The Zoom Foundation makes very large, highly concentrated grants and appears to operate largely as a funder that channels philanthropy through donor-advised vehicles. The vast majority of its giving is routed to Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund (suggesting use of a DAF or pass-through mechanism), while a single major direct grant supports environmental initiatives in Connecticut. The foundation’s public footprint is small — few grants, high-dollar amounts, and a clear interest in environmental work at the state level when it gives directly.
Highly concentrated: very few grants of very large size, heavy use of a donor-advised fund vehicle (Fidelity Charitable) for distribution, and occasional one-off multimillion-dollar direct gifts to place-based environmental projects.
The Zoom Foundation’s clearest pattern is its use of very large pass-through grants: Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund received the foundation’s three biggest recent awards, including $63,196,700 in 2024, $58,488,000 in 2023, and $17,751,000 in 2025. That scale puts the foundation in a narrow category of highly concentrated funders, with a public footprint built around a small number of outsized grants rather than a broad portfolio. Its direct grantmaking shows a different side of the portfolio, including $12,000,000 to The Connecticut Project Inc for environmental initiatives and smaller Connecticut awards to civic and charitable organizations. The foundation’s stated priorities center on environment, education, and democracy, with an emphasis on innovative, sustainable, science-based or evidence-based work. It also appears to fund through proactive, invitation-only grantmaking rather than an open application process. In the recent grants list, its direct Connecticut support reaches both statewide and local recipients, while the largest dollars continue to flow through charitable infrastructure.
Environmental work is one of the foundation’s core areas, and one of the clearest direct examples is $12,000,000 to The Connecticut Project Inc for environmental initiatives. The foundation also describes its environment work as supporting science-based environmental policy and strategies to stop and reverse climate change. Education is another stated priority, with funding aimed at transformative, sustainable change at the school, community, and system levels to advance education equity and improve public public school education. Democracy appears as a separate program area as well, focused on free and fair elections and political institutions. The funding language emphasizes innovation, sustainability, and evidence-based strategies across these issue areas.
The typical grant size is very large: p25 is $30,494,000, the median is $58,488,000, and p75 is $60,842,350. The recent record suggests concentrated, one-off-style awards rather than a long list of repeated recipients, with Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund appearing multiple times as the main pass-through vehicle and The Connecticut Project Inc appearing in two different years. The foundation is a regular funder and does not fund individuals or make program-related investments. Its active grant programs also indicate that it relies on invitation-only grantmaking for its core areas rather than unsolicited proposals, except for the Zoom Solopreneur 50 initiative, which accepts unsolicited entries.
$30.4M
$1.3B
$450.4M
$38.5M
Most grants fall between $30.5M and $60.8M, with a median of $58.5M.
25th Percentile
$30.5M
Median
$58.5M
75th Percentile
$60.8M
About 33% of grants go to recipients in OH.
Sign up for a free Kindora account to access AI-generated insights into this funder's giving patterns, decision-makers, and fit signals.
Get Started FreeFree Kindora accounts unlock side-by-side comparisons with foundations that share this funder's focus areas and giving profile.
Get Started FreeSign up free to see how well your nonprofit fits this funder, get an AI-generated pitch, and unlock similar foundations.
Notable grantees: Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund, The Connecticut Project, Inc.
Grant activity is regional rather than national in practice, with recipients in one country only: the United States. Ohio is the top state by grant count, driven by repeated grants to Cincinnati-based Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund. Connecticut also receives a meaningful share of direct support, including recipients in Bridgeport and Greenwich, and 33% of grants go to recipients in the foundation’s HQ state. The recent list shows a strong concentration in a few cities rather than broad geographic dispersion.
Its stated priorities are environment, education, and democracy. The environment program emphasizes science-based environmental policy and strategies to stop and reverse climate change, while education focuses on equity and system-level change. Democracy grants support free and fair elections and resilient political institutions.
The foundation gives at a very high level. Its typical grant size is p25 $30,494,000, median $58,488,000, and p75 $60,842,350. That distribution reflects a concentrated grantmaking pattern rather than many small awards.
Its core environment, education, democracy, and general grantmaking programs are described as invitation-only and do not accept unsolicited proposals. The one exception in the provided data is the Zoom Solopreneur 50 initiative, which accepts unsolicited entries.
Ohio is the top state by grant count, largely because of repeated grants to Cincinnati-based Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund. Connecticut is also important in the recent record, with 33% of grants going to recipients in the foundation’s HQ state.
The recent grants list points to charitable infrastructure, environmental initiatives, and civic organizations. Recipients include Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund in Cincinnati, The Connecticut Project Inc in Bridgeport, Center for Contemporary Documentation Inc in Greenwich, and Kosciuszko Inc in Greenwich.
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FIDELITY CHARITABLE GIFT FUND | CINCINNATI, OH | $17,751,000 | 2025 | TO FUNDCHARITABLEPROGRAMS |
| THE CONNECTICUT PROJECT INC | BRIDGEPORT, CT | $12,000,000 | 2025 | TO FUNDENVIRONMENTALINITIATIVES |
| CENTER FOR CONTEMPORARY DOCUMENTATION INC | GREENWICH, CT | $500,000 | 2025 | TO FUND CHARITABLEPROGRAMS |
| KOSCIUSZKO INC | GREENWICH, CT | $175,000 | 2025 | TO FUNDCIVIC PROJECTSIN CONNECTICUT |
| FIDELITY CHARITABLE GIFT FUND | CINCINNATI, OH | $63,196,700 | 2024 | TO FUNDCHARITABLEPROGRAMS |
| FIDELITY CHARITABLE GIFT FUND | CINCINNATI, OH | $58,488,000 | 2023 | TO FUNDCHARITABLEPROGRAMS |
| THE CONNECTICUT PROJECT INC | BRIFGEPORT, CT | $2,500,000 | 2023 | TO FUNDCHARITABLEPROGRAMS |
FIDELITY CHARITABLE GIFT FUND
$17,751,000TO FUNDCHARITABLEPROGRAMS
THE CONNECTICUT PROJECT INC
$12,000,000TO FUNDENVIRONMENTALINITIATIVES
CENTER FOR CONTEMPORARY DOCUMENTATION INC
$500,000TO FUND CHARITABLEPROGRAMS
KOSCIUSZKO INC
$175,000TO FUNDCIVIC PROJECTSIN CONNECTICUT
FIDELITY CHARITABLE GIFT FUND
$63,196,700TO FUNDCHARITABLEPROGRAMS
FIDELITY CHARITABLE GIFT FUND
$58,488,000TO FUNDCHARITABLEPROGRAMS
THE CONNECTICUT PROJECT INC
$2,500,000TO FUNDCHARITABLEPROGRAMS