LessWrong (30+ Karma) Three things that surprised me about technical grantmaking at Coefficient Giving (fka Open Phil)
Nov 26, 2025
Discover the fascinating world of grantmaking with insights into how grantmakers elicit rather than just evaluate proposals. Learn about the room for growth in technical strategies, where junior staff can truly make an impact. Hear about the team’s ambitions to scale grants significantly while maintaining impactful distribution. Jake shares his motivational journey, detailing exciting engagements with researchers and the joy of funding ambitious projects. Plus, the importance of hiring great talent to unlock millions in funding emerges as a key theme.
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Grantmaking Shapes The Pipeline
- Grantmakers don't just pick from proposals; they actively elicit and shape them into higher-impact projects.
- Jake Mendel spent more time writing RFPs, pitching researchers, and steering proposals than merely evaluating marginal grants.
Small Request Became A Million-Dollar Bet
- A $10,000 compute ask led Jake Mendel to encourage much bigger plans and resulted in a $1M grant for formal software verification.
- That grant helped found Theorem, which joined YC and achieved one of the cohort's largest valuations.
High Counterfactual Value Of Hires
- Many offers are highly counterfactual because few qualified candidates apply and top hires uniquely unlock major funding flows.
- Acceptance often causes tens of millions to be allocated to projects that otherwise wouldn't exist.