SFF-2026 S-Process Grant Round

SFF-2026 S-Process Grant Round is sponsored by Survival and Flourishing Fund. This opportunity supports mission-aligned projects and measurable outcomes.

SFF-2026 S-Process Grant Round Application Announcement | Survival and Flourishing Fund Main Round + Theme Rounds Main Round Recs Announced Theme Round Recs Announced Climate Change, Animal Welfare, HSEE This year introduces three Theme Rounds — Climate Change, Animal Welfare, and Human Self-Enhancement & Empowerment (HSEE) — each with $2–4MM in funding and dedicated Recommenders.

Theme Rounds require a supplemental application in addition to the standard rolling application. Theme Rounds feature Recommenders with specialized expertise in each cause area, creating opportunities for applicants who may not have found support in prior rounds.

Click any section below to jump to details SFF-2026 S-Process Grant Rounds Includes Main Round + Theme Rounds SFF-2026 S-Process Grant Round General Information # Survival and Flourishing Fund (SFF) is organizing another S-Process Grant Round in collaboration with Jaan Tallinn and Survival and Flourishing Corp (SFC) , planning to announce recommendations for all rounds and tracks throughout the Fall of 2026.

We estimate that $20MM - $40MM in funding will collectively be distributed across all rounds and tracks: $14–28MM in the Main Round via three tracks: Main, Freedom, and Fairness. $6–12MM across three new themed S-Process Grant Rounds ($2–4MM each), targeting the following specific cause areas: Climate Change, Animal Welfare, and Human Self-Enhancement and Empowerment (HSEE).

The Funder of this round, Jaan Tallinn, has provided the following guidance regarding philanthropic priorities, which highlights areas of consideration for funding: Jaan Tallinn’s philanthropic priorities Applicants must be awarded a Speculation Grant in order to be guaranteed eligible for consideration in an SFF S-Process Grant Round.

Completing the SFF Funding Rolling Application will automatically submit a Speculation Grant Request on your behalf. While few edge cases exist, over 95% of applications evaluated in past rounds received a Speculation Grant , as receiving a Speculation Grant guarantees eligibility in a round. A Recommender can also add an application directly by whitelisting it, although this is rare.

You will be notified if you have received a Speculation Grant that guarantees your eligibility in the round up to 2 weeks after the application deadline of that round.

Application Lifecycle — Main Round Submit Rolling Application Speculation Grant Deadline Recommendations Announced You may be asked for further info The SFF 2026 S-Process Grant Main Round will have two S-Process tracks in addition to the Main Track: the Freedom Track and the Fairness Track.

The application process and requirements are the same as the Main Track, but applicants can specifically flag their application for consideration by Recommenders in the Freedom Track or the Fairness Track. To learn more about these tracks, please see the Freedom and Fairness Tracks Announcements. SFF’s Theme Rounds are funding rounds focused on specific cause areas.

For 2026, the themes are: Climate Change, Animal Welfare, and Human Self-Enhancement and Empowerment. The application process includes submission of the general SFF Funding Rolling Application , as well as submission of a supplemental application corresponding to the themed grant round they would like to be considered for. To learn more about the themed grant rounds, please see the Theme Round Announcement .

Continuing in the 2026 S-Process Grant Round is the SFF Matching Pledge Program . SFF Matching Pledges are commitments made by Funders of an S-Process round to match outside donations to a recipient at some rate (e.g. 2-to-1), up to the pledged amount.

The goals of the Matching Pledge program include diversifying the funding landscape, providing encouragement to other donors who want to give more, and increasing the fundraising robustness and independence of S-Process grantees. Applicants can complete the Matching Pledge portion of the SFF Funding Rolling Application to be considered for the program.

Applications for all tracks (Main, Freedom, and Fairness) are due by the deadline of April 22, 2026 11:59:59 PM PT via the following form: SFF Funding Rolling Application Applications for all SFF Theme Rounds are due by the following deadlines via the above form as well as the corresponding supplemental application: Climate Change Supplemental Application Due June 10, 2026 at 11:59:59 PM PT Animal Welfare Supplemental Application Due June 24, 2026 at 11:59:59 PM PT Human Self-Enhancement and Empowerment Supplemental Application Due July 8, 2026 at 11:59:59 PM PT Application Lifecycle — Theme Rounds Submit Rolling Application Climate Change (June 10) · Animal Welfare (June 24) · HSEE (July 8) Submit Supplemental Application Climate Change (June 10) · Animal Welfare (June 24) · HSEE (July 8) Speculation Grant Deadline Climate Change (June 24) · Animal Welfare (July 8) · HSEE (July 22) Theme Round S-Process Evaluation Recommendations Announced You may be asked for further info Late applications will not be eligible for the current S-Process Grant Main Round or any SFF Theme Rounds and will instead be potentially eligible for consideration in the next grant round to be announced.

Late applications are still eligible for Speculation Grants. All guaranteed eligible applications will be evaluated in all tracks of the Main Round (Main, Freedom, and Fairness), but only SFF Theme Round applications will be considered for their corresponding themed grant round.

More information about the 2026 S-Process Grant Round can be found in the application form and in the FAQ below on this page, and answers to more general questions can be found in our General FAQ . If you have any further questions that are not answered through the above channels, please write to sff-contact@googlegroups. com .

SFF-2026 Main Track Announcement # Recommendations Announced $10–20MM · 6 Recommenders We hope grants made in this track collectively support fairness, freedom, and many other values essential for humanity’s survival and flourishing. For this reason, it has a larger budget than either of the specialized tracks. Please review the SFF-2026 S-Process Grant Round General Information for information on the requirements for all tracks.

Applications for all tracks (Main, Freedom, and Fairness) are due by the deadline of April 22, 2026 11:59:59 PM PT via the following form: SFF Funding Rolling Application All guaranteed eligible applications will be evaluated in all tracks of the Main Round (Main, Freedom, and Fairness). We expect to have recommendations for the Main Round announced in September 2026.

SFF-2026 Freedom Track Announcement # How can we avoid concentrations of authority, and support uses of AI that strengthen freedom for humans and humanity?

Protecting meaningful freedom of speech Ensuring the continuation of individual liberties such as privacy, private property, and freedom of association Maintaining sovereignty for spatially separated territories that self-govern AI technologies could be used to bring more freedom and autonomy to people and institutions everywhere.

On the other hand, AI could also yield further concentrations of authority — whether in governments, corporations, or elsewhere — that oppress freedom of speech, hoard resources, and perpetuate tyranny. How can we avoid these problems, and support uses of AI that strengthen freedom for humans and humanity?

We’re specifically seeking applications addressing the following objectives: Protecting meaningful freedom of speech as a mechanism for exploring and improving our future, accounting for modern attentional constraints on whether free speech will ever actually be heard by anyone. Ensuring the continuation of other individual liberties such as privacy, private property, and freedom of association, see also Rawls’ basic liberties .

Maintaining the notion and convention of sovereignty for spatially separated territories that self-govern, so that humanity can explore diverse and divergent regulatory approaches to technology, while respecting basic human rights and avoiding global externalities in the form of harm to other territories.

This evaluation track has a budget of $2MM - $4MM with 3 Freedom Track Recommenders reviewing all applications, but especially Freedom Track flagged applications. Recommenders across all tracks in the Main Round will be able to evaluate all guaranteed eligible applications.

See Freedom and Fairness Tracks General Information page → If you would like to flag your application to the Freedom Track Recommenders, you can indicate so in the SFF Funding Rolling Application . For details on how to apply, see the SFF-2026 S-Process Grant Round General Information . For more details on the Freedom Track, visit the Freedom and Fairness General Information Page .

SFF-2026 Fairness Track Announcement # How can we support the use of AI to empower the disempowered?

Empowering the global majority with regard to AI technology Addressing/resisting monopolistic practices in AI development and control Defusing conflicts and abuses of power from unfair discrimination Fostering inclusivity and diversity in AI governance, access, and benefits AI technologies could be used to bring greater opportunities and prosperity to all of humanity at once.

On the other hand, AI could also yield a further concentration of wealth and power, benefitting only a privileged few while creating risks and harmful externalities for everyone. How can we avoid these problems, and support the use of AI to empower the disempowered?

We’re specifically seeking applications addressing the following objectives: Empowering the global majority with regard to uses, risks, and benefits of AI technology, Anticipating, understanding, and addressing/resisting monopolistic practices in the development and control of advanced AI, Defusing and preventing unnecessary conflicts and abuses of power occurring on the basis of unfair discrimination, and Fostering and demanding inclusivity and diversity of representation in power over AI governance, access to AI technologies, and benefits from AI-enabled services.

This evaluation track has a budget of $2MM - $4MM with 3 Fairness Track Recommenders reviewing all applications, but especially Fairness Track flagged applications. Recommenders across all tracks in the Main Round will be able to evaluate all guaranteed eligible applications.

See Freedom and Fairness Tracks General Information page → If you would like to flag your application to the Fairness Track Recommenders, you can indicate so in the SFF Funding Rolling Application . For details on how to apply, see the SFF-2026 S-Process Grant Round General Information . For more details on the Fairness Track, visit the Freedom and Fairness General Information Page .

SFF-2026 Theme Rounds Announcement # In an effort to diversify the types of organizations SFF funds, as well as expand our philanthropic cause areas, SFF is facilitating three themed S-Process Grant Rounds.

The themes are: Human Self-Enhancement and Empowerment For details on how to apply to an SFF-2026 S-Process Theme Round, please see the SFF-2026 S-Process Grant Round General Information or visit the specific themed grant round section. The organizers of this grant round believe that an ethos of compassion and humanity is essential for stewarding a future where sentient beings, including humanity and beyond, survive and flourish.

The specific themes aim to fund initiatives that may not have historically found support in prior S-Process Grant Rounds, but that are key funding areas for establishing a compassionate and humane future. To apply for a theme round, applicants must first submit the SFF Funding Rolling Application , in addition to submitting a supplemental application that corresponds to the themed grant round they would like to be considered for.

All applicants must be approved and receive a Speculation Grant in order to be considered guaranteed eligible in any round. Speculators will be able to indicate if certain requests should be considered in a specific theme round, regardless of whether the application indicates so or not.

So, for example, if you submit to the Main Round, a Speculator might determine you have a better shot at receiving a recommendation through a particular theme round, your application will be considered in that round. While few edge cases exist, over 95% of applications evaluated in past rounds received a Speculation Grant . A Recommender can also add an application directly by whitelisting it, although this is rare.

You will be notified if you have received a Speculation Grant that guarantees your eligibility in the round 2 weeks after the application deadline of that round. Theme round applications will only be reviewed by the corresponding theme round Recommenders. The organizers of the round will carefully select Recommenders with backgrounds and expertise relevant to that theme.

SFF-2026 Climate Change Announcement # Step 1: Rolling Application Step 2: Climate Change Supplemental Application Recommendations Announced Preliminary announcement; pending feedback SFF is launching a themed grant round focused on organizations working to address the causes and effects of climate change.

Since the industrial revolution, human industrial activities have had increasingly significant and measurable impacts on the global environment. And, while the impact of AI on the environment is currently tiny on a global scale, much greater potential impacts — both positive and negative — are plausible over the coming decades. It may be difficult to measure or even imagine some of those impacts from the present.

However, carbon emissions are an exception: they are a relatively easy-to-measure impact that is already visible and globally relevant, and thus a compelling focal point for action to protect and improve the health of our environment.

Climate change driven by human activity is already a contributor to rising global temperatures, which could have increasingly serious effects on wildlife and agriculture if continued, with some damage almost certainly incurred already.

Rapidly advancing AI systems may accelerate the deployment of carbon-neutral energy solutions, but could also increase demand for energy, and thus have an important role to play on both sides of the climate equation. While we are particularly interested in ways AI can be applied to address the negative effects of climate change, this themed grant round is not limited to that intersection.

We welcome applications from organizations working across the full range of climate-related efforts, including: alternative energy, carbon capture, agricultural innovation, ecosystem restoration, policy advocacy, and more. What is the technological path to fully sustainable energy? How can we slow, stop, or reverse the rise in atmospheric temperature from the last five decades?

How do we ensure robust ecosystem health? Tell us in your application! Applications are due by June 10, 2026 at 11:59:59 PM PT via the submission of the S-Process Funding Rolling Application , as well as a submission of the Climate Change Supplemental Application .

We will not be accepting late applications. We expect recommendations will be announced by the end of November 2026. You can apply as a charity or for-profit (seeking either investment or non-dilutive funding).

We estimate that $2-4MM in funding will be distributed in association with this round. This grant round will run independently from the three tracks of our Main Round. It will coordinate funding from the same Funder (Jaan Tallinn) as the Main Round, but have its own set of Recommenders with relevant expertise and experience related to climate change.

For questions, please check out our FAQ , or reach out to sff-contact@googlegroups. com . The organizers of this themed grant round welcome feedback on this announcement, especially from potential Recommender candidates and applicants.

SFF Admin probably won’t have time to respond to all feedback, but it will still be helpful deciding on the final wording of this announcement. Please feel free to message sff-contact@googlegroups. com with any feedback you might have.

SFF-2026 Animal Welfare Announcement # Step 1: Rolling Application Step 2: Animal Welfare Supplemental Application Recommendations Announced Preliminary announcement; pending feedback SFF is launching a themed grant round focused on organizations working to improve animal welfare. SFF’s mission is to support the long-term survival and flourishing of sentient life, and we are highly confident that animals are sentient.

Principles of compassion and justice toward sentient beings are principles that we humans would like to be applied to us, and SFF therefore aims to apply these same principles to other sentient beings as well. Moreover, as AI capabilities continue to advance, humanity’s relationship to animal welfare takes on increased significance and urgency.

The moral frameworks we develop and institutionalize now, including how we weigh the interests of non-human animals, have the potential to influence the values embedded in AI systems through the norms, laws, and training objectives that are set for them. Therefore, how humanity treats animals today may shape how AI systems treat all sentient life in the future.

While we are particularly interested in the intersection of AI and animal welfare, this themed grant round is not limited to that intersection.

We welcome applications from organizations working to improve the welfare of animals through a variety of approaches, including: ethical treatment initiatives, legislative advocacy, development of alternative proteins, interspecies communication research, technological advancements in agriculture, and more. How can we humans steer the future toward ever-improving principles of justice and compassion, for all sentient beings?

What insights can we gain from interspecies communication that shape how we relate to other beings? What types of technological advancements can help get us there? Tell us in your application!

Applications are due by June 24, 2026 at 11:59:59 PM PT via the submission of the S-Process Funding Rolling Application , as well as the Animal Welfare Supplemental Application . We will not be accepting late applications. We expect recommendations for this round will be announced by the end of November 2026.

You can apply as a charity or for-profit (seeking either investment or non-dilutive funding). This grant round will run independently from the three tracks of our Main Round. It will coordinate funding from the same Funder (Jaan Tallinn) as the Main Round, but have its own set of Recommenders with relevant expertise and experience related to animal welfare.

We estimate that $2-4MM in funding will be distributed in association with this round. For questions, please check out our FAQ , or reach out to sff-contact@googlegroups. com .

The organizers of this themed grant round welcome feedback on this announcement, especially from potential Recommender candidates and applicants. SFF Admin probably won’t have time to respond to all feedback, but it will still be helpful deciding on the final wording of this announcement. Please feel free to message sff-contact@googlegroups.

com with any feedback you might have. SFF-2026 Human Self-Enhancement and Empowerment (HSEE) Announcement # Step 1: Rolling Application Step 2: HSEE Supplemental Application Recommendations Announced Preliminary announcement; pending feedback SFF is launching a theme round focused on organizations working to advance human self-enhancement and empowerment (HSEE).

Clothing, wheels, antibiotics, paper, and eyeglasses all empower individuals to enhance their own bodies and minds at will. What could the next century of human self-enhancements look like? In the age of artificial intelligence, human self-enhancements take on an even greater importance in how we evolve.

Artificial intelligence is a critical factor because if humanity isn’t careful, AI could entirely replace the human species, and we don’t want that.

Indeed, top experts in AI, including CEOs of major AGI companies and the most highly-cited AI researchers of all time, have already warned us about this by co-signing this statement: “Mitigating the risk of extinction from AI should be a global priority alongside other societal-scale risks such as pandemics and nuclear war. ” Meanwhile, there is massive global demand for intelligence.

For instance, all humans suffer from our vulnerability to disease, and our individual and collective intelligence is how we have alleviated ailments historically and will going forward. Antibiotics, smallpox vaccines, clean water supplies, iodized salt, and improved childbirth practices have all greatly enhanced human wellbeing, and were all derived from individual and collective intelligence.

Global demand for intelligence is therefore very unlikely to decrease in the near future. Human self-enhancement, especially intelligence enhancement, creates an alternative path for humans to keep pace with AI, both economically and ecologically, thereby empowering humanity to continue thriving and innovating for a better future.

The organizers of this grant round have created this theme round to support technical research advancing human self-enhancement technologies and philosophical research on how they should be used. We hope that by supporting research of human self-enhancement, we will empower individuals as well as humanity as a whole. How do we want HSEE technologies to work?

What ethical frameworks should guide their development and deployment? Which ones stand the best chance of helping humans everywhere to thrive in the era of artificial intelligence? Tell us in your application!

Applications are due by July 8, 2026 at 11:59:59 PM PT via submission of the S-Process Funding Rolling Application , as well as the HSEE Supplemental Application . We will not be accepting late applications. We expect recommendations will be announced by the end of November 2026.

You can apply as a charity or for-profit (seeking either investment or non-dilutive funding). This grant round will run independently from the three tracks of our Main Round. It will coordinate funding from the same Funder (Jaan Tallinn) as the Main Round, but have its own set of Recommenders with relevant expertise and experience related to human self-enhancement and empowerment.

We estimate that $2-4MM in funding will be distributed in association with this round. For questions, please check out our FAQ , or reach out to sff-contact@googlegroups. com .

The organizers of this themed grant round welcome feedback on this announcement, especially from potential Recommender candidates and applicants. SFF Admin probably won’t have time to respond to all feedback, but it will still be helpful deciding on the final wording of this announcement. Please feel free to message sff-contact@googlegroups.

com with any feedback you might have. How long does it take to get funding? How long does the application take to complete?

Can I make changes to my application? Where can I find my application ID? What are my chances of getting funding/ would you guys fund “x”/ should I apply?

How do I apply for a specific themed grant round? Can I apply to multiple Theme Rounds? Can I apply to the Main Round and a Theme Round?

If I have received S-Process funding in the past, do I still need to fill out a new SFF Funding Rolling Application for the current round? Do I need to submit a separate Speculation Grant request in order to be eligible for consideration in the SFF-2026 S-Process Grant Round? Can I apply as a for-profit?

Can I apply as a charity? I am an individual/independent researcher without a fiscal sponsor. Can SFF recommend funding to me?

If SFF can’t recommend funding to me, can you give me a suggestion of an organization that will? I/my entity is located outside the US. Can I apply?

Can multiple applications come from a single university or large organization? Can I submit late / after the stated deadline? Who will see my application?

Who are SFF Speculators and are there specialized Speculators (e.g., Freedom track Speculators, HSEE Speculators)? What are the deadlines for this round? I missed the deadline for the current S-Process Grant Round, can I still apply?

If I have submitted my materials by the relevant deadline and have not received a Speculation Grant, does that mean that my organization is not eligible for the grant round? When do you expect funding to be distributed? What happens after I’ve applied?

Can I solicit applications? Do I need to evaluate every application? How did you choose me to be a Recommender?

When are my evaluations due? Can I whitelist applications that may not have received a Speculation Grant? What is the last day that I can make Speculation Grants for them to be included in the current round?

Speculation Grants are needed in order for S-Process applicants to be eligible for the grant round. In light of this, should I think differently about how I am making grants? Can I flag applications for consideration for a specific themed grant round?