Dr Miriam & Sheldon G Adelson
The Dr. Miriam and Sheldon G. Adelson Medical Research Foundation (AMRF) is a private foundation established in 2006 and headquartered in Needham, Massachusetts. The foundation operates as a 501(c)(3) organization with a staff of three employees. It is structured as a unique collaborative research funding model rather than a traditional grantmaking foundation.
Financial Overview
From 2024 IRS Form 990-PF · View filing
Total Assets
$714K
-47.8% YoY
Annual Giving
$40.8M
+15.5% YoY
Grant Count
38
+2.7% YoY
Avg Grant Size
$1.1M
+12.5% YoY
Mission & Focus Areas
The foundation is committed to fostering open and highly integrated collaboration among investigators participating in goal-directed discovery and clinical research to prevent, reduce, or eliminate disabling and life-threatening illnesses.
The foundation's distinctive approach encourages investigators to find common denominators across diseases with regards to genes, cells, molecules, and pathways involved. Scientists from different institutions work together as "Collaborating Scientists" to conduct synergetic groups of research studies (referred to as "Component Projects") within a broader "Collaboration" framework. The foundation provides infrastructure and financial support to foster these collaborations and to protect and commercialize resulting biomedical innovation.
Current funding priorities focus on collaborative translational research programs in:
- Oncology
- Neurology
- Immunology
Grantmaking
The foundation operates an invitation-only model in which it recruits researchers rather than accepting unsolicited applications. Success rates are not publicly available due to this recruitment-based approach.
Grant Range
** $50,000 to $3,500,000
How to Apply
**
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Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
The foundation supports researchers and research teams at top universities and research institutes internationally, with primary focus on the United States and Israel. Recent grants have supported researchers at institutions including Johns Hopkins University, Rockefeller University, Cedars Sinai Medical Center, Stanford University, and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Grant Distribution by State
States
Cities
Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
2024:
- Total revenues: $42,114,321
- Total expenses: $42,768,420
- Total assets: $714,299
2023:
- Total revenues: $37,618,546
- Total expenses: $37,093,371
- Total assets: $1,368,398
The foundation's program areas utilize interest income in support of charitable activities.
| Metric | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Assets | $714,299 | $1,368,398 | $851,025 |
| Revenue | $42,114,321 | $37,618,546 | $27,248,902 |
| Expenses | $42,768,420 | $37,093,371 | $36,222,827 |
| Qualifying Distributions | $42,444,335 | $36,776,661 | $35,748,513 |
| Net Investment Income | $39,878 | $37,150 | $12,308 |
| Distributable Amount | $140,085 | $132,134 | $171,596 |
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
187 grants across all recorded years
Giving History
Grant recipients and amounts by year
No grants recorded for .
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
Chief Science Officer: Dr. Kristian Hedstrom
The foundation was founded by Dr. Miriam Adelson and the late Sheldon G. Adelson (who passed away in January 2021). Sheldon G. Adelson served as trustee of the foundation.
Compensation Overview
From 2024 IRS filing
From 2024 filing
| Name | Title | Hours | Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|
| DR MIRIAM ADELSON | TRUSTEE | 1 | — |
| STEVEN GARFINKEL | VP & GENERAL COUNSEL | 5 | — |
Contact Information
Phone: 781-972-5900
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.adelsonfoundation.org
Address: 300 First Avenue, Needham, MA 02494-2736
Subject Areas
Focus areas based on grantmaking activity
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Data last updated April 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated April 2026.
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