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Our unique ingredients

Creating a recipe to do the most good

For the past decade, we’ve been redefining philanthropy on a mission to make high-impact giving the norm.

We’re a research powerhouse, philanthropic advisor, community hub, global grant-maker and thought partner. We don’t just talk about change: we engineer it, funding and fueling the boldest solutions to the world’s most urgent problems.

Our community isn’t here to sit on the sidelines—we exist to shake things up.

We produce world-class research

Our research and recommendations are blueprints for philanthropists to take action and make data-led decisions.

Grounded in data and evidence, we examine the spaces where philanthropy can be most effective—prioritizing big, neglected problems and uncovering the best interventions for solving them.

We publish major research on pressing issues (from global risks, to education, to climate change), focusing on the key levers to create positive, lasting change.

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▲ A Research team workshop in 2018. Photo by Founders Pledge.

179

Top charities and projects identified

14

Research team members assembled

We build high-leverage pooled funds

We developed a to support the world's best charities: creating our own philanthropic funds.

The Fund model allows us to act quickly and strategically, pooling together donations to fill funding gaps, make time-sensitive grants, and shape new projects. And it gives donors—big and small, members of Founders Pledge or others who want to make a difference—a streamlined way to delegate decision-making and give impactfully to a cause they care about.

In 2024 we received a major endorsement of this approach: a single donation of $40 million to amplify our climate work and bolster the Climate Fund. This extraordinary vote of confidence turbocharged our capacity to do good. Learn more.

$72.6M

Contributed into our Funds

6,350+

Individual supporters of our Funds

$41.3M

Granted through our Funds

Rapid Response Fund

Filling urgent funding gaps created by the dismantling of USAID

Climate Fund

Building a more robust, future-proof global response to climate change

Global Health & Development Fund

Saving and improving the lives of the world’s most vulnerable people

Global Catastrophic Risks Fund

Reducing the biggest existential threats the world faces

Patient Philanthropy Fund

Investing to safeguard the future of humanity through a first-of-its-kind fund

Animal Welfare Fund

Improving health and wellbeing for the billions of farmed animals worldwide

We raised and distributed $4.6M through our COVID-19 Global Impact & Innovation Fund, which we closed in 2021.

We make grants where others don't

Unlike most other grantmaking organizations, we don’t shy away from new, unique or complex grantees.

Our approach may be singularly time- and resource-intensive, but it allows us to put impact first and ensure our members and Funds can support the best opportunities.

The neglected, underfunded opportunities that our Research team recommends—often early-stage, lesser-known, or complex projects—are high-impact but require more extensive due diligence. One example? Providing seed funding to establish brand new organizations.

We directed seed funding to launch these organizations, which are advancing critical work:
Berkeley Risk and Security Lab

A research institute at the University of California, Berkeley, studying the threats from frontier military technologies. By producing novel research, they seek to answer key questions about the future of international security and shape better policy.

EvE Bio

A new type of nonprofit—a focused research organization—pioneering a biomedical discipline. They aim to map the interactions of all known drug compounds against every human protein that plays a role in disease, accelerating early-stage drug discovery.

Global Shield

The world’s first international advocacy organization for global catastrophic risks. They’re working to ensure countries around the world take a holistic view of risk and effectively implement policies that address and reduce global catastrophic risk as a whole.

IBBIS

The International Biosecurity and Biosafety Initiative for Science is the only independent organization dedicated to reducing emerging biological risks from technology advances. They’re improving and standardizing screening for orders of synthetic DNA and RNA to prevent misuse by bad actors.

Terra Praxis

A leader in the movement to repower existing coal plants—which are responsible for almost one-third of global CO2 emissions each year—with low-carbon energy sources. They’re developing scalable, low-cost, clean solutions to decarbonize the largest sources of emissions.

We bring together global leaders and changemakers

Ideas, innovation, and change can be sparked when you bring the right group of people together.

We create space and opportunities for our community of entrepreneurs—well-versed in solving problems through their businesses—to think about solving the world’s problems, connecting them with a network of experts, thought leaders, and fellow founders to learn and be inspired.

Over the years, we’ve been privileged to host:

Foremost economists, including Dean Karlan, Rachel Glennerster, Tyler Cowen, Daniel Susskind, Mariana Mazzucato, and Nobel prize-winners Esther Duflo, Abhijit Banerjee and Michael Kremer.

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▲ Stefan Dercon, Michael Faye, and Rachel Glennerster at a dinner in 2017. © Founders Pledge

Founders and leaders, including Chris Hughes, Tony Blair, Jen Pahlka, Mike Krieger, and Tristram Stuart.

Experts and heads of nonprofits, including Michael Faye, David Miliband, Armond Cohen, Rory Stewart, Lord Martin Rees, Peter Drobac, and Jaime Yassif.

Philosophers and writers, including Alain de Botton, Peter Singer, Francis Fukuyama, and Matthieu Ricard.

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▲ David Miliband speaking at a dinner in 2024. © Founders Pledge

What our members say

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We don’t always have time to take a step back. Life’s too busy. And the problems in the world are too complicated. That’s why being part of Founders Pledge is so enriching. It helps me figure out how I can have an impact. Both now and in the future.

Vincent Jong
Founder & CEO of FunnelFox

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It is rare to come across gatherings with both accomplished and selfless individuals who care about things bigger than themselves. I think the sense of inspiration at Founders Pledge events are amplified since the dialogue is genuine with no side agendas.

Zeynep Dagli Kastro
Founder & CEO of Momento

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The summer retreat was a unique experience of insight and inspiration in a beautiful location. Exchanging experiences and perspectives with a remarkable group of founders, learning about global challenges from experts in an intimate and highly engaged environment - an extraordinary privilege.

Niall Murphy
Co-Founder of EVRYTHNG

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Founder’s Pledge retreats are always a highlight of my year. Thoughtfully curated with inspiring speakers and activities, and a chance to meet like-minded individuals. The retreats have a profound impact on my giving journey.

Nicola Kelly
Founders Pledge member