Human-level AI could soon transform the global economy – reshaping industries and displacing jobs at scale. Windfall Trust is an independent non-profit working to prepare society for the disruption ahead, and to shape a future where the immense wealth generated by AI benefits all of humanity. We were invited to define the strategy, positioning and brand identity for this vital new organisation.
AI is advancing rapidly. Today, vast resources are being channelled into building systems that can outperform humans at nearly every job. As things stand, the enormous windfall of wealth and power this generates will flow into the hands of the few, while billions of people lose their livelihoods.
Our current economic systems are critically unprepared. Few economists are fully grappling with the issue, and policymakers are slow to act. Immediate, strategic intervention is vital.
Windfall Trust is an independent organisation, established to prepare society for this economic disruption and to shape a future where the windfall that AI generates benefits all of humanity. Windfall is not a think tank – it is a policy accelerator for the age of labour-replacing AI.
The founder of Windfall Trust came to us with a clear ambition: to establish the organisation as the leading influential voice on this issue. This would require attracting strategic partnerships and growth funding, securing invitations to high-profile events such as the World Economic Forum in Davos, and building credibility with high-level stakeholders – from AI labs to economists, policymakers and international organisations.
But Windfall Trust is more than an organisation. It is also a movement. It exists to spark a global conversation and ensure widespread understanding of what lies ahead and the immediate need for action.
The communications challenge was twofold. First, Windfall Trust needed to engage a diverse group of elite decision-makers while also convening and influencing a broader ecosystem: unions, professional bodies, academics, media and the public. Second, it needed to stand out in an increasingly crowded space – one dominated by familiar philanthropic brands, traditional think tanks, and policy actors relying on outdated models of foreign aid, philanthropy and nation-bound taxation.
We worked as thought partners to the founder, helping to shape the language, positioning and early communications of this vital new organisation.
A strong identity begins with alignment. To ensure resonance across Windfall’s broad network, we began by listening – running in-depth interviews with key stakeholders including funders, nonprofit leaders in AI governance, and policy researchers. We also spoke to technologists who had left Silicon Valley to work in the social impact space – voices that brought fresh insight to Windfall’s distinct role.
To ground the brand in context, we conducted a landscape analysis of the wider ecosystem – from AI safety groups and international policy think tanks to tech-funded philanthropic initiatives. We found that no organisation exists that is focused solely on the global socio-economic fallout of human-level AI.
Our research into visual branding for peer organisations revealed a sea of sameness: bland, neutral identities reliant on familiar tropes – data waves, neural nodes, endless blues and pastels.
With this research as a basis, we developed a Brand Blueprint: a strategic document bringing together audience insights with positioning advice, and exploring potential barriers to traction. We defined the brand’s personality and tone – a balance of urgency and hopeful composure – as well as a brand narrative to guide the way the organisation speaks to different audiences.
At the heart of this work, we defined a conceptual hook – the single-minded creative idea that would anchor and energise the brand.
The creative idea began with the windfall apple – abstracted into a single dot. In the logo, this circle also represents the globe and highlights the word ‘all’ in ‘Windfall’ – a visual cue to the Trust’s founding belief that AI-driven prosperity must serve all of humanity.
The visual identity draws inspiration from the Bauhaus movement – a design philosophy that embraced clarity, geometry and social function. Like Windfall, Bauhaus ideas transcended borders and disciplines. While we drew inspiration from that legacy, we consciously steered clear of retro pastiche in selecting our typeface – opting instead for Forma, a sans serif first launched in 1970 by a collective of Italian designers. Refined in 2016, it balances rational structure with subtle warmth – seen in its tight-but-not-touching letterforms and soft irregularities.
In a conservative policy space, Windfall needed to stand out. We developed a bold yet flexible colour palette: a richer, muted range of tones for elite stakeholders; and a brighter, more direct set for public-facing materials.
The dot became the basis of a graphic system – bold, minimal and deliberate. Combined with a square and an arrow, we created a visual language capable of expressing abstract but vital ideas: concentrated wealth, redistribution, safety nets, and systemic disruption.
This system came to life in motion on the homepage – not through literal explanation, but through a dynamic sequence that evokes the ripple effects of AI disruption: the concentration of power, the displacement of work, and the opportunity to intervene.
Photography plays a supporting role. To signal emergence and disruption, we applied a subtle distortion to the edges of selected images – introducing visual tension and suggesting a world in flux.
A further visual development explores the unsettling prospect of labour-replacing AI. In these images, the dot motif is used to obscure parts of the human figure – often the face – drawing attention to what’s missing and provoking a deeper reflection on what might be lost.
At the heart of the strategy, we proposed a narrative built around a crossroads moment. What first appears to be a threat – mass automation, job displacement, concentrated wealth – can become a shared gain. Society can shape a fair path forward, where all humanity thrives – but this will only happen through deliberate action. This framing underscores the need for foresight, governance, and public imagination. As the brand now expresses: The future isn’t something that happens to us – it’s something that we create.
We developed a messaging framework to support Windfall’s communications across multiple audiences, structured around three pillars: the problem, the opportunity, and clear calls to action. This included universal messages for all audiences, alongside tailored messages for policy stakeholders, AI labs and civil society groups.
We also defined Windfall’s tone of voice – one that balances urgent concern with hopeful possibility. It is built on four key principles:
To ensure coherence and clarity, we created a practical suite of templates and brand guidance. This included website and social media templates, branded stationery, report and presentation decks, and tone of voice direction. We also developed motion guidelines – helping collaborators apply the brand’s visual language with consistency and intention across digital formats.
The result is a brand that feels visionary yet grounded – a deliberate shift from the anonymous, academic tone of many policy organisations.
Windfall Trust now has a distinctive and strategically grounded brand – one that reflects the seriousness of its mission while signalling bold, imaginative leadership. As the organisation grows its network and influence, the identity is already helping it convene the right audiences and spark the right conversations.
The Windfall Trust is taking on one of the most complex and urgent challenges of our time – ensuring the economic benefits of advanced AI are shared fairly across the globe. From the very beginning, Sue and her team helped us to craft a brand and messaging approach that felt human and inclusive, while still conveying the authority and expertise the mission demands. Sue brings a unique combination of creative skill, strategic thinking, and calm professionalism – she made an ambitious, global brief feel achievable and enjoyable throughout. We couldn’t have asked for a better partner.
Adrian Brown, Founder, Windfall Trust
