United States · Investor

Gates Foundation

Last cheque observed Aug 2026; 59 cheques on record.

Deploying nowInstitutional LP

GrantGrowthPre-IPOAdvanced MaterialsAgTech (FarmTech)Augmented Reality

Deploying now
100%of best year5cheques in 12 months, 59 on record
Since the last cheque68days00hrs00min00sec
Median round$21MRounds led2 of 59Sole investor22 roundsExits1 from the portfolioMostly inUnited States, 63%
Pitch Gates Foundation

Gates Foundation highlights

  1. 01

    5 cheques in the last 12 months

  2. 02

    Mostly Grant and Series A: 63% of its rounds

  3. 03

    Sole investor in 22 rounds, median $3.5M

  4. 04

    1 exits from the portfolio

What they do

We are a nonprofit fighting poverty, disease, and inequity around the world.From their own website
Type
Institutional LP
Cheque size
Not stated
Stages
GrantGrowthPre-IPOPre-seedSeedSeries ASeries B
Sectors
Advanced MaterialsAgTech (FarmTech)Augmented Reality
Based in
Seattle, United States
Cold pitches
Not stated

The record

Every round we can evidence, newest first59 appearances

  1. 2026

    4 rounds

  2. Aug
    NybroSeed · AU · Startup Daily$14MWith 4 others
  3. May
    Kanvas BiosciencesSeries A · US · Firms' own news pages$48MWith 6 others
  4. Apr
    PlasmaLeap TechnologiesSeries A · AU · Hort Innovation Investment Fund$21MWith 9 others
  5. Mar
    PlasmaLeap TechnologiesSeries A · AU · Ventureburn$20MLed
  6. 2025

    3 rounds

  7. Oct
    ENA RespiratorySeries B · AU · Startup Daily$22MWith 4 others
  8. Jan
    SeamlessHRSeries A · NG · Disrupt Africa$9.0MWith 1 other
  9. Jan
    Owlstone MedicalSeries E · GB · Firms' own news pages$27MWith 3 others
  10. 2024

    1 round

  11. Apr
    Owlstone MedicalGB · Firms' own news pages$6.5MSole investor
  12. 2019

    2 rounds

  13. May
    Vedanta BiosciencesSeries C · US · Businesswire$46MWith 8 others
  14. Jan
    Lyndra TherapeuticsSeries B · US · FinSMEs$55MWith 4 others
  15. 2018

    5 rounds

  16. Dec
    Vedanta BiosciencesSeries C · US · FinSMEs$27MWith 5 others
  17. Sept
    ButterflySeries D · US · VentureBeat$250MWith 2 others
  18. Jun
    Evolve BioSystemsSeries C · US · FinSMEs$40MWith 10 others
  19. Jun
    StellappsSeries B · IN · YourStory$14MWith 6 others
  20. Jan
    SchrödingerUS · China Money Network$85MLed
  21. 2017

    4 rounds

  22. Dec
    Code.orgGrant · US · TechCrunch$12MWith 3 others
  23. Oct
    VisterraSeries C · US · FinSMEs$47MWith 5 others
  24. Mar
    BoragenSeries A · US · FinSMEs$10MWith 9 others
  25. Jan
    KymabGrant · GB · FinSMEs$9.0MSole investor
  26. 2016

    2 rounds

  27. Dec
    UnivercellsGrant · BE · FinSMEs$12MSole investor
  28. Jul
    Just BiotherapeuticsSeries A · US · Businesswire$14MSole investor
  29. 2015

    7 rounds

  30. Nov
    AtrecaSeries A · US$56MWith 2 others
  31. Nov
    CureVacSeries F · DE$110MWith 6 others
  32. Aug
    AgBiomeSeries B · US$35MWith 1 other
  33. Aug
    Edcamp FoundationGrant · US$2.0MSole investor
  34. Jul
    AcrobatiqSeries A · US$9.8MWith 3 others
  35. Jun
    Ceres NanosciencesGrant · US$746KSole investor
  36. Mar
    CureVacSeries E · DE$52MSole investor
  37. 2014

    10 rounds

  38. Oct
    UversityVenture · US$660KWith 1 other
  39. Oct
    SynlogicSeries A · US$5.0MSole investor
  40. Sept
    Genocea BiosciencesGrant · US$1.2MSole investor
  41. Sept
    Oregon Health & Science UniversityGrant · US$25MSole investor
  42. Jun
    SomaLogicGrant · US$1.0MSole investor
  43. May
    QuillGrant · US$200KSole investor
  44. May
    KymabSeries B · GB$40MWith 1 other
  45. May
    Sure ChillGB$1.4MSole investor
  46. Mar
    IDRI (Infectious Disease Research Institute)Grant · US$3.4MSole investor
  47. Mar
    FirstmonieGrant · NG$12MSole investor
  48. 2013

    9 rounds

  49. Dec
    EducationSuperHighwayGrant · US · techcrunch.com$9.0MWith 1 other
  50. Dec
    VisterraSeries A · US · finsmes.com$8.1MWith 4 others

An announcement gives the size of the round, not the size of this investor's cheque: the only rounds that imply a cheque are those where they were the sole named investor.

The team

We hold 7 people at this firm from the lists this database was built from: a weaker source than the filings, since a list does not say when a title ended. Login to see them.

What they claim to have backed

From their own portfolio page (on their website)

0 of 6 we have independently watched raise

Discovery CenterEthics reportingFirefoxGive with usGoalkeepersVendors

Weaker than a round we watched, stronger than a list somebody sold us. A firm is far less willing to put a company on its own site that it never funded.

Exits from the portfolio

Companies it backed that were later bought or listed1 in all

Logrado, Inc.Bought by InsideTrackUndisclosedApr 2014

An exit counts when it came after the firm's first round in the company. From historical deal records.

Who they invest alongside

The investors most often in the same rounds as Gates Foundation. A count of rooms they were both in, not a relationship either has claimed.

The Bill & Melinda Gates FoundationInvestment firm6rounds togetherLux CapitalVC firm4rounds togetherPolaris PartnersVC firm4rounds togetherOmega FundsVC firm3rounds togetherRetro Venture PartnersVC firm3rounds togetherAgnition venturesCorporate VC2rounds togetherArtesian VCAsset manager2rounds togetherAuriga PartnersVC firm2rounds togetherBristol Myers SquibbVC firm2rounds togetherCycad GroupGrowth equity2rounds togetherFlagship PioneeringVC firm2rounds togetherFlagship Pioneering, LLCVC firm2rounds together

Recently backed

The latest companies Gates Foundation put money into.

Kanvas Biosciences$48M · May 2026PlasmaLeap Technologies$21M · Apr 2026ENA Respiratory$22M · Oct 2025SeamlessHR$9.0M · Jan 2025Owlstone Medical$27M · Jan 2025Vedanta Biosciences$46M · May 2019

On podcasts

1 episode naming Gates Foundation in the title, and 4 more that mention it.

Mentioned in

Quick answers about Gates Foundation

What does Gates Foundation invest in?

Gates Foundation invests most often at Grant and Series A (63% of the rounds on record), in sectors such as Advanced Materials, AgTech (FarmTech) and Augmented Reality.

How active is Gates Foundation?

59 investments on record, 5 of them in the last 12 months, and it led 2. The most recent was in Aug 2026.

What has Gates Foundation invested in recently?

Its most recent investments on record: Nybro (Seed, Aug 2026), Kanvas Biosciences (Series A, May 2026) and PlasmaLeap Technologies (Series A, Apr 2026).

How big are Gates Foundation's cheques?

The median round it joins is $21M.

Does Gates Foundation lead rounds?

Sometimes: it led 2 of its 59 investments on record (3%).

Where does Gates Foundation invest?

Most of the companies it backs are in the United States (63%), the United Kingdom (13%) and Australia (10%).

Is Gates Foundation investing now?

Yes: it is actively investing, with 5 investments in the last 12 months.

Who does Gates Foundation invest alongside?

Most often The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (6 rounds together), Lux Capital (4 rounds together) and Polaris Partners (4 rounds together).

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Built from the rounds we watched, its filings and its own website, refreshed every night. How we count · Report a correction · Is this your firm? Claim it