January 31, 2024 How CZI’s Tech Team Builds New Tools to Unlock Advances in Biomedical Research January 31, 2024/ Paul Karon One unique feature of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative is that it not only funds biomedical research, it employs a team of specialists to build new technology that can accelerate that research. Here’s how it works.Read More
January 19, 2024 Can Philanthropy and Government Work Together to Drive Socially Responsible Tech? January 19, 2024/ Paul Karon Five philanthropies are partnering with the National Science Foundation to advance the field of public interest technology — hopefully spurring the idea that public wellbeing must be a key element in tech development.Read More
December 21, 2023 How Two Bioscience Funding Giants are Partnering to Advance Synthetic Biology Research December 21, 2023/ Paul Karon The Allen Institute and Chan Zuckerberg Initiative teamed up with the University of Washington to pioneer a new generation of research tools with the ability to record the life and times of individual human cells.Read More
December 12, 2023 The Biggest XPRIZE Yet Seeks Therapies that Roll Back the Depredations of Aging December 12, 2023/ Paul Karon XPRIZE Foundation, the organization known for multimillion-dollar competitions to solve global problems, has announced its biggest purse ever — $101 million to develop therapies that keep us healthier, longer.Read More
December 04, 2023 A Major Bequest Finally Puts the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence on Solid Financial Ground December 04, 2023/ Paul Karon The SETI Institute has been looking for extraterrestrial life for 40 years, often with limited support. Now, a $200 million bequest from Qualcomm cofounder Franklin Antonio has given it some much-needed breathing room.Read More
November 27, 2023 Paul Allen's Philanthropic Legacy Continues with Funding for a Brand-New Field of Health Research November 27, 2023/ Paul Karon The late Microsoft co-founder’s Paul G. Allen Frontiers Group has launched its newest Discovery Center. Its goal: exploring how the human nervous system and immune system interact to shape health and disease.Read More
November 15, 2023 Starting With a Big Boost for Rare Disease Research, This Couple Are Ramping Up Their Giving November 15, 2023/ Paul Karon Mike and Sofia Segal came to the U.S. in 1978 from Ukraine with $120 and built a fortune in the electric power industry. Now, they're rolling out a set of big donations, starting with a $17 million gift to fight a rare blood cancer.Read More
November 02, 2023 How Dalio Philanthropies' OceanX is Working to Diversify Marine Research and Teaching November 02, 2023/ Paul Karon In the past year, this research nonprofit has expanded efforts to diversify ocean science through new educational partnerships with HBCUs Spelman College and Howard University — with more set to come.Read More
October 25, 2023 How a Transformative Educational Experience Led to a Tech Winner’s Huge Surprise Bequest October 25, 2023/ Paul Karon Franklin Antonio, who died last year, was cofounder and chief scientist at semiconductor giant Qualcomm. He left $200 million to Summer Science Program, which introduces talented teens to advanced research.Read More
October 16, 2023 Gates Leans into mRNA Technology for Vaccine Capacity in Low and Middle-Income Countries October 16, 2023/ Paul Karon mRNA technology promises vaccines that could be easily produced and highly effective against disease, especially in places with low access to medicines. Here’s how the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is ramping up its support.Read More
October 05, 2023 After Nearly a Century Funding Science, the Sloan Foundation Is Searching for Answers Near and Far October 05, 2023/ Paul Karon We checked in with the president of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, one of the country's longest-running backers of science, math, economics and technology, to learn about the foundation's wide-ranging mix of interests.Read More
September 29, 2023 A Look at How the Burroughs Wellcome Fund Backs Biomedical Researchers September 29, 2023/ Paul Karon Spun out of the Wellcome Trust, the U.S.-based Burroughs Wellcome Fund continues to sharpen its focus around diversity and equity in research, supporting early-career scientists, and more.Read More
September 19, 2023 Why This Texas Billionaire Is Giving Big for Biodiversity Science in the Lone Star State September 19, 2023/ Paul Karon Low-key philanthropist Stephen Winn, a Dallas-based investor and tech businessman, and his family have committed $50 million to help the University of Texas at Austin sharply expand ecology and climate research in the state.Read More
September 13, 2023 As It Shifts Strategies, the Kavli Foundation’s Zeroing in on How Climate Change Affects the Brain September 13, 2023/ Paul Karon Continuing its strategic shift, the veteran science funder has launched another new program. The aim is to address an underappreciated aspect of climate change: how it affects the neural systems of humans and animals.Read More
September 06, 2023 A Local Foundation, a Little-Known College, and a Potential HIV and Cancer Breakthrough September 06, 2023/ Paul Karon The Engelstad Foundation supported Touro University Nevada's lone biomedical lab when few other funders would. A recent discovery there could lead to new treatments for HIV, and even cancer, Alzheimer’s and more.Read More
August 25, 2023 Gates Remains Among the Few in Philanthropy to Drive Research for an HIV Vaccine August 25, 2023/ Paul Karon Philanthropy makes up only a small fraction of spending on research and support for people with HIV, still a major threat around the world. In the push for a vaccine, Gates and Gilead are leading the pack.Read More
August 11, 2023 AI for the Planet: How One of the World's Biggest Tech Firms Is Backing AI-Powered Climate Science August 11, 2023/ Paul Karon Google.org is putting artificial intelligence at the center of its current efforts to foster innovation in climate research. It’s something of a return to form for a corporate funder that previously focused heavily on COVID response.Read More
August 03, 2023 Big Changes Underway at Kavli, Starting With a Program to Aid Scholars Escaping Global Strife August 03, 2023/ Paul Karon For decades, the bulk of the Kavli Foundation's funding went to establishing scientific institutes with multimillion-dollar endowments. Now, a new president is reshaping the science funder's strategy.Read More
August 01, 2023 A Big Gift to UC San Diego is the Latest Philanthropic Push to Better Understand Psychedelics August 01, 2023/ Paul Karon Psychedelics show great promise in a range of medical therapies, but legal constraints and stigma have kept public funding minimal. As a result, philanthropy remains crucial to advancing research. Here’s the latest gift. Read More
July 26, 2023 AI Is Suddenly Everywhere, but Philanthropy Has Been Involved for Years. Here Are the Top Funders July 26, 2023/ Paul Karon Artificial intelligence is on everyone’s mind now, but philanthropy has been boosting research or bracing for its implications for some time. Here are the major funders involved in the field.Read More