Capacity and FoodBridge Partner to Expand Access to Food and Community Care

Initiative combines AI-driven engagement with benefits-enabled food access to streamline how
neighbors connect to food, services and support

ST. LOUIS, July 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Capacity, the AI-powered support automation platform, today announced its partnership with FoodBridge, designed to revolutionize a pathway to economic sustainability for hunger relief organizations. Together, they have launched the Hunger Relief & Social Equity Initiative, a joint effort focused on making it easier for individuals to connect to food, benefits and community care.

Hunger relief organizations are operating in an increasingly complex environment. As federal food assistance policies shift and more responsibility moves to state and local organizations, hunger relief organizations are being asked to coordinate intake, eligibility, benefits navigation and distribution across disconnected systems, often with limited staff and heavy reliance on volunteers. Furthermore, these organizations are struggling to remain sustainable amid declining donations, grants and other funding, while facing increased demand.

The process is difficult to manage and even harder for individuals to navigate. Nutritional food deserts are growing, moving healthy food further away from the communities that desperately need it. This initiative is designed to simplify the experience and increase accessibility for both the organizations providing support and the individuals seeking it.

The initiative brings together conversational, agentic and relational AI and food access tools to help food banks and community organizations better connect individuals to food, benefits and support. Capacity engages individuals one-to-one via voice or text to automate intake, eligibility verification and benefits navigation, while FoodBridge enables SNAP and other supported transactions, food selection and distribution through a more modern, accessible system.

"Hunger relief organizations are doing critical work under increasing pressure, and too much of that effort is spent navigating fragmented systems," said David Karandish, CEO of Capacity. "This initiative is about creating a simpler way in, so people can access food and services more easily, and organizations can serve more individuals without additional administrative burden."

The Atlanta Community Food Bank is one example of how Capacity supports food banks today. By deploying conversational AI to guide intake and service navigation, Atlanta has made it easier for neighbors to access food assistance. Meanwhile, the approach reduces manual workload for staff and volunteers, allowing teams to focus more directly on food delivery and serving their communities. Among surveyed participants, 96% reported a four- or five-star experience.

The work in Atlanta reflects broader results from food bank and social service initiatives powered by Capacity, including:

• 38 million health and social service interactions supported
• 4 million food deliveries facilitated
• 743,000 social program qualifications completed
• 15.2% increase in individuals transitioning out of social programs

Building on that foundation, the Hunger Relief & Social Equity Initiative represents the next phase of value. By integrating benefits-enabled food access, e-commerce and delivery, organizations can move beyond navigation to full-service support. The result is broader access to higher-quality, lower-cost food for neighbors, increased revenue opportunities for organizations and meaningful data that helps strengthen the case for government and community funding.

"Hunger relief organizations don't need more technology; they need systems that actually work for the people they serve," said Kevin Lyons, President of FoodBridge. "What we're building with Capacity brings together the pieces that have traditionally been disconnected, simplifying access to food and benefits while giving organizations the infrastructure to operate more efficiently and serve their communities at scale."

Capacity and FoodBridge, alongside investor and philanthropic advisor Kathy Ireland, plan to expand the Hunger Relief & Social Equity Initiative to additional hunger relief organizations and community networks nationwide, creating a repeatable model that connects food access, benefits, healthcare and social services into a single, interoperable system.

To learn more, visit Capacity.com.

About Capacity

Founded in 2017, Capacity is an all-in-one, AI-powered support automation platform that uses practical and generative AI to deflect tickets, emails and phone calls—so your team can do their best work. More than 20,000 companies across industries use Capacity for external customer support and internal employee enablement. Today, Capacity offers support over web, SMS, email, voice, social, Slack, MS Teams, help desks and more. To learn more about Capacity, visit Capacity.com.

PANBlast for Capacity
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SOURCE Capacity