BRIGHTFOCUS FOUNDATION

Private FoundationIRS data 2022–2024

CLARKSBURG, MDEIN 237337229 Website

Annual Giving

$16.9M+58% YoY

Grants

Median Grant

$200K

Organizations Funded

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Foundation Overview

Mission

BrightFocus is a premier funder of groundbreaking research in an urgent effort to discover cures for Alzheimer's disease, macular degeneration, and glaucoma. BrightFocus Foundation is on a mission to cure Alzheimer's disease and related dementias and stop vision loss in its tracks.

Focus Areas

alzheimer's disease researchmacular degeneration researchglaucoma researchvision research

Grant Types

research grants

Funded Initiatives

Nearly $13 million in grants announced to support early investigative research; Alzheimer's Disease Research funded more than $189 million in research; Macular Degeneration Research awarded over $56 million; National Glaucoma Research supported more than $52 million; Currently supporting more than 200 active research grants across 17 countries

How to Apply

All applications through ProposalCentral online portal. Organization must be registered with ProposalCentral. Alzheimer's Disease Research no longer requires LOI - submit full proposals by deadline. Macular Degeneration Research requires Letter of Intent. Different programs for new investigators, postdoctoral fellowships, and established investigators.

Does Not Fund

Grant Funds must be used exclusively for research and research equipment not for overhead, capital expenditures, administrative costs or other peripheral costs. No pre-doctoral fellowships or undergraduate student support. No renewals of existing awards. Salary limited to 35% of total grant or 35% of individual salary.

Based on publicly available information from the foundation's 990 filings and website.

Giving History

2024+58%

$16.9M

Grants

Median

$200K

States

2023-25%

$10.7M

Grants

Median

$200K

States

2022

$14.3M

Grants

Median

$200K

States

Grant Size Distribution

$200K

Typical Grant (Median)

$15K

Smallest

$182K

25th Pctile

$300K

75th Pctile

$410K

Largest

Excludes grants ≤ $5K. Half fall between $182K and $300K.

Largest Recent Grants

$410K

2024

Foreign Grants - EAST ASIA & THE PACIFIC

MACULAR DEGENERATION RESEARCH BY MASAYUKI HATA, PHD ENTITLED: M2025006N

$410K

2024

WILLIAM MARSH RICE UNIVERSITY

TX · MACULAR DEGENERATION RESEARCH BY JERZY SZABLOWSKI, PHD ENTITLED: M2025001N

$410K

2024

UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA HEALTH SCIENCES CENTER

OK · MACULAR DEGENERATION RESEARCH BY ANA J CHUCAIR-ELLIOTT, PHD ENTITLED: M2025002N

$410K

2024

Foreign Grants - EAST ASIA & THE PACIFIC

MACULAR DEGENERATION RESEARCH BY DAISY YAO SHU, PHD ENTITLED: M2025005N

$410K

2024

LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY

CA · MACULAR DEGENERATION RESEARCH BY CHARLES DEBOER, MD, PHD ENTITLED: M2025004N

Geographic Focus

$3.6M15 grants

$1.4M6 grants

$1.3M5 grants

$778K3 grants

$700K3 grants

Top states by total grant dollars. Based on IRS filing data.

Financial Overview

YearTotal AssetsGrants Paid

2024

$65.1M

$16.9M(26.0%)

2023

$63.5M

$10.7M(16.9%)

2022

$58.6M

$14.3M(24.4%)

Grants paid shown as percentage of total assets

Network Intelligence

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Data sourced from IRS 990 and 990-PF filings and publicly available foundation websites. Grant data, financial figures, and organizational details reflect historical filings and may not represent current operations or funding priorities. Verify directly with the foundation before applying. See an issue? Let us know.