Building Protea: A SaaS Platform Empowering Nonprofits Through AI-Powered Grant Writing

As the founder of NPI Consulting House, I’ve spent years working in grant writing and consulting, helping nonprofits and small businesses secure funding. What I saw firsthand was the disparity in access to resources, particularly for smaller organizations that lacked the time and expertise to navigate the grant application process.

That’s why I built Protea.

Protea is a B2B SaaS platform designed to simplify grant writing for nonprofits, NGOs, and certified small businesses. At its core, Protea aims to level the playing field by offering tools that traditionally underserved organizations can use to access critical funding. Our platform features a step-by-step guided process, allowing organizations to answer prompted questions that automatically structure their grant applications. For those who need it, our AI-powered assistant goes one step further by generating written content based on each client’s brand language and organizational details.
Building Protea in Public

I’m a huge believer in the building in public movement, and I want to share Protea’s development journey with fellow entrepreneurs on Indie Hackers. Our MVP was built in Notion, and we’ve launched a clickable demo to gather feedback. We’re currently working on transitioning the platform to its own native environment, with the goal of having a fully functional AI-assisted grant writing system by the end of the year.

We’re focusing on three tiers of service:
*DIY ($250/month): For those who want to handle their own grant writing but need guidance.
*DIWY ($400/month): A more collaborative approach.
*DIFY ($550/month): A full-service, AI-powered solution.

My goal is to empower organizations to spend less time writing grants and more time focusing on their mission.

What’s Next? As I continue to build in public, I’m excited to hear from others who have faced similar challenges. The SaaS space for nonprofits is ripe for disruption, and I’d love to connect with others on this journey. If you’re interested in the platform or just want to share advice, feel free to reach out. Protea is on a mission to help nonprofits thrive, and together, I believe we can make a real difference.
Protea Demo -- https://www.npiconsultinghouse.com/protea