Andy Konwinski, co-founder of Databricks and Perplexity, has pledged $100 million of his personal fortune to create a new institute focused on AI research.
The institute, named Laude, will fund researchers who aim to develop AI in ways that serve the public good.
Laude will operate as a grantmaking body. It will fund independent researchers and early-stage projects as Konwinski’s goal is to support work that benefits society, not just commercial interests.
Leading Experts Join the Mission
Konwinski is not doing this alone. The Laude Institute will be guided by a board of prominent AI leaders like Dave Patterson, a UC Berkeley professor known for his award-winning research, Jeff Dean, Google’s Chief Scientist, and Joelle Pineau, Vice President of AI Research at Meta.
These individuals bring decades of experience to the institute.
Major Investment in Berkeley
The institute’s first major grant is already underway. Laude has committed $3 million annually over five years, $15 million total, to establish a new AI Systems Lab at the University of California, Berkeley.
The lab, which will open in 2027, will be led by Ion Stoica, a respected professor and researcher. Stoica also co-founded Databricks and Anyscale.
Slingshots and Moonshots
Laude will support research through two key funding tracks: slingshots and moonshots.
Slingshots grants will fund early-stage research and help researchers develop ideas with hands-on support and financial backing.
Moonshots are for long-term projects that tackle major societal challenges. Areas of interest include scientific discovery, public health, civic discourse, and workforce development.
Designed for Impact
Laude operates as a nonprofit organization. However, it also includes a public benefit corporation (PBC).
This structure allows the institute to support applied research while maintaining a strong ethical focus.
In addition, Konwinski helped launch a separate venture fund in 2024. He co-founded this fund with Pete Sonsini, a former partner at New Enterprise Associates (NEA).
That fund now includes over 50 AI researchers as limited partners. One of its early investments ($12 million) was Arcade, a startup building infrastructure for AI agents.
There have been a lot of other quiet investments as well.
AI Benchmarks
AI benchmarks, used to assess the AI models, are now used for commercial purposes.
In some cases, benchmarks used to evaluate models are built by the same companies that publish them.
For example, OpenAI supported the creation of an AI benchmark later used to showcase its new o3 model.
These developments raise questions about transparency and intent.
Laude offers a different approach. It seeks to fund independent research, and its leaders aim to support work free from commercial pressure.
A Personal Commitment
Konwinski’s $100 million pledge comes from years of personal success. In January, Databricks closed a $15.3 billion funding round.
The company is now valued at $62 billion. Perplexity, another company Konwinski co-founded, recently reached a $14 billion valuation.
Laude is already attracting attention. A spokesperson confirmed that the institute welcomes investment from other technologists with the same goal to build a broad coalition that supports ethical AI development.
