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Arc Institute
Arc Institute is a nonprofit biomedical research organization based in Palo Alto, California. It was co-founded by Stanford University biochemistry professor Silvana Konermann, UC Berkeley bioengineering professor Patrick Hsu, and Stripe CEO Patrick Collison, with Konermann as its inaugural executive director. The institute operates in partnership with three San Francisco Bay Area research universities—Stanford, UC Berkeley, and UCSF.
Arc Institute was founded in 2021 to provide scientists with research opportunities without the need for external grant applications. This followed a collaboration between Konermann, Hsu, and Collison on Fast Grants during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Arc Institute was launched with initial funding of $650 million. Founding donors include Ethereum creator Vitalik Buterin, Stripe co-founders Patrick Collison and John Collison, angel investor Ron Conway, Color Genomics co-founder Elad Gil, Cue co-founder Daniel Gross, Facebook and Asana co-founder Dustin Moskovitz, Coefficient Giving chair Cari Tuna, General Catalyst CEO Hemant Taneja, and Jane Street Capital executives. Silvana Konermann is the executive director, and Patrick Hsu leads the development of research teams focused on technology related to biological research. Both Konermann and Hsu lead research labs in addition to their other roles at the institute.
The institute houses laboratories at its facility at Stanford Research Park and funds projects at partner universities. Carolyn Bertozzi and Aviv Regev serve on its scientific advisory board, and Nat Friedman, Reid Hoffman, and Meta Chief Financial Officer Susan Li serve on its board of directors. Dave Burke, former Vice President of Engineering for Google’s Android division, was named Chief Technology Officer in 2024. Megan van Overbeek, former Vice President of Preclinical Research at Metagenomi Therapeutics, was named Chief Scientific Officer in 2026.
Funding focuses on "high risk, high reward" science, with flexible funding modeled after organizations like the Broad Institute, Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Chan Zuckerberg Biohub. The institute's three main funding categories are Core Investigators, Innovation Investigators, and Ignite Awards.
Arc core investigators work within the institute itself, and are given a budget to support a lab of up to 20 people and full funding for eight years of laboratory operations. The institute also has technology development centers focusing on machine learning, genome engineering, cellular and animal models of human disease, and multiomics.
Arc Innovation Investigators receive $1 million over five years, while Ignite Awards grant researchers from the three partner universities $100,000 for one year.
Arc Institute's stated mission is to "accelerate scientific progress, understand the root causes of complex diseases, and narrow the gap between discoveries and impact on patients". The institute brings together researchers from varied backgrounds to facilitate collaboration between biologists doing experimental research and researchers creating new technology.
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Arc Institute
Arc Institute is a nonprofit biomedical research organization based in Palo Alto, California. It was co-founded by Stanford University biochemistry professor Silvana Konermann, UC Berkeley bioengineering professor Patrick Hsu, and Stripe CEO Patrick Collison, with Konermann as its inaugural executive director. The institute operates in partnership with three San Francisco Bay Area research universities—Stanford, UC Berkeley, and UCSF.
Arc Institute was founded in 2021 to provide scientists with research opportunities without the need for external grant applications. This followed a collaboration between Konermann, Hsu, and Collison on Fast Grants during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Arc Institute was launched with initial funding of $650 million. Founding donors include Ethereum creator Vitalik Buterin, Stripe co-founders Patrick Collison and John Collison, angel investor Ron Conway, Color Genomics co-founder Elad Gil, Cue co-founder Daniel Gross, Facebook and Asana co-founder Dustin Moskovitz, Coefficient Giving chair Cari Tuna, General Catalyst CEO Hemant Taneja, and Jane Street Capital executives. Silvana Konermann is the executive director, and Patrick Hsu leads the development of research teams focused on technology related to biological research. Both Konermann and Hsu lead research labs in addition to their other roles at the institute.
The institute houses laboratories at its facility at Stanford Research Park and funds projects at partner universities. Carolyn Bertozzi and Aviv Regev serve on its scientific advisory board, and Nat Friedman, Reid Hoffman, and Meta Chief Financial Officer Susan Li serve on its board of directors. Dave Burke, former Vice President of Engineering for Google’s Android division, was named Chief Technology Officer in 2024. Megan van Overbeek, former Vice President of Preclinical Research at Metagenomi Therapeutics, was named Chief Scientific Officer in 2026.
Funding focuses on "high risk, high reward" science, with flexible funding modeled after organizations like the Broad Institute, Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Chan Zuckerberg Biohub. The institute's three main funding categories are Core Investigators, Innovation Investigators, and Ignite Awards.
Arc core investigators work within the institute itself, and are given a budget to support a lab of up to 20 people and full funding for eight years of laboratory operations. The institute also has technology development centers focusing on machine learning, genome engineering, cellular and animal models of human disease, and multiomics.
Arc Innovation Investigators receive $1 million over five years, while Ignite Awards grant researchers from the three partner universities $100,000 for one year.
Arc Institute's stated mission is to "accelerate scientific progress, understand the root causes of complex diseases, and narrow the gap between discoveries and impact on patients". The institute brings together researchers from varied backgrounds to facilitate collaboration between biologists doing experimental research and researchers creating new technology.