WHY PHILANTHROPY?
Philanthropy shapes much of the NGO landscape.​​
​Funders and grantmakers set many of the trends that influence the wider nonprofit sector and shift entire cause areas.
​From our experience delivering the AIM Grantmaking Program, we see promising opportunities for new charities to make impactful changes within the philanthropic sector. This could include areas like funder education, grantmaker training, advisory services, new funds, or innovative events and networks.
How is this round different?
We expect this round to be different from regular Charity Entrepreneurship Incubation Program rounds in a few ways:
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Smaller cohort size: around 6–10 participants instead of the usual 10–15.
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Slightly different skill profile: strong communication, networking and stakeholder management skills are more important. Some candidates may already have a level of familiarity with the philanthropic sector.
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More founder-led ideas: we expect a higher share of applicants will bring their own ideas for increasing impact in philanthropy (though standards remain high).
How is this round similar?
Modeled on Our Flagship Charity Entrepreneurship Incubation Program
​An intensive, fully-funded program designed to help ambitious, altruistic individuals launch high-impact nonprofits.
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8 weeks total: mostly remote, with 2 weeks in-person
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Fully cost-covered: we cover your program expenses
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Expert-led training & mentorship: practical skills and guidance from experienced entrepreneurs and sector experts
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Cofounder matching: structured process to help you find a value-aligned cofounder
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Seed funding access: opportunities to secure startup grants
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Applications for the Philanthropy Founders Round will go through our standard application form and process, allowing applicants to be considered for this round alongside the other two incubation rounds in 2026.
Ideas we are excited to launch
Our research in this area is ongoing, so we do not have specific intervention recommendations for new organizations yet. Examples of ideas that could fit this round include creating new philanthropic advisory services, training programs for grantmakers, events and networks to connect funders, or launching thesis-driven funds.
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Joey Savoie, our CEO, has been leading much of this exploration. He’s particularly excited about ideas like a Shark Tank for NGOs, dessert events, an incubator fund and an effective grantmaking conference. These ideas are preliminary and it is not certain they will be recommended. We will publish recommended interventions closer to the start date, so applicants are not required to apply with their own idea.
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If you’d like to propose an idea for this round, you can submit it through this expression of interest form alongside submitting our main application form.
Excited to get involed?
One application for three cohorts
You only need to submit one application to be considered for all three 2026 cohorts. In the form, you can indicate which round interests you most.
If you’ve already applied to the other two rounds and move forward to the first test task, we’ll reach out to check whether you’d also like to be considered for the philanthropy round.
Have questions?
Joey Savoie: Ask Me Anything
Much of the ideation behind our philanthropy initiatives has been led by Joey Savoie, CEO of Ambitious Impact.
To give you the chance to engage directly, Joey is running a personal AMA (Ask Me Anything) on the EA Forum.
This is an asynchronous Q&A — simply post your questions in the comments of this EA Forum post.
You might want to ask about: ​
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The new Philanthropy Founders Round — why Ambitious Impact now is focusing on increasing the impact of philanthropy, the sort ideas that we are excited to see launched through it
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The Charity Entrepreneurship Incubation Program and why it’s valuable even for experienced founders
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Lessons from co-founding and leading orgs that have reached 1B+ animals and 75M+ people
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His thoughts on impactful careers, doing good, and cause-plurality vs. cause prioritization
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Or anything else where Joey might be a good person to ask​​​