TED's Audacious Project Awards $1B to 10 Bold Nonprofits

Ten nonprofits just received the kind of funding that can change the world, and the projects they're launching prove audacious is the perfect word for it.

TED's Audacious Project announced its 2025 cohort this year with a record-breaking $1.03 billion in grants to organizations working on solutions ranging from preventing lead poisoning in children to building the world's first high-utility virtual cell using AI. These aren't small-scale pilot programs. These are moonshot ideas backed by donors like MacKenzie Scott, Reed Hastings, and the Skoll Foundation who believe big problems demand equally big solutions.

The grantees include The Ocean Cleanup, which plans to stop plastic from reaching our oceans by intercepting waste in rivers. Arc Institute will use AI to accelerate medical breakthroughs for diseases we've struggled to cure. Imagine Worldwide will bring solar-powered, offline educational technology to students across Malawi, Sierra Leone, and Tanzania where internet access can't be assumed.

Other projects address gaps many of us take for granted. Braven will help low-income college students bridge the gap between graduation and career. Destination: Home will scale a proven model to prevent homelessness before families lose their housing. Ipas will remove barriers to safe abortion care across Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, and South Asia.

The funding model itself breaks traditional philanthropy rules. Rather than spreading resources thin, The Audacious Project makes five-year commitments large enough for organizations to think beyond survival mode. That confidence shows in the results.

The Ripple Effect

The impact reaches far beyond the initial grants. Previous Audacious grantees have leveraged their funding to attract an additional $3 billion from other sources, bringing total investment to $7.6 billion. That multiplier effect means donor confidence creates momentum.

Past projects have enrolled millions of girls in school, helped millions lift themselves from ultra-poverty, and driven medical breakthroughs including the first computer-generated protein medicine. Three previous grantees just received nearly $50 million in reinvestment funding after demonstrating significant results, including Last Mile Health, which trains community health workers across Africa, and Thorn, which builds AI tools to combat child sexual abuse online.

"Daring ideas matter most when they become achievable," said Chris Anderson, TED chairman and Audacious Project founder. The newest cohort proves his point. When humanity's toughest problems meet courage and capital, remarkable things become possible.