Founders Pledge Inc is a 501(c)(3) organization based in New York, New York, registered in 2020, with $144,636,466 in FY2024 revenue. CharityIndex grades it A+, and it directs about 96% of spending to programs.
Revenue (FY2024)
$144.6M
▲ 318.5% vs prior year
Philanthropy median: $168K
Expenses (FY2024)
$34.6M
Net assets
$116.2M
Employees
26
Measures how much of every dollar spent actually reaches programs, plus what it costs to raise $100 of donations. The worse of the two measures sets the letter (85%+ to programs is an A; under $15 to raise $100 is an A), averaged over the three most recent filings. For Founders Pledge Inc: 96% to programs · $0 to raise $100 earns a A+ on this criterion. See the exact thresholds →
Measures whether the organization is built to last: how many months its reserves would cover expenses (3+ months earns an A-range score, but hoarding 5+ years of budget is capped) and whether it runs a surplus or a deficit. For Founders Pledge Inc: 40 mo reserves · +76% margin earns a A on this criterion. See the exact thresholds →
Checks how the organization is run, from its own Form 990: an independent board majority, a board of five or more, conflict-of-interest, whistleblower and document-retention policies, and independently audited financials. The share of disclosed checks that pass sets the letter. For Founders Pledge Inc: 6 of 6 checks met earns a A+ on this criterion. See the exact thresholds →
Counts five disclosure signals: a recent filing, a mission statement, program descriptions, a listed website, and the full expense breakdown. More disclosure, better letter. For Founders Pledge Inc: 4 of 5 disclosure signals earns a A on this criterion. See the exact thresholds →
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Founders pledge, inc. is a non-profit organization created to empower entrepreneurs and investors to do immense good by facilitating charitable giving.
Revenue grew from $574K (FY2016) to $144.6M (FY2024) across 8 reported years.
Financial snapshot
Operating margin
76.1%
Revenue exceeded expenses in the latest fiscal year.
Total assets
$117.6M
Total liabilities
$1.4M
Net assets
$116.2M
Salaries & benefits
$126K
0% of expenses
Board members
5
5 independent
| Fiscal year | Revenue | Expenses | Net assets | Total assets | Form |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $144,636,466▲318% | $34,600,883▼6.0% | $116,166,815▲1641% | $117,609,621▲1436% | 990 |
| 2023 | $34,561,202▲48.0% | $36,820,678▲31.2% | $6,674,022▼25.3% | $7,657,489▼21.9% | 990PF |
| 2022 | $23,352,443▼20.1% | $28,065,989▲5.9% | $8,933,130▼34.5% | $9,810,548▼28.3% | 990PF |
| 2021 | $29,209,174▲167% | $26,510,751▲433% | $13,647,301▲24.8% | $13,676,250▲23.8% | 990PF |
| 2020 | $10,955,941▲1142% | $4,977,021▲269% | $10,933,505▲1972% | $11,047,486▲1882% | 990PF |
| 2018 | $882,007▼28.6% | $1,349,082▲114% | $527,779▼47.5% | $557,263▼44.6% | 990PF |
| 2017 | $1,234,688▲115% | $630,632▲246% | $1,006,011▲157% | $1,006,011▲157% | 990PF |
| 2016 | $573,924 | $182,342 | $391,789 | $391,789 | 990PF |
Original Form 990 PDFs (the Form column) are served by ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, as filed with the IRS. Create a free account to download the CSV report.
Highest-paid: Matt Lerner — $146,125 (0.42% of total expenses)
| Name | Title | Hours/week | Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Matt Lerner | Research Director | 40 | $146,125 |
| Nate Kuerschner | Head of Philanthropic Services Operations | 40 | $138,804 |
| Dominic Finelli | Principal Advisor | 40 | $131,934 |
| Alex Sajben | Senior Advisor | 40 | $124,302 |
| Rachel Ash Thru 82024 | Us Managing Director | 40 | $120,674 |
| Jonathan Roncek | Finance Manager | 40 | $120,236 |
| Danielle Bayer | Director | 0.45 | — |
| David Jonathan Goldberg | President/treasurer | 0.45 | — |
| David Klein | Director | 0.45 | — |
| Philippa Lawrence | Director | 0.45 | — |
| Sabrina Pourmand | Secretary | 0.45 | — |
| Contractor | Services | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Justworks Employment Group LLC | Leased Employees | $2,930,853 |
42 grants to Founders Pledge Inc totaling $70.4M, reported by foundations on their Schedule I filings — showing the 15 most recent.
| Grantmaker | Purpose | Year | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Follow Your Dream Foundation Inc | General support | 2024 | $2,000,000 |
| American Endowment Foundation | Philanthropy | 2024 | $1,776,000 |
| Silicon Valley Community Foundation | General nonprofit support | 2024 | $110,000 |
| Gs Donor Advised Philanthropy Fund For Wealth Management Inc | Community & human services | 2024 | $65,000 |
| Jewish Communal Fund | In furtherance of grantee's tax-exempt purpose | 2024 | $50,000 |
| American Online Giving Foundation Inc | General support | 2024 | $11,016 |
| Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund | For grant recipient's exempt purposes | 2023 | $43,764,671 |
| Silicon Valley Community Foundation | General nonprofit support | 2023 | $3,596,000 |
| National Philanthropic Tr | Environment, animals | 2023 | $1,166,390 |
| Donor Advised Charitable Giving | Environmental and animals | 2023 | $235,980 |
| Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program | For recipient's exempt purpose | 2023 | $53,161 |
| The Us Charitable Gift Trust | For recipient's exempt purpose | 2023 | $50,000 |
| Effective Ventures Foundation USA | Promoting effective charitable giving | 2023 | $25,800 |
| Gs Donor Advised Philanthropy Fund For Wealth Management Inc | Community & human services | 2023 | $20,000 |
| American Online Giving Foundation Inc | General support | 2023 | $13,822 |
102 grants totaling $26.3M in FY2024 — showing the 15 largest. All grants made by Founders Pledge Inc →
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy-us Inc | Fund charitable activities | $8,925,000 |
| Center For Artificial Intelligence Safety Inc | Fund charitable activities | $1,096,000 |
| Rand Corporation | Fund charitable activities | $1,000,000 |
| Stonier Scholarship Inc | Fund charitable activities | $804,000 |
| Ashgro Inc | Fund charitable activities | $741,500 |
| Palisade Research Inc | Fund charitable activities | $726,000 |
| Mats Research Inc | Fund charitable activities | $584,000 |
| Longview Philanthropy USA Inc | Fund charitable activities | $562,000 |
| Safe Artificial Intelligence Forum Institute | Fund charitable activities | $540,000 |
| Johns Hopkins University | Fund charitable activities | $539,757 |
| Ai Objectives Institute | Fund charitable activities | $538,000 |
| Restoringvision | Fund charitable activities | $531,000 |
| Rethink Priorities | Fund charitable activities | $520,000 |
| Effective Ventures Foundation USA | Fund charitable activities | $510,000 |
| The Foundation For American Innovation | Fund charitable activities | $493,000 |
Explore more
Data for Founders Pledge Inc (EIN 37-1795297) comes from the IRS Business Master File and e-filed Form 990 returns, via CharityIndex. Figures reflect what the organization reported to the IRS for each fiscal year.