Scientific Research Program

Scientific Research Program is sponsored by Open Philanthropy. Open Philanthropy supports scientific research that could affect a large number of people, focusing on areas such as human health, biosecurity, and transformative basic science.

Science and Global Health R&D | Coefficient Giving Science and Global Health R&D We support research and development into new tools to improve global health. Associate Program Officer Associate Program Officer Interested in learning more or joining the fund? Reach out to partnerwithus@coefficientgiving.

org . Health technologies like vaccines and drugs save millions of lives around the world. Yet many cures remain undiscovered.

Government and private sector funders do not always prioritize research and development (R&D) that could help the most people live long and healthy lives. Diseases like tuberculosis, malaria, and rheumatic heart disease that primarily affect the world’s poorest people receive much less R&D spending relative to their health burdens than diseases affecting the wealthy. High-risk, transformational science often goes unfunded, too.

We are particularly interested in supporting products or fields where progress has stalled, where additional resources could accelerate breakthrough discoveries and new tools for global health. We have supported scientific research for human health since 2016, expanding our work in global health R&D in 2023.

Our work includes: Transformative basic research and tool development aimed at answering fundamental questions about biology and human health. Preclinical and clinical studies to develop and test new treatments , vaccines , diagnostics , and other preventive technologies .

Implementation research , technical assistance , and market-shaping initiatives to help health systems make use of the best knowledge and tools available, and expand the availability of lifesaving technologies. A Quantitative Approach to Vaccine Funding Some diseases that kill many people receive very few resources for the development of diagnostics, treatments, and vaccines.

In relative terms, R&D funding varies by 10 times or more across diseases, often without good reason. This suggests that science funders could find high-impact opportunities by targeting the most neglected diseases. How Neil King and David Baker Are Using AI To Create More Effective Vaccines In October 2024, our longtime grantee David Baker won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his groundbreaking work in protein design.

We wanted to take the opportunity to highlight his work and some of its practical applications, such as enabling better vaccines. How the Frugal Science Movement Is Working to Transform TB Testing Saad Bhamla is a key figure in the frugal innovation movement, which seeks to build cheaper versions of existing scientific tools.

His latest innovation, a portable device to test tuberculosis and other diseases, could well be another consequential contribution to global public health.

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