Center for Applied Rationality
Perform and conduct research into individual, collective, and artificial cognition. Do this research by: a) searching for ideas on how to align machine intelligence, and for useful ideas on how to improve the reasoning of both individual humans and groups of humans; b) test whether the ideas for one port to the others; c) test our ideas through targeted educational experiments, research workshops, physical research centres, and online research fora; d) collaborate with external researchers in related fields.
Center for Applied Rationality at a glance
In short: Center for Applied Rationality gave $77K across 1 grant in 2025 (avg $77K), mostly in California. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $77,448
- +7644.8% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 1
- Average grant
- $77,448
- Median grant
- $77,448
- Total assets
- $1,850,466
- -92.0% vs 2024
- Primary geography
- California (100% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990, 2025; updated September 2026.
Who Center for Applied Rationality funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top recipient in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Lightcone Infrastructure Inc ($77K).
Grant Size Distribution
3 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 2 grants of 3 (67%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
Grant Distribution by State
Share of the 2025 grant dollars on its one itemized grant.
States
Cities
Giving History
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
From 2020 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $1K (2024) to $219K (2020). In 2025 it made 1 grant totaling $77K.
Hatched bars: grants paid as reported on the IRS filing, which lists no individual grants for that year.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Lightcone Infrastructure Inc Berkeley, CA | Grants to lightcone infrastructure inc. To support the prototype project, including funding for personnel and project-related expenses, as well as transfer and reconciliation of restricted funds. | $77,448 |
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Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Net Investment Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $1,850,466 | $2,414,440 | $2,077,875 | $77,448 | 1 | $1,179 |
| 2024 | $23,039,646 | $6,329,582 | $10,154,994 | $1,000 | Total only | $372 |
| 2023 | $28,001,445 | $9,087,409 | $9,407,213 | — | — | $79 |
| 2022 | $26,094,460 | $11,648,954 | $10,163,623 | $13,337 | Total only | $2,134 |
| 2021 | $4,444,483 | $4,525,208 | $3,692,284 | $33,000 | 2 | $-8,589 |
| 2020 | $3,355,803 | $2,323,476 | $1,967,112 | $219,000 | 1 | $14,985 |
"Total only": grants paid as reported on the IRS filing, which lists no individual grants for that year.
About Center for Applied Rationality
Based on IRS filings
Center for Applied Rationality is a public charity focused on Medical Research, based in Berkeley, CA. IRS filing data is available from 2020 through 2025. As of 2025, the organization holds $1.9M in total assets. In 2025, it awarded 1 grant totaling $77K. Net investment income was $1K.
Focus Areas
Leadership & Key People
Officers and directors from IRS filings
Center for Applied Rationality is led by Anna Salamon, President on every filing since 2020; 5 of 7 officers listed in 2025 are compensated.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Anna Salamon
President
On filings since 2020
5 hrs/week
$54K (2020) → $22K (2025)
Jackson Rose
Director of Operations
New on the 2025 filing
5 hrs/week
$63K (2025)
Ruben Bloom
Team Lead
On filings since 2021
40 hrs/week
$115K (2021) → $211K (2025)
Ben Pace
Team Lead
On filings since 2022
40 hrs/week
$210K (2022) → $134K (2025)
Rafe Kennedy
Team Lead
On filings since 2023
40 hrs/week
$225K (2023) → $202K (2025)
Divia Caroline Eden
Board Member
On filings since 2022
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Zvi Mowshowitz
Board Member
On filings since 2022
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (13)
- Former: James Babcock (2022–2024) — Team Lead
- Former: Raymond Arnold (2022–2024) — Team Lead
- Former: Robert Mushkatblat (2022–2024) — Team Lead
- Former: Oliver Habryka (2023–2024) — Team Lead
- Former: Charlie Rogers-Smith (2024) — Team Lead
- Former: Lucas Teixeira (2024) — Team Lead
- Former: Miranda Dixon-Luinenburg (2024) — Team Lead
- Former: Ronny Fernandez (2024) — Team Lead
- Former: Jackson Carrol (2020–2023) — Director of Operations
- Former: Jacob Lagerros (2022–2023) — Team Lead
- Former: Jesse Liptrap (2020–2021) — Treasurer
- Former: Michael Blume (2020–2021) — Secretary
- Former: Timothy Telleen-Lawton (2020–2021) — Executive Director
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2020–2025. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.
Compensation Overview
From 2025 IRS filing
The highest reported compensation on the 2025 filing was $211K, to Ruben Bloom (Team Lead). 5 officers or directors reported compensation on that filing.
Frequently asked questions about Center for Applied Rationality
How much does Center for Applied Rationality give each year?
Center for Applied Rationality gave $77K across 1 grant in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. In 2024 it reported $1K in grants paid.
How large is Center for Applied Rationality?
Center for Applied Rationality reported $1.9M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Its revenue that year was $2.4M.
What is Center for Applied Rationality?
Center for Applied Rationality is a public charity focused on Medical Research, based in Berkeley, CA. It holds $1.9M in total assets as of 2025.
Where does Center for Applied Rationality operate?
Center for Applied Rationality has awarded grants in California, Washington.
What is Center for Applied Rationality's EIN?
Center for Applied Rationality's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 45-3100226. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
Data last updated September 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990 filings.
Data update history
(6)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS November 11, 2021)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS August 19, 2022)
- Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS July 7, 2026)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS March 28, 2024)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS August 21, 2025)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
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