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MacArthur Foundation - Our History
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4/5
High(4)High quality. Established institution or organization with editorial oversight and accountability.
Rating inherited from publication venue: MacArthur Foundation
MacArthur Foundation is a major philanthropic funder with some relevance to AI governance and existential risk policy; this page provides institutional background but limited direct AI safety content.
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Summary
This page outlines the history of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, one of the largest private philanthropic organizations in the United States. It covers the foundation's founding, mission evolution, and major funding priorities over the decades, including support for climate, nuclear risk reduction, and media/technology issues.
Key Points
- •MacArthur Foundation was established following John D. MacArthur's death in 1978 and became one of the largest US philanthropies.
- •The foundation has historically funded work on nuclear risk reduction and global security, areas adjacent to existential risk concerns.
- •MacArthur supports a broad portfolio including climate change, journalism, criminal justice, and technology governance.
- •The foundation's 'Big Bets' funding model concentrates resources on large-scale systemic challenges, including some relevant to AI governance.
- •MacArthur is a significant funder of think tanks and policy organizations that increasingly engage with AI governance and safety policy.
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| Page | Type | Quality |
|---|---|---|
| MacArthur Foundation | Organization | 65.0 |
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# Our History
A Legacy of Impact: The MacArthur Story
- [Overview](https://www.macfound.org/about/our-history/)
- [About the MacArthurs](https://www.macfound.org/about/our-history/about-the-macarthurs)
[John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur](https://www.macfound.org/about/our-history/about-the-macarthurs) were quiet philanthropists in their lifetime, giving primarily to organizations in cities where they lived: Chicago and Palm Beach. Their business interests, including the immensely successful Bankers Life and Casualty insurance company and real estate holdings concentrated in Florida, New York City, and Chicago, consumed most of their time and energy.
On October 18, 1970—after John’s longtime friend and attorney William T. Kirby convinced him that a foundation would allow his money to go to good use long after he was gone—the documents for the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation were completed.
"I made the money; you guys will have to figure out what to do with it."
John intentionally left the business of what to fund to the Foundation’s first Board of Directors, which included Catherine; Kirby; his son, Roderick; radio commentator Paul Harvey, a friend from Chicago whose popular program carried ads for Bankers Life; and Louis Feil, a business associate from New York. “I made the money; you guys will have to figure out what to do with it,” MacArthur told the Board. This direction presented the Foundation’s first Board with two challenges: how to divest the assets responsibly and how to shape a forward-looking organization that could change with society’s evolving challenges.
When John died of cancer on January 6, 1978, the Foundation assumed his assets, estimated at $1 billion, and made its first two grants of $50,000 each to Amnesty International and the California League of Cities. Since 1978, the Foundation has made grants totaling more than $8.27 billion in the United States and about [117 countries around the world](http://maps.foundationcenter.org/?acct=MacArthurFoundation). Learn more about Foundation through our [40 Years, 40 Stories series](https://www.macfound.org/whatsnew/latest-news?content_type=40_years_40_stories).
[Learn More About the MacArthurs ](https://www.macfound.org/about/our-history/about-the-macarthurs)
### Our Leadership Over Time
The Foundation’s first decade was challenging: assets to dispose of in a way that real
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