tool that does everything perfectly. Most churches don’t need that, and it’s rarely realistic.

A healthier goal is building a tighter core: two to three primary systems that are designed to work together, with integrations that reduce friction instead of adding more complexity. That’s where platforms like ChurchStaq change the equation.

ChurchStaq brings together essential church tools like giving, church management, apps, and insights into a connected platform, while still integrating with many of the tools churches already rely on. Instead of forcing everything into one rigid system, it creates a hub where data can move cleanly and consistently across your tech stack.

That kind of strategic integration means:

• Contact information updates once and stays in sync everywhere
• Giving data connects naturally with attendance, serving, and group involvement
• Engagement activity builds a unified view of each person’s journey

In a connected environment:

• Data flows automatically instead of being re-keyed
• Your team works from a single source of truth
• Actions in one system trigger updates in others

The benefits ripple outward. When someone joins a small group, your pastoral care team sees it without asking for a report. When serving involvement changes, ministry leaders can respond quickly. When giving patterns shift, leadership has visibility with context, not just numbers.

Integration doesn’t remove every layer of complexity. It simply puts it where it belongs: behind the scenes, supporting ministry instead of competing with it.

Where AI removes the friction

Even with a connected platform, there’s still a real question many church leaders ask: How do we actually use all this data without becoming analysts?

This is where Pushpay’s AI solutions step in, not as another tool to manage, but as a layer of support that makes your existing systems easier to use.

Inside ChurchStaq, AI helps translate everyday ministry questions into clear answers, without requiring advanced reporting skills or hours of setup. Instead of digging through filters, exporting spreadsheets, or guessing which report might help, staff can ask simple, human questions and get meaningful insight back.

For example, Pushpay’s AI-powered people search in ChMS allows your team to use natural language to find exactly who they’re looking for. Questions like “Who’s given this year but hasn’t attended recently?” or “Which families joined a group in the last 30 days?” turn into instant, accurate results. What used to take minutes of trial and error now takes seconds.

AI also supports smarter stewardship behind the scenes. With AI for Giving data, leaders can ask questions directly about generosity trends and see visual answers right away. Instead of waiting on end-of-month reports, you can quickly understand patterns, shifts, and opportunities while there’s still time to respond pastorally.

The real value isn’t automation for automation’s sake. It’s clarity.

When AI is built into a connected church software platform, it helps your team:

• Surface insights faster: identify engagement changes or giving patterns without manual reporting.
• Reduce admin friction: eliminate time spent building filters or reconciling data.
• Respond with context: see people’s activity across giving, groups, and attendance in one view.
• Equip more leaders: make powerful insights accessible to staff who don’t live in reports.

AI doesn’t replace discernment or relationships. It simply removes the technical barriers that keep good information out of reach.

When your systems are connected and intelligence is layered on top, your team spends less time asking, “Where do I find this?” and more time asking, “How can we care well for these people?”

Spend less time on tech and more time with people

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How to move forward without disrupting ministry

Transitioning away from disconnected tools doesn’t have to feel risky or overwhelming. The healthiest changes usually happen in stages.

Start with staff education: Before talking about platforms or features, help your team understand why integration matters. Address concerns about learning new systems. When people see how the change improves their daily work, resistance tends to soften.

Demonstrate specific use cases: Show each ministry leader what gets easier for them. Walk the children’s ministry director through streamlined check-ins. Show the worship leader how volunteer schedules update automatically. Help the small groups pastor see engagement trends without chasing reports.

Gain leadership alignment: Sustainable change requires champions. Board and elder buy-in matters. An executive pastor who understands the long-term value can keep momentum steady when implementation gets uncomfortable.

The goal isn’t disruption. It’s relief.

Imagine a clearer Monday morning

Imagine a Monday morning where your staff opens one dashboard and sees the complete picture. Who’s engaging. Who might be drifting. Where ministry is thriving and where support is needed.

Less time reconciling systems. More time investing in people. Technology that quietly supports ministry instead of competing with it.

Churches like yours are already simplifying their tech stack and rediscovering the freedom that comes with connected systems.

If you’re curious what that could look like in your context, see how churches like yours have simplified their technology or talk with a church technology specialist who understands the realities you’re navigating.

The tools you use shape the ministry you can sustain. When they work together, your team can focus on what matters most: caring for people and helping them grow.

We love seeing first-hand how our technology is enabling you to focus less on administrative tasks and more on the transformational work of ministry. And this year, we witnessed something remarkable.

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Engagement is up

Across our network of more than 14,000 church customers we are seeing communities deepen their bonds in extraordinary ways. In looking at averages per customer, group participation surged 22% year-over-year, and volunteering increased 19%. Also, child check-ins were up more than 3% this year, with 21 million total check-ins via Pushpay technology, which is a hopeful sign for the next generation of church-goers. 

What excites us most is seeing the direct correlation between engagement and generosity. When churches invest in authentic relationships and make it easy for people to participate, generosity follows. We saw total giving increase 5% this year, with recurring giving climbing 11%. But beyond the numbers, we witnessed 1.7 million moments of connection facilitated each week through our platform.

These aren’t just metrics—they represent real people choosing to show up, serve, and engage more deeply in their faith communities.

Technology to support growth 

Beth Dandino from Zeal Church expressed it well when she said, “We were growing exponentially and it was really hard to keep up with capturing details and following-up information for first-time visitors, while still maintaining that small church feel.”

We know that as churches grow, maintaining that personal touch becomes increasingly challenging. Our tools are designed to help you strengthen critical points of connection—whether through mobile app engagement (which grew 5% on average per customer), volunteer coordination, or delivering a seamless giving experience.

In looking at Catholic churches specifically, this year was remarkable. Parishes leveraging ParishStaq, demonstrated powerful adoption of digital tools with more than 5.6 million sacramental records imported to date, and 53,000 new sacraments performed and recorded through the platform in 2025 alone.

Removing barriers to generosity 

One of the most encouraging trends we saw was the adoption of non-cash giving options. Through our long-standing partnership with Engiven, we witnessed a 73% increase in the number of our customers accepting cryptocurrency and a 105% increase accepting stock donations. The average crypto gift reached $3,153 (up 21% from 2024), while stock gifts averaged $11,930.

This tells us that some donors are shifting the way they prefer to give, and reinforces the need to offer the right tools to enable them to express their generosity. Churches that embrace these options are meeting their communities where they are and making it easier than ever to give.

We also know that the last few weeks of the year are a critical time for donors and churches, and December 2025 was an extraordinary month of generosity. Churches received more than $1 billion through Pushpay in that month alone, with the average gift size jumping 240% in the final three days of the year compared to daily averages. In total, churches welcomed 1.8 million first-time givers to the platform and processed more than 53 million total gifts throughout the year. Our data also shows that 59% of first-time givers use Apple Pay, which underscores the importance of offering frictionless, mobile-first giving experiences that meet people in the moment of inspiration.

As an organization, we’ve worked diligently over the last few years in particular to prioritize new product features, enhancements and integrations to help reduce barriers and increase accessibility to opportunities for generosity. In fact, we released 8 of the top 10 most requested features from our customers this year alone, including Apple Pay QuickGive—the fastest way to give in the industry—split giving, embedded giving, automatic fund sync between Giving and ChMS, a new partnership with VisitorReach to offer tap-to-give, and much more.

Know the hearts behind every gift

Go beyond the numbers to understand the stories of your community, allowing you to nurture deeper relationships and sustainable generosity.

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Livestream momentum continues 

Our digital ministry solutions through Resi also reached new heights, with over 1 billion minutes of content watched throughout the year. Nearly 2.8 million people tuned into church live streams through Resi in December alone. This helps reinforce the notion that digital ministry isn’t replacing in-person community, it’s extending reach and creating new pathways for people to discover and engage with their local church.

Looking ahead 

The broader cultural context makes these trends even more significant. There is renewed energy in the Church, and we are starting to see a shift in how people are integrating church and religion in their lives. Recent research from Barna shows that the number of Americans with a meaningful personal commitment to Jesus rose 12 percentage points between 2022 and 2025. Also noting that Gen Z has emerged as the most frequent church attenders of any demographic. After years of uncertainty, churches are seeing momentum.

The impact we’re seeing alongside our customers is remarkable, and it’s transformative for the millions of lives churches like yours touch every week. As we look to 2026, we’re more committed than ever to equipping ministry leaders with tools that remove friction so you can focus on what matters most—building transformational relationships that change lives. If you missed it, we also recently launched new AI-powered features across our entire ministry platform, which we know will help you and your team make an even bigger impact in 2026. Looking forward to another memorable year in ministry together.

The difference now? AI has become more sophisticated, yes, but the major shift is how widely accessible it’s become for the general public. What was once a behind-the-scenes tool to improve digital experiences is now in the hands of consumers, being used as a creative partner in our daily lives. 

Being Pushpay’s Chief Product Officer, I’m obviously excited about what’s possible with AI. But this unique moment in technological advancement also demands transparency.

I have six kids. When I think about the sheer amount of data about them floating around online—images, videos, account logins, where they go to summer camp with our chuch—it keeps me up at night. I worry about what can be done with their information; voice replication technology, deepfakes, and identity theft aren’t abstract concerns. The online data surrounding my children—and all of us—is part of who we are, and that data demands protection.

This is why I, and our entire team, take Pushpay’s approach to AI ethics so personally. It’s not just about compliance or checking boxes. It’s about building technology I’d trust with my own family’s information, and in my own church.

Our commitment to your ministry 

Churches are stewards of sensitive information. Pastoral care conversations. Financial giving patterns. Family struggles. Prayer requests. When we talk about integrating AI into church technology, we’re not just talking about making software more efficient—we’re talking about tools that capture the most vulnerable, intimate parts of people’s lives.

That’s why we are committed to developing and integrating AI in our products with the highest standards of safety, accuracy, and respect for your community’s values. Our AI is designed to enhance—never replace—the human connections and pastoral care at the heart of your ministry, and is purposely built to serve churches and faith-based organizations.

We also want to be transparent about how we incorporate AI. That’s why we’ve developed a comprehensive AI ethics framework that outlines our organization’s standards and guides our team’s decision making.

• Ethical, human-centric AI for faith communities: Pushpay’s AI is built on a comprehensive ethics framework, designed to enhance ministry operations while strictly respecting community values, ensuring human oversight (“Human-in-the-Loop”), and operating with full transparency.
• Robust data security & privacy: Pushpay maintains strict security standards, ensuring church data and PII remains within our secure partnership ecosystem. Data is shared only with secure and appropriate data protections applied, and is strictly never utilized to train external (foundation) models.
• Accuracy requires validation: Pushpay prioritizes accurate results validated through a multi-step check system. However, because AI responses are probabilistic, we strongly advise users to apply their professional judgment to validate AI-generated outputs or suggestions.
• Permissions: Our AI can work with your data to provide insights and assistance, but it operates within strict privacy boundaries. Personal member information is never exposed inappropriately, and all data access follows your established permission structures. The AI enhances your ability to serve your community while maintaining complete confidentiality.

Human-in-the-loop approach 

We invest a lot of development time into our AI tools to ensure outputs are relevant to you and your team, with a ministry context in mind. We want our solutions to deliver accurate, precise, and reliable results so that administrators and leaders can trust the results in order to make swift decisions within their ministry. We strive for outputs that are contextually meaningful, actionable for ministry purposes, support stewardship, outreach, and your organization’s core mission.

However, it’s important to understand that AI responses are probabilistic—meaning they represent the most likely correct answer based on available data. We always recommend validating AI suggestions using your professional and spiritual judgment and knowledge of your specific context. Our philosophy is that critical decisions should always involve human validation, which we call “Human-in-the-Loop.” 

Because there is always a possibility that AI can make a mistake, we’ve built safeguards into our tools. Every AI response undergoes sequential validation which includes a safety check (ensuring no sensitive data is exposed), an accuracy check (verifying information within expertise) and a transparency check (documenting reasoning). If any of these checks fail, the response is blocked and flagged for human review. 

If you would like to learn more about how we are incorporating AI within our product, be sure to check out the Pushpay Knowledge Center for a more in-depth breakdown from our product team.

Human-centered approach to AI 

Our heart always remains focused on the Church. These AI tools are built to support ministry leaders, not to replace the valuable connections and relationships you have built with your people. 

For example, our AI Search for People feature lets you type natural language queries like “families who gave on Easter but haven’t returned” or “people who attended a baptism class,” and the AI helps you find these individuals faster. But what you do with that information—the personal outreach, the compassionate follow-up, the ministry connection—remains entirely human.

The goal is to give you more time for pastoral care by handling the administrative heavy lifting. As an elder at my local church, I know how much more impactful a moment of ministry becomes if you’ve had time to approach it with intention. Pushpay’s AI solutions can give you that time.

Join the conversation 

Whether you’re excited about AI’s potential or cautious about its implications—or both, as I am—I want you to know that your voice matters in the conversation. The technology we build at Pushpay succeeds because we develop it alongside our customers and ministry leaders who use it.

We’re navigating new territory together, and believe we can do so in a way that honors both innovation and integrity of the Church, in an ethical and safe way for those that trust us with their most vulnerable information.

If you have questions about how we’re implementing AI, concerns about data privacy, or ideas about ways you think technology or insights could help you serve your ministry better—we want to hear from you. Because ultimately, this isn’t about building the flashiest technology. It’s about creating technology that sparks ministry action and deepens connection in your community. 

Pushpay was founded in 2011 with the vision to simplify the giving experience for churches and their donors, making it as easy as buying a song online. Which—for those of you too young to remember— felt lightning fast at less than 60 seconds. Today, we have QuickGive, which is still the fastest way to give online. Over the following years, Pushpay continued to pioneer solutions to make generosity seamless and engagement more effortless. From being the first to bring mobile giving to churches, to building a comprehensive engagement platform, expanding to welcome an industry-leading live stream solution (Resi), and much more. 

Our heart has always been to equip you with tools that amplify what you were born to do: ministry. That’s why I could not be more excited about this next chapter of innovation at Pushpay. 

Turning ministry moments into meaningful action

Today we unveiled a suite of AI-powered solutions at our live Pushpay Connect event, becoming the first company in the market to deliver AI capabilities across our entire suite of products—from your people and giving data to livestream services and customer support

Pushpay’s AI-powered solutions transform how church leaders can identify critical moments for ministry, nurture generosity, and increase engagement. Our team built these features alongside you—pastors and ministry leaders— to help support a person’s unique faith engagement journey with a church. They were built with intention and provide visibility to discipleship opportunities with your people—from the seeker joining a livestream, to the small group leader serving faithfully. 

These new AI-powered features share a common thread; they’re designed to help you act on the moments that matter most in your ministry. Someone’s about to slip out your church’s back door? You need to know before it’s too late. A family gave sacrificially last year but their pattern has changed? They might need support. A young adult is ready to serve but hasn’t been invited yet? The insights you need to care for your people are now right at your fingertips. 

AI for the journey

Our focus has been around purposeful innovation that sparks ministry action, with the bold aspiration that we want to help ministry leaders bring each soul in their community into focus. With this launch, that vision becomes a reality. Here’s what’s available to Pushpay customers:

AI for People Search: Empowers you to connect with the right person at the right time. Every week, you’re navigating critical questions: Who hasn’t been to service in a month? Which families are new and have young children? Who served in kids ministry and might be ready to lead? AI for People Search transforms how you engage your congregation by turning natural language questions into actionable people lists in seconds. Simply type what you’re looking for— “show me people who are members in a group, but haven’t given this year” or “show me people who are not engaged in my church”—and the tool instantly builds the filters you need. 

AI for Giving Data: Surfaces trends from your giving data that can reveal ministry opportunities. These insights have traditionally been buried in reports and spreadsheets, requiring hours to uncover. AI for Giving Data changes that. Ask questions in plain English—”Who gave last Easter but not this year?” or “Show me top 10 donors by growth this quarter”—and receive instant insights and patterns that help you nurture generosity with intentionality and care.

Studio AI from Resi: Studio AI repackages and shares your media content. We know that video content keeps your church community engaged seven days a week, but transforming a Sunday sermon into shareable clips can be time-consuming. Studio AI accelerates content creation by turning long-form videos into ready-to-post clips, complete with captions and proper social media formatting. You maintain complete creative control over your message while maximizing the impact of your existing video library.

Modernized support: We are also introducing a new intelligent customer support solution, “Genny,” that helps expedite customer care needs. Genny is Pushpay’s new church software assistant and is available 24/7, providing immediate answers to technical questions or connecting ministry leaders directly with the right Pushpay expert for support. 

Ethical AI

One of the common questions we get from pastors is around ethics and data security when leveraging AI tools. At Pushpay, we are committed to developing and integrating AI that serves churches and faith-based organizations with the highest standards of safety, accuracy, and respect for your community’s values. Our AI is designed to enhance—never replace—the human connections and pastoral care at the heart of your ministry.

As a company, we embrace an ethical and human-centered approach to AI use for the Church, respecting community values and operating with full transparency. We also have a robust data security and privacy policy, meaning church data and PII remains within our secure partner system, so you never have to worry about us sharing your information to train external AI models. We also ensure human oversight is in place to ensure outputs or suggestions within our products are accurate and reflect a heart for ministry. 

For more details about our approach to AI for the Church, be sure to check out our customer knowledge center.

Make this season your best yet

As we embrace the holiday season, I can’t think of a better moment to equip you and your team with these tools. This is your season to welcome the curious seekers, celebrate with your community and the bounty of God’s love, and cast vision for the year ahead. May this Christmas be your most impactful yet, and that you are able to see your people more clearly and serve them more effectively. 

It’s an absolute honor that our technology plays a small role in helping you create a more vibrant Church that fuels connection, discipleship, and generosity in every season. Here’s to knowing your flock better than ever before. 

Last month, I took a couple of weeks for the first time in almost a decade to go on a pilgrimage.  Last year, a friend of mine completed the 500-mile pilgrimage, the Camino de Santiago (“the Way of St. James”), which starts in the western part of France and ends near the west coast of northern Spain, something that has been on my bucket list for years. I decided that I would walk the first part of the Camino, with the intention of coming back to finish next year. The timing of my trip was providential; it just so happened to align perfectly with the canonizations of now St. Carlo Acutis and St. Pier Giorgio Frassati. It only made sense during this Year of Jubilee, which only happens every 25 years in the Catholic Church, to take advantage of the timing and start my pilgrimage in Rome by attending the canonizations.

As I walked, prayed, and reflected — both on the camino and in Rome — I was constantly struck by the history under my feet and modernity all around me. And in St. Peter’s Square, literally surrounded by the rich history of our 2,000-year old church, I witnessed the canonization of a saint who used the internet, with thousands of cell phones capturing the moment. I couldn’t help but notice the beauty of the timelessness of our faith being documented by modern technology.

In a similar way, the Camino has existed for centuries and has been walked by pilgrims who walked with the same intention I did: to seek God, self-discovery, and meaning along “the way.” As I hiked this ancient path through the French Pyrenees and into western Spain, I did so with modern tools.

When technology becomes a travel companion

When I arrived in Rome two days before the canonizations, my first stop was St. Peter’s Basilica so that I could enter through the Holy Doors and officially begin my pilgrimage. Inside, I noticed something that would probably be unexpected: QR codes and tap-to-give stations for votive candles.

St. Peter’s Basilica is often seen as our spiritual home in the Catholic Church, and the basilica isn’t hiding from technology. They were able to discretely but effectively place QR codes throughout the basilica to learn more about the basilica and to provide opportunities to give. And because they realize that a lot of pilgrims might not be traveling with cash or maybe some haven’t had the opportunity to exchange their currency, votive candles had tap-to-give options, which made it easy for pilgrims to light a candle and pray for their loved ones.

It struck me as a powerful symbol of how technology can enter sacred spaces in a positive way. Often, I hear parishioners and ministry leaders look at these basilicas, cathedrals and churches and say, “We need to build something this beautiful in our communities.”  And yes, truth, beauty, and goodness do inspire, and we should invest in these things. However, in my experience, the same communities that invest millions in renovations and new sanctuaries often spend the bare minimum on digital infrastructure. As St. Peter’s Basilica shows us, the Church doesn’t need to choose between tradition and innovation. I would argue that we are called to embrace both.

From Rome, I continued my journey to France with the words of St. Pier Giorgio Frassatti’s words echoing in my head: “Verso ‘l alto, to the heights.” Even for a person who works in technology, technology became my surprising travel companion. I used several Camino apps that suggested routes, hostels, and restaurants for pilgrims, and I leaned on those pretty heavily.

But the tool I used most was also the most unexpected: ChatGPT. I would ask it to gather local recommendations for places to eat or stay (beyond what shows up on TripAdvisor or Yelp). Because I wanted a more authentic and native experience, it helped me discover local spots and hidden gems. Technology didn’t distract from my pilgrimage; it made it richer and more connected. Even something as modern as AI can serve a deeply human purpose when used thoughtfully. 

Walking together: Lessons for the Church today

Coming off of this pilgrimage, I felt affirmed in my belief that as a Church we don’t need to fear technology. We need to form it, shape it, and use it for good. That’s exactly what St. Carlo modeled, it’s what St. Peter’s Basilica is doing, it’s what Camino pilgrims will continue to do.

When I used tap to give at St. Peter’s Basilica or leveraged AI along the Camino, I wasn’t disconnected from the reality of what was going on around me. Instead, these tools allowed me to be more fully present to God and my neighbor along the way. Technology can never replace an encounter with God or the community, but it can facilitate and support one.

There can be a temptation in the Church to fear new technology, as if embracing technology means being an expert in order to engage with it; we simply need to be open. When it comes to living and serving with this openness, I often think of the words of St. John Paul II: “Do not be afraid.” We don’t have to fear what is new or even what we don’t fully understand yet. 

At Pushpay, our goal is to help parishes use technology in ways that support mission and relationship. From AI-powered search tools that help staff better understand their communities, to digital giving that connects people to generosity in new ways, we’re helping Catholic parishes bring the “ever ancient, ever new” reality of our faith into daily life.

Technology is only a tool, yet when used well, it can deepen connection, inspire reflection, and even illuminate the path for someone else’s journey. My pilgrimage reminded me that our faith has always been about embracing our spiritual heritage, walking together, and being fully present to the moment one step at a time. And today, some of those steps might just be guided by the light of a phone screen.

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A guest attends your church for the first time. The message resonates. They want to give right now, but creating an account and verifying their phone number feels like too much in the moment.

They tell themselves they’ll finish later. Some never do.

Sound familiar?

The problem: Registration hinders spontaneous giving

Most online giving requires donors to create accounts and verify phone numbers before completing a gift. For regular members, this one-time setup makes sense. But for first-time givers acting on inspiration, these steps interrupt the moment.

Nearly half of first-time donors prefer Apple Pay for its speed and familiarity. But even with Apple Pay enabled, your current setup still requires phone verification.

The intention to give is there. But registration requirements and phone verification are enough friction to stop them.

The solution: QuickGive with Apple Pay

QuickGive removes every barrier between inspiration and action. No account creation. No phone verification. Just instant giving.

QuickGive appears on the first screen of your giving page within your Embedded Giving widget. Donors enter their amount, tap the familiar Apple Pay button, and complete their gift with a double-click. The entire process takes less than six seconds.

First-time visitors can give the moment they feel moved to, without any friction.

Why this matters for your church

• Meets donors in the moment. When someone feels inspired to give, removing barriers converts that impulse into impact.
• Expands your donor reach. QuickGive connects with first-time givers who want to support your ministry but aren’t ready to create an account yet.

Familiar and trusted. Apple Pay is how millions of people make purchases daily. QuickGive brings that same frictionless experience to giving.

Getting started

QuickGive with Apple Pay is available now for Advanced and Complete package customers.

Platform requirements: QuickGive requires the ability to upload a verification file to your website and is not compatible with certain content management systems. Click below to learn more!

This challenge was the focus of our recent breakout session at the International Catholic Stewardship Conference (ICSC), “The Tech-enabled Parish: Leveraging Technology for Deeper Parishioner Stewardship and Engagement.” I was honored to join the conversation alongside Katie Price from the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois, and Anthony Welch from Pushpay. Nearly every seat was filled for the discussion, which to me reflects the curiosity and desire to learn more about the digital transformation in the Catholic church, and how parishes can embrace technology in a new era of ministry. We explored how AI and technology, when approached ethically, are not a threat to the human element of ministry, but a powerful means to enhance it. Here are some of the takeaways from our conversation.

Amidst fear, parish leaders are already using AI

At the session, we surveyed the audience about their current use of Artificial Intelligence. The results were striking: the fear of AI is giving way to its practical application. The reality is, we’ve actually been embracing AI in our day-to-day for a long time. Do you use Siri? Do you have a Roomba? Are you amazed by the personalized content that shows up in your Netflix dashboard? These brands have woven AI into the customer experience in a really tangible and practical way, that at this point feels natural and almost expected. However, even amidst regular use in society, many parish leaders are still grappling with the concept of embracing it to its full potential in ministry. 

Katie opened up the conversation well, casting strength in that doubt and helping us see clearly that technology can help enhance our purpose and traditions, rather than replace them. She said: 

“It (AI) is never going to be able to replace the sacramental life. The sacramental life and the Eucharist are tangible reminders of God’s divine providence for us and his victory over death. But at the end of the day, we also celebrate God’s creation, and that’s where we can embrace science to help us further the gospel message throughout the world.” – Katie Price

The most common ways Catholic ministry leaders are already leveraging AI (often with free tools) include:

• Refining messaging and drafting communications: Using tools like ChatGPT and Claude to quickly draft, simplify, or refine communication—such as parish bulletins, campaign language, or catechetical messaging.
• Idea generation: Using AI to brainstorm new concepts for events, like an attendee who planned an entire successful fall festival using a simple prompt.
• Data analysis: Uploading anonymized data (e.g., assigning numbers to major donors instead of names) to analyze historic performance, longevity of generosity, and project campaign goals. As one diocese shared, this data insight helped them turn a projected $250,000 campaign goal into one approaching $750,000 to $1 million.
• Note-taking and synthesis: Using tools like Gemini to record meeting notes and synthesize large amounts of data.
• Graphic creation: With free tools such as Canva.

AI can be a tool to enhance human connection

The greatest concern about new technology, especially AI, is that it will reduce human connection. This is a vital and valid caution. However, we emphasized that the Church’s approach to technology should be to increase human connection, not reduce it. In fact, our 2025 State of Church Technology report validates that 86% of churches do believe that technology increases connection in their community, which is positive.

As Catholics, our faith has a rich history of being at the forefront of technology and innovation—from early adoption of the printing press and the radio to the recent canonization of Saint Carlo Acutis, who used a website to proclaim Eucharistic miracles. We must continue to push the limits of what God has gifted us with, through our intellect.

Anthony Welch shared the example of the new Apple AirPods technology that allows two people speaking entirely different languages to hear each other translated in real-time. This is a profound example of technology enabling human connection that was previously impossible.

We highlighted the rise of AI agents trained specifically on Catholic teaching and doctrine. Magisterium AI and Truthly are both examples of specialized Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools designed to provide information, resources, and guidance specifically on the Catholic faith. They’re tools trained on encyclicals, the Catechism, and Scripture. Katie shared that we used it to generate a full, scripturally-backed curriculum for a stewardship talk tailored to specific age groups (K-8), saving 10 to 20 hours of research. This allows a catechist to spend more time preparing the delivery and praying with the content.

Pushpay’s AI search brings natural language to data

At Pushpay, our AI ethics framework is built around the principles of human dignity and enhancing human connection. Our product innovation is guided by the belief that technology should make your job easier, not harder.

Our new AI Search uses natural language query to automatically create advanced search filters, freeing up valuable time. Now your parish staff can simply ask a question in plain language like: “Who gave to this fund last year?” or “Which women are participating in small groups this month?” and the system applies the correct filters and returns the results, saving minutes—or hours—of administrative time per day. Our faith has always been a part of the technology that we bring into the world, and I am incredibly proud of the new AI-powered features and capabilities that we’re developing to help equip our customers. 

AI kickstart guide

If you’re ready to explore AI responsibly, here is a simple way to get started:

1. Pick two tools to explore: Start with a free version of a secular tool like Claude or Gemini for writing and brainstorming, and a Catholic tool like Magisterium AI for theological content. See what they can do for simple admin tasks (e.g., planning a meeting agenda).
2. Anonymize your data: Never put Personally Identifiable Information (PII) like names or addresses into open-source AI tools. Instead, replace names with codes or use anonymized numbers.
3. Start your policy discussion: It’s not too early to create an AI Usage Policy or Ethics Framework for your parish or diocese. Be intentional about what data you will allow to be used and how AI must always complement, but never replace, prayer and human interaction.

I believe that if we can embrace AI to remove 10 hours of administrative processes, which gives you 10 hours more time with your parishioners, that’s a win. I think we can use technology thoughtfully without losing sight of what matters most—authentic human connection and our relationship with Christ. The goal isn’t technology for its own sake, but using it intentionally to amplify our ministry impact. If you’d like to join us on the journey at Pushpay, and how we’re leading the way with technology innovation with the Catholic church, be sure to check out our innovation webpage and product release hub to learn more about what’s coming.