Fundraising Fox

The Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation

Foundation

Menlo Park · Pre-Seed–Series A · 47 people tracked

Fox Verdict
Sign up to see your fit

Investment thesis

DRK focuses on identifying exceptional early-stage social entrepreneurs and backing them with unrestricted, catalytic funding paired with intensive hands-on support. The foundation believes that early unrestricted investment in mission-driven leaders is the foundational building block for lasting positive social change. By helping organizations build capacity, DRK positions them to absorb larger downstream catalytic capital that amplifies their impact worldwide. Over more than two decades it has made nearly 280 investments, reporting hundreds of millions of lives impacted and billions in downstream funding catalyzed for its portfolio of impact-driven organizations.

Invests inAgTechCleantechClimate TechEdTechFoodTechHealthtechImpact & Social GoodSector AgnosticAfricaAsia-PacificEuropeGlobalIndiaLatin AmericaMenlo ParkUnited KingdomUnited States

Source: firm website, verified Aug 3, 2026.

Stage
Pre-Seed–Series A
HQ
Menlo Park, California, US
Leads rounds
Follows
Instruments
Grants · Equity
Founded
1999
Tracked investments
18

Team · 47 people

from the firm's website & public directories
Nicole Gallant· Managing Director
Oliver Rothschild· Managing Director
Rob Tashima· Managing Director, Pipeline and Partnerships
Meg Rudy· Principal
Mike Mbari· Principal, Africa
Tim Cho· Principal
Elizabeth Berry Gips· Portfolio Advisor
Holly Kuzmich· Senior Advisor
Nancy Huang· Chief of Staff and Senior Advisor to the CEO and Member, Operating Committee
Pam Ingebrigtson· Senior Executive Assistant
Rachel Macauley· Director, Africa
Shariff Carlos· IT and Facilities Lead
Silmara Connors· Project Coordinator and Office Manager
Zeryn Sarpangal· Chief Financial and Administrative Officer and Member, Operating Committee

What they invest in

from 2 of 18 portfolio companies

EdTech ×2AI & Machine Learning ×1Impact & Social Good ×1

HQs:Jordan×1South Africa×1

Investments · 18 tracked

founders shown can be your intro path
Adalat AI

DRK entrepreneur named a 2026 Elevate Prize winner.

Braven

DRK portfolio organization; 2025 Audacious Project grantee.

Collective Energy

Ensuring reliable healthcare access even in the event of a power outage.

Darseldarsel.techin𝕏

Darsel provides a personalized learning chatbot that teaches mathematics to students in low-resource settings through simple, text-based channels like SMS, WhatsApp, and Facebook Messenger.

AI & Machine LearningEdTechAmman, JO

Abdulhamid Haidar(Founder)in

Digital Public Works

Expanding access to government benefits by streamlining and modernizing income verification.

Diverting Hate

Disrupting digital radicalization by steering at-risk men away from violent misogyny and toward wellness and community support.

Edulutionedulution.orgin𝕏

Edulution develops offline, curriculum-aligned adaptive learning technology for public schools in Southern Africa, combining personalized digital instruction with teacher support and learning assistant training.

EdTechImpact & Social GoodSouth Africa, ZA

Energiesprong Global Alliance

Enabling the retrofitting of aging buildings to improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions.

eWAKA

Revolutionizing last-mile delivery in Africa using innovative mobility solutions to empower riders to build sustainable livelihoods.

For The People

DRK entrepreneur named a 2026 Elevate Prize winner.

HackShield

Teaching children how to protect themselves from cybercrime.

Imagine Worldwide

DRK portfolio organization; 2025 Audacious Project grantee.

Indus Action

DRK portfolio organization; 2026 Skoll Award for Social Innovation recipient.

Karya

DRK entrepreneur named a 2026 Elevate Prize winner.

Last Mile Health

DRK portfolio organization; 2025 Audacious Project grantee.

News Literacy Project

Empowering K–12 teachers to help students navigate misinformation, evaluate sources, and form fact-based opinions through news, media, and AI literacy.

Shamiri Institute

DRK entrepreneur named a 2026 Elevate Prize winner.

SmartStart

DRK portfolio organization; 2026 Skoll Award for Social Innovation recipient.

Frequently asked questions

What stage does The Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation invest at?
The Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation invests at the Pre-Seed, Seed, Series A stages.
What sectors does The Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation focus on?
The Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation focuses on AgTech, Cleantech, Climate Tech, EdTech, FoodTech, Healthtech, Impact & Social Good, Sector Agnostic.
Where is The Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation located?
The Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation is headquartered in Menlo Park, US.
Does The Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation lead rounds?
The Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation typically participates in rounds rather than leading them.

Similar investors

Featured in lists