Carrie Edwards of Midlothian, Virginia, is turning heads across the nation after winning $150,000 in the Virginia Lottery’s Powerball drawing—and giving every cent to charity.
Edwards, who played the lottery online for the first time on September 8, turned to artificial intelligence for help. “I’m like, ChatGPT, talk to me… Do you have numbers for me?” she recalled during a press conference. The AI-generated picks matched four of the first five numbers plus the Powerball. Originally worth $50,000, the payout tripled to $150,000 because Edwards had opted for the Power Play feature.
The Midlothian resident didn’t even realize she’d won until two days later when a phone alert popped up mid-meeting. “It said, ‘Please collect your lottery winnings.’ I thought, ‘I know I didn’t win,’” Edwards laughed. After confirming the notification wasn’t a scam, she realized her AI-assisted gamble had paid off.
Edwards’ surprise win quickly became an act of generosity. Instead of keeping the money, she donated all $150,000 to causes close to her heart.
“As soon as that divine windfall happened and came down upon my shoulders, I knew exactly what I needed to do with it,” she said. “And I knew I needed to give it all away, because I’ve been so blessed, and I want this to be an example of how other people, when they’re blessed, can bless other people.”
On September 16, Edwards split her winnings evenly, writing three $50,000 checks to organizations representing “healing, service, and community.”
The first donation went to the Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration (AFTD) in honor of her late husband, Steve Edwards, a firefighter and first responder who battled the disease for seven years before he died in 2024.
“This cause is deeply personal,” she said. “During World FTD Awareness Month, I wanted this gift to shine a light on the families who are fighting this disease and on the researchers working toward a cure.”
Her second gift supported Shalom Farms, a Richmond-based nonprofit dedicated to food justice and fighting food insecurity. Edwards praised the group’s mission, reflecting the understanding that “we all are responsible for helping each other, supporting our community, and lifting those who don’t have what we have.”
Finally, she directed $50,000 to the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society, honoring her father, a fighter pilot who supported the organization. The nonprofit provides military families and veterans financial, educational, and emergency assistance.
Edwards has long been an advocate for awareness of frontotemporal degeneration. Following her husband’s diagnosis, she became an AFTD Ambassador and helped push for Virginia’s official recognition of FTD Awareness Week.
Her family’s dedication to service and remembrance was evident as she explained the meaning behind her choice. “God is blessing me, so I can bless others through Him. After all, we are all just walking each other Home,” Edwards said.
Edwards’ story has sparked fascination with her use of ChatGPT. Experts stress that AI cannot predict winning numbers and that her win was purely luck. In this case, the AI served as a random number generator.
