Grantmaker · Funders · New York, NY - · Est. 2024
Schmidt Sciences is a U.S.-based nonprofit grantmaker founded in 2024 by Eric and Wendy Schmidt. Its mission is to advance science and technology through philanthropic support that targets high-risk, early-stage research and builds global, interdisciplinary communities and programs to accelerate scientific discovery and real-world solutions.
The organization organizes its scientific work into five focus areas: AI & Advanced Computing, Astrophysics & Space, Biosciences, Climate, and Science Systems. Within these areas, Schmidt Sciences typically funds research through long-term virtual institute-style collaborations (which it describes as global, cross-disciplinary networks) and shorter-term projects, alongside fellowship and capacity-building programs. In AI & Advanced Computing, Schmidt Sciences runs grant programs and fellowships that aim to (a) incorporate AI into scientific workflows (AI in Science Fellowship), (b) support foundational work on AI safety science and related evaluation techniques (AI Safety Science program), and (c) fund research on beneficial AI through the AI2050 fellowships. In the humanities, it supports AI-enabled research via its Humanities and AI Virtual Institute (HAVI), including both major multi-team grant rounds and additional development awards. In climate and Earth systems, Schmidt Sciences funds multiple “Virtual Institute” initiatives intended to improve scientific modeling, data, and computational tools; recent examples include VESRI (Virtual Earth Systems Research Institute), VICC (Virtual Institute for the Carbon Cycle), VIEW (Virtual Institute for Earth’s Water), and DEVI (Decarbonization and Energy Virtual Institute). In Science Systems, Schmidt Sciences also supports programs intended to strengthen the infrastructure that enables scientific research, including software and systems-focused fellowships. Strategically, Schmidt Sciences is positioned as a multi-center philanthropic platform for funding research that combines advanced computing methods (including AI) with domain science, while also addressing the translation gap between scientific models and operational or decision-making contexts—especially visible in its climate virtual-institute efforts and its fellowship/programmatic approach to building scientific communities.
Five international teams will bridge abstract global climate models to the realities of grids, cities, farms, factories and communities Media Contact: Carlie Wiener, cwiener@schmidtsciences.org NEW YORK—Five international research teams will receive $26 million over five years fr
The Future of Nutrition Research May Run Through the SewerThe post The Future of Nutrition Research May Run Through the Sewer appeared first on Schmidt Sciences .
Five-Year Climate Research Effort Reshapes Climate Modeling, Expands Information AccessFive years of Virtual Earth Systems Research Institute -supported research has reached more than 305,000 users in 169 countries; Schmidt Sciences opens new funding round Media Contact: Carlie Wiener, cwiener@schmidtsciences.org NEW YORK — Nine teams have reshaped the modeling and
World’s Largest Animal Migration and Ocean Gyres Play Critical Roles in Global Carbon CycleTwo back-to-back expeditions in the Southwest Atlantic Ocean investigated critical, understudied mechanisms driving carbon export to the deep sea: the guts of migrating animals and phytoplankton living in vast ocean gyres. Media Contact: Kristen Kusek, kkusek@schmidtocean.org Vid
Schmidt Sciences announced that five international teams will receive $26 million over five years through DEVI to translate energy transition models into actionable approaches and also described opening a second round of DEVI funding requests focused on urban decarbonization.
Five-Year Climate Research Effort Reshapes Climate Modeling, Expands Information AccessSchmidt Sciences described how five years of VESRI-supported research reshaped climate modeling and expanded access to those tools for decisionmakers, and announced a new VESRI funding round called the Climate Modeling Challenge with a defined submission deadline.
World’s Largest Animal Migration and Ocean Gyres Play Critical Roles in Global Carbon CycleSchmidt Sciences described ocean research expeditions supported through the Ocean Biogeochemistry Virtual Institute (OBVI) and described how the work addresses understudied mechanisms driving carbon export to the deep sea.
Report Maps Priorities for India’s Low-Carbon FutureSchmidt Sciences announced the release of a report mapping scientific priorities for India’s climate and energy future, describing development in partnership with Indian institutions and identifying multiple research frontiers spanning energy, water, built environment, and resilient cities.
Schmidt Sciences Awards $33 Million to Create Comprehensive Account of Global Freshwater AvailabilitySchmidt Sciences announced $33 million over five years for four international teams through VIEW to advance global freshwater availability research, described as building a “global water ledger.”