The Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation (drkfoundation.org) — "Global Venture Philanthropy for Social Entrepreneurs" — is a US venture-philanthropy foundation based in Menlo Park, California. For more than two decades it has backed early-stage, high-impact social enterprises with a model deliberately borrowed from venture capital: concentrated bets, board seats and hands-on support — except the returns are measured in lives changed.
Model and scale
DRK provides up to $300,000 in unrestricted funding or investment capital over three years — disbursed in tranches with in-kind capacity support — and DRK team members serve on grantee boards during those three years. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis, with roughly 20 organisations selected each year. Its homepage reports 710 million total lives impacted, 283 organisations funded and $2.3 billion in downstream funding catalyzed across more than 280 investments. Eligibility centres on early-stage, post-pilot and pre-scale organisations — ideally 2–5 years old — with the potential to impact 10,000+ lives within five years and committed full-time leadership. Geographies: Africa, Europe, India and the United States (with selective Latin America and Israel). DRK is a member of Big Bang Philanthropy.
India grantees
Verified India grantees include ARPAN (Mumbai; $50,000 in general operating support recorded in DRK's 2022 990-PF filing), Mati Carbon (operating across Africa and India) and Darsel (an AI-powered maths platform operating in Jordan, India and Nigeria, funded in 2025). Its broader portfolio includes names like Kiva, Room to Read and One Acre Fund.
DRK's venture-philanthropy model is deliberately high-touch: beyond the $300,000 over three years, team members take board seats for the duration, and funding arrives in tranches tied to milestones plus in-kind capacity support. With roughly 20 organisations selected annually from rolling applications, the bar is high — but so is the signalling value: $2.3 billion in downstream funding catalyzed across 283 organisations means a DRK grant is often the first institutional validation that unlocks everything after.
For Indian founders, the verified grantee list is instructive. ARPAN's $50,000 in general operating support (disclosed in DRK's 2022 990-PF) shows the foundation backs unglamorous, essential work like child safety; Mati Carbon and Darsel show it follows strong teams across borders. As a member of Big Bang Philanthropy, DRK also plugs grantees into a funder collaborative most early-stage non-profits never access.
Why it matters for founders
For Indian social entrepreneurs at the post-pilot, pre-scale stage, DRK offers the rarest early money in philanthropy: $300,000 unrestricted, a board-level partner for three years, and a brand that unlocks $2.3 billion in downstream capital. Applications are rolling — if you can credibly project 10,000+ lives impacted in five years, you should apply.