Gordon E and Betty I Moore Foundation
Preselected recipients only
Gordon E and Betty I Moore Foundation is a private foundation in Palo Alto, California. In tax year 2024 it gave $391 million in 920 grants; the typical grant was $200,000 and the largest $20.0 million. It only gives to organizations it selects itself and does not accept unsolicited applications.
From its IRS Form 990-PF for tax year 2024.
- Grants paid, 2024$391 million
- Number of grants920
- Typical grant$200,000
- Largest grant$20.0 million
- Assets$12 billion
- New grantees43%
Giving in 2024 was down from $408 million the year before.
43% of its 2024 grantees had not received a grant from it the year before, a sign it is open to new organizations.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants paid | Number of grants | Assets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | $408 million | 952 | $8.8 billion |
| 2024 | $391 million | 920 | $12 billion |
How to apply
Gordon E and Betty I Moore Foundation says in its IRS filing that it only makes contributions to preselected organizations, so unsolicited applications are unlikely to be considered. Organizations it funds are usually invited.
Foundation website IRS filings on ProPublica
What Gordon E and Betty I Moore Foundation funds
Where it gives
Its US grants went to recipients in 40 states, the most to California. It also paid $89.0 million in 152 grants to recipients outside the US.
| State | Grants | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| California | 304 | $118 million |
| District of Columbia | 101 | $51.6 million |
| Massachusetts | 50 | $42.3 million |
| New York | 61 | $33.2 million |
| Virginia | 21 | $15.7 million |
| Colorado | 25 | $7.3 million |
| New Jersey | 21 | $6.8 million |
| Illinois | 19 | $5.8 million |
| Maryland | 21 | $4.8 million |
| Kentucky | 3 | $4.4 million |
Grants paid in 2024
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Broad Institute Inc | In support of a unique technology platform and associated resources that supports immersive educational experiences that also benefits frontline pandemic response. | $20.0 million |
| Makeway Foundation | In support of british columbia durability. | $10.0 million |
| Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors Inc | To support climate resilient fisheries management. | $10.0 million |
| New Venture Fund | To strengthen implementation of the conservation and markets initiative. | $8.3 million |
| Smithsonian Institution | To support launch of the global geo-trees initiative for tropical forests, which will create a high-resolution carbon biomass verification system based on a worldwide network of forest research sites. | $8.0 million |
| Resources Legacy Fund | To launch a funding facility that will support countries to develop and implement ambitious policies for nature and climate. | $6.5 million |
| Regents of the University of California | This grant will support the creation of the diagnostic excellence center for engagement, learning, and action (dxcelerator) at ucsf. | $5.0 million |
| The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University | To support mainstreaming the integration of natural capital approaches into development policy and finance. | $5.0 million |
| Peninsula Open Space Trust | To support the long-term stewardship of wildlife passage, endangered species conservation and protected watershed in the south bay. | $4.3 million |
| International Financial Reporting Standards Foundation | To support the acceleration and standardization of nature-related disclosures at a global scale. | $4.0 million |
| The Conservation Fund A Nonprofit Corporation | In support of the acquisition and permanent protection of richmond ranch in santa clara county. | $3.5 million |
| Smithsonian Institution | To support the construction of a prototype radio-telescope dish for the next-generation event horizon telescope at the teide observatory in the canary islands, enabling improved imaging of supermassive black holes and their environments. | $3.4 million |
| Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies Inc | In support of a western u.s. Fire ecology and forest resilience science collaborative to advance new knowledge and improved understanding of future wildfire resilience and stewardship implications rapidly and synthetically. | $3.3 million |
| Universitaet Wien | In support of research to integrate quantum computing with electron microscopy, creating a new imaging technology that can provide highly detailed images of biological and material samples beyond the capabilities of current methods. | $3.2 million |
| Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York | To support the development of a three-dimensional model of the earth's internal dynamics by integrating quantum geophysics, geodynamics, and seismology, advancing our understanding of the deep earth. | $3.2 million |
| Earth Fire Alliance | In support of initial operational capability preparation of the firesat program. | $3.0 million |
| Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund | In support of seed funding for early stage, innovative opportunities in basic research, as identified by hypothesis fund's scientist scouts. | $3.0 million |
| STEM Next Opportunity Fund | In support of organizational capacity to pivot to a new structure for broadened impact and field leadership. | $3.0 million |
| Great Bear Initiative Society | In support of durable marine stewardship. | $2.7 million |
| Regents of the University of California | In support of the development, piloting, and evaluation of resources and materials that aim to teach scientifically grounded reasoning for youth and non-expert scientists. | $2.6 million |
| Asociacion Para la Conservacion de la Cuenca Amazonica | In support of the infrastructure, construction and renovations required for los amigos biological station to be a leading venue for tropical forest ecosystem research in the western amazon. | $2.6 million |
| Inaturalist | To enable inaturalist to realize its potential as a global scientific and conservation sensor by 2030, harnessing data from its user community and optimizing advances in ai to inform critical insights and to connect people to nature. | $2.5 million |
| National Wildlife Federation | In support of the implementation of deforestation and conversion-free commitments by meatpackers in south america. | $2.5 million |
| The Tech Interactive | In support of an earthquake exhibition area with a shake table simulator, themed design challenges, and interactive data visualization activities. | $2.5 million |
| Makeway Foundation | In support of durable marine conservation. | $2.4 million |
| Regents of the University of California | To support strategic efforts to enhance visitor experience at the public science center. | $2.4 million |
| Regents of the University of California | To support the development and commissioning of the high-resolution infrared spectrograph for exoplanet characterization (hispec) for the w. M. Keck observatory, which will create new knowledge about exoplanets through high-resolution spectroscopy. | $2.4 million |
| California Academy of Sciences | In support of the complete digitization and documentation of an extensive global collection of historical botany specimens. | $2.2 million |
| Ocean Conservancy Inc | To support and protect ecological hotspots and strengthen science-based fisheries management in the u.s. Bering and chukchi seas. | $2.2 million |
| The Exploratorium | In support of an architectural master plan for campus site. | $2.1 million |
| Association of Science-Technology Centers Incorporated | To increase public understanding of and participation in biodiversity action projects through targeted programming in science centers and museums. | $2.1 million |
| Conservation X Labs Inc | In support of developing empirically validated multimodal and autonomous ai models that will accelerate the speed and scale of scientific research. | $2.0 million |
| Multiplier | In support of the organizational development and planning for scale of sensor-based kits and platforms for conservation, education, and scientific purposes. | $2.0 million |
| Nature Conservancy | To facilitate the transition away from agricultural use of point reyes national seashore to conservation-focused management that will enhance wildlife habitat and water quality. | $2.0 million |
| Oceana Canada | In support of durable sustainable fisheries management. | $2.0 million |
| Smithsonian Institution | To support development of ultrafast laser data link technology that will enable millimeter-wave astronomy from medium earth orbit, advancing knowledge about supermassive black holes and mechanisms of star formation. | $2.0 million |
| Scratch Foundation | In support of the integration of ai into a coding platform to support creative learning for youth at scale. | $2.0 million |
| World Wildlife Fund Inc | To support the development of a global nature-based solutions platform. | $1.9 million |
| Institute for Healthcare Improvement | To promote collaboration between the society to improve diagnosis in medicine's diagnostic quality improvement seed grant program and the institute for healthcare improvement's age-friendly health systems movement, with the aim to improve diagnosis. | $1.9 million |
| The Exploratorium | In support of increased fundraising and growth in organization donor base. | $1.9 million |
Officers and trustees
- Rosina Bierbaum
- John Dabiri
- Kenneth Moore
- John Hennessy
- Kathleen Justice-Moore
- Hilary Krane
- Jonathan Levin
- Kristen Moore
- Steven Moore
- Ellen Ochoa
- Pardis Sabeti
- Edward E Penhoet
- Ken Siebel
- Harvey V Fineberg
- Sasha Abrams
Questions people ask
Does Gordon E and Betty I Moore Foundation accept grant applications?
No. Its IRS filing says it only makes contributions to preselected organizations.
How much does Gordon E and Betty I Moore Foundation give?
$391 million in tax year 2024, across 920 grants, with a typical grant of $200,000.
Who runs Gordon E and Betty I Moore Foundation?
Its 2024 filing lists Rosina Bierbaum (Trustee), John Dabiri (Trustee), Kenneth Moore (Trustee & Chair) and John Hennessy (Trustee & Vice Chair) among 15 officers and trustees.
What does Gordon E and Betty I Moore Foundation fund?
Based on its grants, mainly environment and conservation, education and science and research.