8.5 KiB
New Venture Fund Schedule I Grant Recipient Analysis
Research Date: 2026-03-12 Data Source: IRS Form 990 XML e-files via ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer (S3 bulk data) Years Analyzed: 2022, 2023, 2024 EIN: 20-5806345
Executive Summary
Analysis of 2,669 grant recipients across three years of NVF Schedule I filings found NO grants to any target child safety, age verification, or tech policy organizations. NVF is primarily a progressive advocacy funder focused on civil rights, environment, international development, and education. However, $151M in internal Arabella network transfers (especially $121M to the Sixteen Thirty Fund 501(c)(4)) represent an opaque pipeline that could indirectly fund child safety advocacy without appearing in NVF's own Schedule I.
1. Dataset Overview
| Tax Year | Grant Recipients | Total Grants |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 992 | ~$487M |
| 2023 | 823 | ~$393M |
| 2024 | 854 | ~$401M |
| Total | 2,669 | ~$1.28B |
Grant Purpose Category Breakdown (All Years Combined)
| Purpose Category | Count | Total Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Civil Rights, Social Action, Advocacy | 1,191 | $548,023,213 |
| International Development | 78 | $311,246,165 |
| Environmental Programs | 465 | $135,638,346 |
| Youth Development and Education | 394 | $73,357,689 |
| Technology and Innovation | 121 | $54,317,648 |
| Conservation and Climate | 34 | $50,042,000 |
| Health | 117 | $31,605,009 |
| Capacity Building | 109 | $22,087,902 |
| All Other | 160 | $55,165,148 |
2. Target Organization Search Results
2.1 Direct Organization Name Search
SEARCHED FOR: ConnectSafely, ICMEC, NCMEC, FOSI, Thorn, Common Sense Media, Digital Childhood Alliance, Digital Childhood Institute, NCOSE, 5Rights Foundation, FairPlay, CDT, NetChoice, Chamber of Progress, TechNet, EFF, Family Online Safety Institute
RESULT: ZERO MATCHES
None of the target organizations received grants from NVF in any of the three years analyzed. This is a definitive negative finding based on full Schedule I data.
2.2 Digital/Online/Internet Safety Keyword Search
SEARCHED FOR: Grants where organization name OR purpose contained any combination of (digital, online, internet, cyber, tech) AND (safety, protect, safe, harm, abuse)
RESULT: ZERO MATCHES
NVF made no grants whose purpose or recipient name suggests digital/online safety, child online protection, or age verification work.
2.3 Child/Youth-Specific Grants
394 grants totaling $73,357,689 were categorized as "Youth Development and Education." These are overwhelmingly:
- Education access/equity (Cambiar Education $12.2M, Equal Chance for Education, scholarship programs)
- Diabetes camps for children (Camp Leo, Florida Camp for Children with Diabetes, etc.)
- Child welfare/advocacy (Children's Defense Fund $17.5K, UNICEF $400K)
- Early childhood education (NAEYC, Head Start programs)
- Youth civic engagement (Generation Citizen, Young Peoples Alliance)
No grants related to: Online safety, age verification, app store regulation, digital childhood, social media harm
2.4 Grants with "Child" in Organization Name
37 grants across 3 years. All are traditional child welfare organizations:
- Children's Defense Fund ($17,500)
- Child Care Law Center ($200K + $21.6K)
- International Society for Prevention of Child Abuse ($116K)
- Policy Institute for Children of Louisiana ($21.6K + $287K)
- UNICEF ($400K)
- Coleman Advocates for Children and Youth ($350K + $100K + $258K)
None related to digital/online child safety or tech policy.
3. Internal Arabella Network Transfers
CRITICAL FINDING: NVF transferred $150,995,684 to other Arabella network entities:
| Recipient | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sixteen Thirty Fund (c)(4) | $34,770,000 | $27,601,875 | $58,932,923 | $121,304,798 |
| North Fund | $5,740,000 | $7,112,995 | $8,055,000 | $20,907,995 |
| Hopewell Fund | $1,260,000 | $3,081,000 | $4,441,891 | $8,782,891 |
| Total Internal | $41,770,000 | $37,795,870 | $71,429,814 | $150,995,684 |
Significance
The $121.3M transfer to the Sixteen Thirty Fund is the single most important finding in this analysis. The Sixteen Thirty Fund is a 501(c)(4) that:
- Does NOT disclose its donors (IRC Section 6033)
- Made $236.5M in grants in 2024 across 318 recipients
- Its own Schedule I would need to be analyzed separately
- Could fund DCA, child safety advocacy, or tech policy organizations without NVF's Schedule I revealing the connection
In other words: If Meta or any entity wanted to fund child safety/age verification advocacy through the Arabella network, the path would be:
Donor → NVF (c)(3) → Sixteen Thirty Fund (c)(4) → Advocacy group
[donors NOT disclosed] [Schedule I reveals recipients]
The NVF → Sixteen Thirty transfer is visible on NVF's Schedule I (this analysis). But the Sixteen Thirty Fund's own donors are never publicly disclosed, and its grant recipients require a separate Schedule I analysis.
4. Location-Based Analysis
Washington, DC Grants
- 344 grants totaling $343,183,092
- Top recipients: Sixteen Thirty Fund ($121M), America Votes ($41M), Climate and Clean Energy Equity Fund ($18M), North Fund ($21M)
- Mostly civil rights/advocacy and environmental organizations
- No child safety or tech policy organizations identified
Palo Alto, CA Grants
- 5 grants totaling $1,002,171
- Schmidt Family Foundation, Connect Humanity, Moore Foundation
- ConnectSafely (3481 Greer Rd, Palo Alto) did NOT receive any NVF grants
Alexandria, VA Grants
- 14 grants totaling $11,361,522
- Global Impact, New Virginia Majority, National Science Foundation
- ICMEC (Alexandria, VA) did NOT receive any NVF grants
5. Conclusions
What This Analysis Proves
-
NVF does not directly fund ConnectSafely, ICMEC, NCMEC, DCA, DCI, FOSI, Thorn, or any identified child safety / age verification advocacy organization through its Schedule I grants.
-
NVF's grant portfolio is overwhelmingly focused on progressive civic engagement, voting rights, environmental programs, and international development — not technology policy or child safety.
-
NVF transfers $121M+ to the Sixteen Thirty Fund, which operates as a 501(c)(4) with full donor opacity and its own $236M+ grant portfolio.
What This Analysis Does NOT Rule Out
-
Sixteen Thirty Fund pass-through: The $121M NVF → Sixteen Thirty pipeline could ultimately reach child safety or tech policy groups. Requires separate Sixteen Thirty Fund Schedule I analysis.
-
Fiscal sponsorship: Projects operating under NVF's umbrella as "sponsored projects" may not appear as separate grant recipients on Schedule I. NVF had 964 employees and ~600 volunteers in 2023 — some of these may work on sponsored projects related to tech policy.
-
Other Arabella entities: Hopewell Fund and Windward Fund each have their own Schedule I data not yet analyzed.
-
Indirect influence: NVF's $36.7M in lobbying expenditures (including $31.2M in grants to other orgs for lobbying) could support age verification advocacy without appearing as Schedule I grants.
6. Recommended Next Steps
-
Sixteen Thirty Fund Schedule I analysis — Download and parse the 318 grant recipients from the 2024 filing. This is the most likely place to find child safety / tech policy funding.
-
NVF Technology and Innovation grants — 121 grants totaling $54.3M. Review these for any tech policy adjacent work.
-
NVF sponsored projects list — Search for any publicly listed NVF-sponsored projects related to tech policy, age verification, or child safety.
-
Sixteen Thirty Fund donor investigation — While donors are not publicly disclosed, congressional investigations and investigative reporting may have identified some donors.
Data Files
- Full grant list:
data/processed/nvf_all_grants.csv(2,669 rows) - Keyword matches:
data/processed/nvf_keyword_matches.json - Raw XML files:
data/raw/990_xml/nvf_2022.xml,nvf_2023.xml,nvf_2024.xml
Sources
- ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer API: https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/205806345
- IRS Form 990 XML bulk data (via ProPublica S3 redirect)
- NVF 2023 Public Disclosure Copy: https://newventurefund.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/2023-New-Venture-Fund-Form-990-Public-Disclosure-Copy.pdf