Ari Simon, President of Tambourine Philanthropies, on a philanthropy's "Sputnik Moment" in Science Funding
- Sep 21, 2025
- 2 min read
Updated: Sep 22, 2025
This episode features Ari Simon, President of Tambourine Philanthropies and co-author of Philanthropy's Sputnik Moment (Stanford Social Innovation Review, August 21, 2025).
The conversation examines the role of philanthropy in scientific research, current changes in U.S. science funding, and practical approaches foundations can take to support research today and into the future.
Topics covered in this episode
Background on U.S. science funding: How federal policy, including the Bayh–Dole Act of 1980, shaped the last several decades of research and innovation.
Recent developments: Proposed reductions in federal research budgets, including funding changes at the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and how these compare with total philanthropic contributions to science.
Structural considerations: Longstanding issues such as indirect university overhead rates, intellectual property ownership, and grant allocation practices for early- and mid-career researchers.
Philanthropic responses: Four approaches foundations can use within their traditional grantmaking
Convening stakeholders to design new funding models.
Providing emergency and recoverable grants to sustain labs and projects.
Supporting researcher well-being and career development alongside lab funding.
Preserving long-term scientific data and providing targeted support for early-career scientists.
Expanding the toolkit: Ways foundations might use their endowments to complement grantmaking, including
Zero- or low-interest loans.
Guarantees to help universities manage cash flow.
Structures for recycling intellectual property revenue into basic research.
Key points
Federal funding shifts are prompting universities and researchers to reconsider long-term sustainability.
Foundations have options beyond traditional grants, including financial instruments and convening power.
Supporting early-career researchers and maintaining scientific datasets are time-sensitive areas where philanthropy can play a role.
Endowment assets can be aligned with mission objectives through loans, guarantees, and investment in research-related entities.
About Ari Simon
Ari is the President of Tambourine, a philanthropy focused on global health, neurodegenerative disease, and emotional wellbeing, and on the leadership team of How We Feel (recently named a "Cultural Impact" app of the year by Apple).
His leadership in philanthropy includes prior roles as Head of Philanthropy and Social Impact at Pinterest, where he founded the company's "Pinterest Purpose" work, as well as Vice President of Programs and Chief Strategy Officer of the Kresge Foundation, where he led the foundation's global grantmaking focused on expanding opportunity and equity in cities.
He began his career in the nonprofit sector with stints at McKinsey's Social Sector Office, The Innocence Project, and NASA's Shuttle Columbia Accident Investigation, and he holds degrees from Harvard College, Oxford University, and Stanford Law School.