# Schmidt Futures / Schmidt Sciences **Draft profile.** Philanthropic vehicle of **[[Eric Schmidt]]** (former Google/Alphabet CEO) and Wendy Schmidt. Founded ~2017 as **Schmidt Futures**; in **2024** the operation restructured and consolidated most active programs under a new sibling entity, **Schmidt Sciences**, which now houses the bulk of the couple's science-and-technology philanthropy. Operates as a **talent-first** funder — identifies and underwrites individual scientists, fellows, and research leaders rather than running large institutional grants. Total assets: **$1.59B**; annual giving: **$228.7M** (FY2024). One of the most consequential AI-policy philanthropic operators in Washington. ## What It Does ### AI / advanced computing - **AI2050** — $125M over 5 years, launched ~2022. Fellowship program for researchers working on AI safety, alignment, and societal impact. Cohorts of ~30 fellows at MIT, Stanford, Princeton, etc. - **2025: $10M AI safety initiative** for foundational research into AI safety problems. - Bridges philanthropy and defense-AI policy through Schmidt's **Special Competitive Studies Project (SCSP)** and the **National Security Commission on AI** legacy. ### Astrophysics and space Major underwriter of academic astrophysics and space science (Schmidt Ocean Institute, telescope programs, planetary science). ### Biosciences and climate Funding lines for next-generation biotech, climate technology, and oceanographic research. Wendy Schmidt's interests are particularly heavy in oceans (11th Hour Racing, Schmidt Marine). ### Talent identification Multiple fellowship programs across disciplines — **Rise** (with Rhodes Trust, for high school students globally), **Innovation Fellows**, **Futures Forum on Learning**, etc. Schmidt Futures' stated philosophy is "back exceptional people early." ## Why It Matters in This KB ### 1. It is the single largest TESCREAL-adjacent science-and-AI philanthropy outside of Open Philanthropy At $1.59B assets and ~$230M/year giving, Schmidt Futures/Sciences is the most consequential AI-and-science philanthropic operator that isn't [[Open Philanthropy]]. It funds the **academic legitimation layer** of the same broad worldview — AI safety, metascience, frontier biology — that [[Open Philanthropy]] funds from the EA side. The two operations are not coordinated, but their grants substantially overlap. ### 2. It is a major funder of [[Institute for Progress]] and the broader Progress Studies stack Schmidt Futures is one of the three pillars of [[Institute for Progress]]'s funding base alongside [[Open Philanthropy]] and Stripe-orbit donors. That **triad funding signature** — Schmidt + Open Phil + Collison-adjacent — is the financial fingerprint of the Progress Studies movement, and Schmidt Futures is the defense/AI-aligned third leg. ### 3. It is the philanthropy half of Eric Schmidt's "playing both sides" AI policy strategy The **EPIC (Electronic Privacy Information Center) investigation** "Playing Both Sides" documented how Schmidt simultaneously: - Chaired the **National Security Commission on AI** (shaping federal AI policy) - Funded **Schmidt Futures AI2050 fellowships** at academic AI labs - Invested through **Schmidt Ventures** (commercial AI) - Co-founded **Istari** (defense AI) and other dual-use ventures This is one of the cleanest documented cases of the **defense-AI-philanthropy revolving door**: same operator, three concurrent vehicles, overlapping policy footprint, no required disclosure between them. ### 4. It is a critical bridge between EA-coded AI safety and defense-AI procurement Schmidt's defense work (SCSP, AI Commission, Istari) and his philanthropic AI safety work (AI2050) are **the same intellectual project** delivered through different vehicles. The implicit thesis matches the [[Effective Accelerationism]] / [[American Dynamism]] line: AI safety is best ensured by U.S. AI supremacy, and U.S. AI supremacy requires both philanthropic talent-building and defense-sector procurement. ## The 2024 Restructuring In January 2024, Eric Schmidt announced that **Schmidt Sciences** would take over the science-and-technology programs that had been operating under Schmidt Futures. Several Schmidt Futures program staff migrated to the new entity. The restructuring was described as a consolidation rather than a wind-down — Schmidt Futures the brand effectively retired, Schmidt Sciences took the operating reins. Schmidt Futures the legal entity persists for some legacy programs and the Eric and Wendy Schmidt Fund for Strategic Innovation; Schmidt Sciences is where the active grantmaking now lives. ## Critiques - **"Playing both sides"** — EPIC, *MIT Technology Review*, and *Politico* have documented the concurrent philanthropy-and-defense-investment pattern as a structural conflict of interest in AI policymaking. - **Defense-adjacent philanthropy** — fellowships and academic grants steer young AI researchers toward problems Schmidt's commercial and defense interests benefit from solving. - **Limited transparency** — As a private operation the Schmidts disclose only what they choose to disclose; the full grant list and conflict-of-interest map is incomplete. - **Talent capture** — The fellowship-and-talent-identification model funnels promising researchers into a Schmidt-shaped career arc, with downstream commercial and defense implications. ## Draft Notes / To Expand - Map the formal relationship between **Schmidt Futures**, **Schmidt Sciences**, **Schmidt Ventures**, **Schmidt Ocean Institute**, **Schmidt Marine Technology Partners**, and **Istari** - Add [[Eric Schmidt]] (currently has page) cross-references to the Special Competitive Studies Project - Document AI2050 fellowship cohort composition (who's been funded, where they ended up) - Trace EPIC investigation findings on conflicts of interest in detail - Add Wendy Schmidt [[Wendy Schmidt]] - Document the SCSP report's policy influence on the Biden / [[Trump 2.0]] AI executive orders ## See Also - [[Eric Schmidt]] — Co-founder and principal - [[Wendy Schmidt]] — Co-founder - [[Institute for Progress]] — Major grantee - [[Open Philanthropy]] — Co-funder of overlapping initiatives - [[Progress Studies]] — Adjacent movement Schmidt Futures funds - [[Defense Tech Ecosystem]] — Schmidt's parallel operating sphere - [[Silicon Valley AI Ecosystem]] — Broader context - [[Philanthropy Ecosystem]] — Money-flow MOC - [[TESCREAL]] — Adjacent ideological bundle