Aphorism Foundation

SAN FRANCISCO, CA EIN: 46-4347021

2026-incentive-grant-recipients-302613294.html type: exa:news title: APhA Foundation announces 2025 - 2026 Incentive Grant recipients type: exa:news title: APhA Foundation Announces 2025 Incentive Grant Recipients type: exa:news title: 'The PLATO Philosophy Fund: A New Funding Initiative'

Financial Overview

From 2024 IRS Form 990-PF · View filing

Total Assets

$1.1B

+0.6% YoY

Annual Giving

$43.4M

-21.2% YoY

Grant Count

-18.2% YoY

Avg Grant Size

$1.6M

-3.7% YoY

Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Aphorism Foundation reported a distributable amount of $51.7M for 2024 — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.

Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated April 2026.

Mission & Focus Areas

The foundation broadly funds impact investing and venture philanthropy approaches across four primary areas:

Community Development — focusing on economic opportunity and community advancement
Democracy Initiatives — supporting democratic institutions and processes
Science Research — funding scientific advancement and research centers
Education — supporting educational innovation and institutions

The foundation prioritizes backing strong leaders and entrepreneurial approaches to social problems. It favors think tanks and research centers seeking innovative solutions over nonprofits providing direct services. The foundation supports "challenges" and calls for proposals as mechanisms for identifying grantees, and frequently partners with similar organizations pursuing impact-driven strategies.

Grantmaking

Notable 2023 grants include:

Grant Range

$100,000 - $14,500,000

Average Grant

approximately $1 million

How to Apply

**Recent Grant Activity:**

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Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

The foundation primarily funds organizations in:

California
Massachusetts
New York
United States (broadly)

Grant Distribution by State

Massachusetts $52.7M (43%)

California $41.5M (34%)

District of Columbia $11.0M (9%)

New York $5.3M (4%)

Washington $5.1M (4%)

Vermont $1.5M (1%)

Maryland $1.5M (1%)

North Carolina $1.3M (1%)

+6 more states

States

Alabama California District of Columbia Massachusetts Maryland North Carolina New Hampshire New York Pennsylvania Rhode Island Virginia Vermont Washington Wisconsin

Cities

ArlingtonBethesdaBostonBrightonBrooklynCambridgeCamrbidgeCarolina BeachCommackDana PointDurhamFalmouthHanoverHartlandLiverpoolLos AltosMercer IslandMilwaukeeMontgomeryMountain View

Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

Assets & Giving (2024):

Total Assets: $1,057,987,675
Total Giving: $43,449,493
Total Revenue: $34.4 million
Total Expenses: $44.5 million

Assets & Giving (2023):

Total Assets: $1,051,825,346
Total Giving: $55,144,755
Total Revenue: $59,254,514
Total Expenses: $61,346,228

Assets & Giving (2019):

Total Assets: $811,070,012
Total Revenue: $24,436,703
Total Expenses: $20,522,212

The foundation's revenue includes investment income and dividends from its substantial asset base.

Revenue

Expenses

Qualifying Distributions

Net Investment Income

Metric	2024	2023	2022
Total Assets	$1,057,987,675	$1,051,825,346	$1,051,342,844
Revenue	$34,440,061	$59,254,514	$-152,180,449
Expenses	$44,517,473	$61,346,228	$13,583,296
Qualifying Distributions	$43,449,493	$55,144,755	$12,846,893
Net Investment Income	$48,224,099	$59,142,303	$44,525,670
Distributable Amount	$51,687,605	$51,632,904	$54,321,768

Giving Over Time

Total grant dollars and number of grants per year

Grant Insights

How this funder distributes its grants

Top Recipients

Top 10 recipients in 2024

Grant Size Distribution

91 grants across all recorded years

Giving History

Grant recipients and amounts by year

Among its reported 2024 grants, the largest include Earth Species Project ($10,005,300), Probabilistic Computing Foundation Inc ($10,000,000), Science for America Inc ($3,000,000).

Recipient	Purpose	Amount
ASPEN INSTITUTE	GENERAL SUPPORT	$100,000
ASSOCIATION OF MARSHALL SCHOLARS INC BROOKLYN, NY	GENERAL SUPPORT	$1,461,858
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY NEW YORK, NY	GENERAL SUPPORT	$1,000,000
CONNECTED LEARNING ALLIANCE DANA POINT, CA	GENERAL SUPPORT	$1,865,000
CORTICO CORPORATION CAMBRIDGE, MA	GENERAL SUPPORT	$1,000,000
CZ BIOHUB NETWORK SAN FRANCISCO, CA	GENERAL SUPPORT	$2,000,000
DARTMOUTH COLLEGE HANOVER, NH	GENERAL SUPPORT	$515,835
DOLLAR FOR VANCOUVER, WA	GENERAL SUPPORT	$200,000
EARTH SPECIES PROJECT WEST HOLLYWOOD, CA	GENERAL SUPPORT	$10,005,300
ENDEAVOR GLOBAL INC NEW YORK, NY	GENERAL SUPPORT	$50,000

Leadership & Key People

Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings

Founder: Reid Hoffman, LinkedIn co-founder

The foundation was established by Reid Hoffman and his wife Michelle Yee as their primary charitable giving vehicle. Hoffman maintains direct involvement in all funding decisions and operates the foundation without dedicated grantmaking staff. Both Hoffman and Yee are signatories of the Giving Pledge.

Compensation Overview

From 2024 IRS filing

From 2024 filing

Name	Title	Hours	Compensation
REID HOFFMAN	PPRES/TREAS/DIR	1	—
FRANK F HUANG	SECRETARY	1	—

Contact Information

Address: 220 Jackson Street, Floor 2, San Francisco, CA 94111-1831

Phone: 415-362-5990

Website: None (the foundation does not maintain a public website)

Subject Areas

Focus areas based on grantmaking activity

Philanthropy, Voluntarism & Grantmaking

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Aphorism Foundation fund?

The foundation broadly funds impact investing and venture philanthropy approaches across four primary areas: • **Community Development** — focusing on economic opportunity and community advancement • **Democracy Initiatives** — supporting democratic institutions and processes • **Science Research** — funding scientific advancement and research centers • **Education** — supporting educational innovation and institutions The foundation prioritizes backing strong leaders and entrepreneurial approa…

How do I apply for a grant from Aphorism Foundation?

**Grant Characteristics:** • Typical grant range: $100,000 - $14,500,000 • Average grant size: approximately $1 million • The foundation does not accept unsolicited proposals and operates on an invitation-only basis • No formal grant programs or public application process **Recent Grant Activity:** Notable 2023 grants include: • Probabilistic Computing Foundation: $14,500,000 • Stanford University: $10,000,000 • Science for America: $6,000,000 • The Barack Obama Foundation (among 23 additional …

Where does Aphorism Foundation make grants?

The foundation primarily funds organizations in: • California • Massachusetts • New York • United States (broadly)

What size grants does Aphorism Foundation award?

In 2024, Aphorism Foundation awarded 27 grants totaling $43.4M — an average of about $1.6M per grant, based on its IRS Form 990 filings.

How much is Aphorism Foundation required to give away each year?

Private foundations must generally distribute about 5% of their assets annually. For 2024, Aphorism Foundation reported a distributable amount of $51.7M on its IRS Form 990-PF — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.