The Ray and Dagmar Dolby Family Fund concentrates its giving on high-impact health and biomedical institutions in the San Francisco Bay Area, alongside selective national civic leadership philanthropy. Grants are large and targeted—supporting biomedical research (Gladstone, UCSF) and the region’s public hospital system (Zuckerberg San Francisco General)—with a notable one-off gift to a national civic/leadership project (Barack Obama Foundation). The pattern suggests a preference for institutional, mission-driven organizations where sizable gifts can catalyze research, clinical capacity, or public leadership initiatives.
Very concentrated: a small number of very large grants, often to established institutional grantees; repeat and sizable funding to local medical institutions and the public hospital system rather than many small community grants.
A defining feature of the Ray and Dagmar Dolby Family Fund is its concentration in large, unrestricted institutional grants for biomedical and health infrastructure. The biggest recent award in the record was $2,000,000 to Gladstone Institutes for general operating support, followed by $1,561,575 to Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital for general operating support. That pattern points to a funder that backs established organizations with broad missions rather than project-specific pilots. The fund’s recent grant history also shows repeated support for UCSF and for San Francisco’s public hospital system, including a $1,291,700 grant to Ucsf Foundation and a $1,175,045 grant to Zuckerberg Sf General Hospital, both in 2025. Alongside those Bay Area health institutions, the fund made a $1,000,000 general operating grant to the Barack Obama Foundation in Chicago, indicating a smaller but clear national civic-leadership thread. Across the listed grants, the common thread is flexible support for organizations that operate at institutional scale. The grant purposes are consistently general operating support, which suggests a preference for strengthening core capacity, research continuity, and service delivery rather than narrowly defined projects.
Biomedical research is central to the Ray and Dagmar Dolby Family Fund’s giving. In 2023, it gave $2,000,000 to Gladstone Institutes for general operating support, and it also awarded $500,000 to Cure Alzheimer’s Fund for the same purpose. Those grants place major emphasis on research organizations working in disease science. Academic medical research is another clear focus. The fund gave $1,291,700 to Ucsf Foundation in 2025 and another $500,000 to Ucsf Foundation in 2023, both for general operating support. That repeated support points to a sustained relationship with UCSF-linked research and translational work. The fund also supports health care delivery through public institutions. Its grants to Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Zuckerberg Sf General Hospital, both for general operating support, show backing for San Francisco’s safety-net hospital system. Outside health, a $1,000,000 grant to the Barack Obama Foundation for general operating support extends the portfolio into civic leadership.
$143K
$83.8M
$4M
$874K
Most grants fall between $500K and $765K, with a median of $500K.
25th Percentile
$500K
Median
$500K
75th Percentile
$765K
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Notable grantees: Gladstone Institutes, Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, UCSF Foundation, Barack Obama Foundation
The typical grant size is large and tightly clustered: p25 is $500,000, the median is $500,000, and p75 is $765,394. That middle range, combined with several seven-figure awards, indicates a grantmaker oriented toward substantial operating support rather than many small awards. The grants shown are all general operating support, and the fund is classified as a regular funder rather than a DAF or vehicle for individual giving. The recent record also shows some repeat recipients across years, including UCSF-related grants and support for San Francisco General Hospital, which suggests ongoing relationships rather than isolated one-time awards.
Giving is national, but the distribution is heavily weighted toward California, with 38% of grants going to recipients in the HQ state. San Francisco is the clearest center of activity: Gladstone Institutes, Ucsf Foundation, Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, and Zuckerberg Sf General Hospital are all in San Francisco. Outside California, the grants reach Chicago through the Barack Obama Foundation and the Northeast through recipients in New York, Wellesley Hills, New Haven, and Washington, DC. The recipient-country data shows all listed grants went to US organizations.
The fund mainly supports biomedical research and health institutions, especially Bay Area organizations. Recent grants include Gladstone Institutes, Ucsf Foundation, and Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, all for general operating support. It also made a $1,000,000 grant to the Barack Obama Foundation, showing a smaller national civic-leadership component.
The grant-size distribution is concentrated around large awards: p25 is $500,000, the median is $500,000, and p75 is $765,394. Recent grants also include seven-figure gifts such as $2,000,000 to Gladstone Institutes and $1,561,575 to Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital.
The recent grants listed are all marked general operating support. That indicates the fund commonly provides unrestricted or core-support funding rather than project-specific awards.
Ucsf Foundation appears more than once, with grants of $1,291,700 in 2025 and $500,000 in 2023. The San Francisco General hospital system also appears repeatedly, through grants to Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Zuckerberg Sf General Hospital.
The fund gives nationally, but California receives 38% of the grants in the dataset. San Francisco is the main recipient city, and the recent list also includes recipients in Chicago, New York, Wellesley Hills, Washington, DC, and New Haven.
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UCSF FOUNDATION | SAN FRANCISCO, CA | $1,291,700 | 2025 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| ZUCKERBERG SF GENERAL HOSPITAL | SAN FRANCISCO, CA | $1,175,045 | 2025 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| BARACK OBAMA FOUNDATION | CHICAGO, IL | $1,000,000 | 2025 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| GLADSTONE INSTITUTES | SAN FRANCISCO, CA | $2,000,000 | 2024 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| UCSF FOUNDATION | SAN FRANCISCO, CA | $1,787,698 | 2024 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| KAISER FOUNDATION HOSPITALS | OAKLAND, CA | $1,291,373 | 2024 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| BARACK OBAMA FOUNDATION | CHICAGO, IL | $1,000,000 | 2024 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| UCSF FOUNDATION | SAN FRANCISCO, CA | $500,000 | 2024 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| ALZHEIMER'S DRUG DISCOVERY FOUNDATION | NEW YORK, NY | $500,000 | 2024 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON FRIENDS & ALUMNI ASSOCIATION INC | NEW YORK, NY | $500,000 | 2024 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| CURE ALZHEIMER'S FUND | WELLESLEY HILLS, MA | $500,000 | 2024 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| NYU GROSSMAN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE | NEW YORK, NY | $329,397 | 2024 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| USAGAINSTALZHEIMERS NETWORK INC | WASHINGTON, DC | $300,000 | 2024 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| SALK INSTITUTE FOR BIOLOGICAL STUDIES | LA JOLLA, CA | $250,000 | 2024 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| NCIRE(NORTHERN CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE FOR RESEARCH AND EDUCATION INC) | SAN FRANCISCO, CA | $250,000 | 2024 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| DAVOS ALZHEIMER'S COLLABORATIVE | WAYNE, PA | $200,000 | 2024 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| ZUCKERBERG SF GENERAL HOSPITAL PLEDGE | SAN FRANCISCO, CA | $105,844 | 2024 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| GLADSTONE INSTITUTES | SAN FRANCISCO, CA | $2,000,000 | 2023 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| ZUCKERBERG SAN FRANCISCO GENERAL HOSPITAL | SAN FRANCISCO, CA | $1,561,575 | 2023 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| UCSF FOUNDATION | SAN FRANCISCO, CA | $500,000 | 2023 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| CURE ALZHEIMER'S FUND | WELLESLEY HILLS, MA | $500,000 | 2023 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON FRIENDS & ALUMNI ASSOCIATION INC | NEW YORK, NY | $500,000 | 2023 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| ALZHEIMER'S DRUG DISCOVERY FOUNDATION | NEW YORK, NY | $500,000 | 2023 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| GLOBAL ALZHEIMER'S PLATFORM FOUNDATION | WASHINGTON, DC | $500,000 | 2023 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
| YALE UNIVERSITY | NEW HAVEN, CT | $40,000 | 2023 | GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT |
UCSF FOUNDATION
$1,291,700GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT
ZUCKERBERG SF GENERAL HOSPITAL
$1,175,045GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT
GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT
UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON FRIENDS & ALUMNI ASSOCIATION INC
$500,000GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT
SALK INSTITUTE FOR BIOLOGICAL STUDIES
$250,000GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT
NCIRE(NORTHERN CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE FOR RESEARCH AND EDUCATION INC)
$250,000GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT
DAVOS ALZHEIMER'S COLLABORATIVE
$200,000GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT
ZUCKERBERG SF GENERAL HOSPITAL PLEDGE
$105,844GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT
UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON FRIENDS & ALUMNI ASSOCIATION INC
$500,000GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT
GLOBAL ALZHEIMER'S PLATFORM FOUNDATION
$500,000GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT
YALE UNIVERSITY
$40,000GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT