Wellcome Trust

Name

Wellcome Trust

Legal name

The Wellcome Trust

Website

https://wellcome.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1936

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Health Research Funding

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

akta.pro primary industry

Health & Medical Research Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

International Grantmaking & Development Foundations (BPAGAKAH), Research & Science Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAI), Global Health Research, Evidence & Technical Assistance Organizations (HLAJAKAN), Health Research Funding Agencies (Public/Quasi-Public) (HLAJALAB), Philanthropic & Charitable Trust Services (FSAAANAI)

Keywords

• Health research funding
• Medical research grants
• Charitable foundation
• Discovery research programs
• Global health initiatives

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Investment portfolio returns: Returns from a £39.9 billion investment portfolio (10.2% total return in FY2025) fund charitable expenditure. The investment portfolio is the primary funding source for the foundation's grant-making activities.
2. Charitable grants and directed funding: Charitable expenditure of £1.9 billion in FY ending September 30, 2025 (up from £1.6 billion prior year), committed to spending £16 billion on research by 2032. Includes open funding schemes, directed funding, and major partnerships.
3. Adaptive capital / estate-derived returns: Self-sustaining investment portfolio created from Sir Henry Wellcome's estate; adaptive capital architecture converts the £39.9 billion portfolio into nearly £2 billion annually for global scientific research and health initiatives.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion4 records

Distribution channels8 records

Marketing channels12 records

Core offering

Wellcome Trust is a UK-based global charitable foundation that funds scientific research and health initiatives through research grants, directed funding to major research institutes, and operating its own research infrastructure. It provides awards across career stages (Early-Career Awards, Career Development Awards, Discovery Awards, Mental Health Awards, Climate Impacts Awards), funds flagship institutes including the Wellcome Sanger Institute and the Francis Crick Institute partnership, and operates public engagement platforms such as Wellcome Collection museum and the Wellcome Global Monitor survey across 140 countries.

Product overview

Wellcome Trust operates as a global charitable foundation rather than a single software product; its offering is a platform-plus-modules architecture organised around three worldwide health challenges (Mental Health, Infectious Disease, and Climate and Health) plus Discovery Research. The core service is the Research Funding Schemes portfolio (Early-Career Awards, Career Development Awards, Discovery Awards, Bioimaging Technology Development Awards, Mental Health Awards, Climate Impacts Awards, etc.), delivered through the Wellcome Funding digital platform (funding.wellcome.org), which is supported by the Wellcome Funding Platform and complemented by data-publishing integrations with Dimensions, Europe PMC, G-Finder, MODARI, OECD, Pandemic PACT, UK Health Research Analysis, and World RePORT. Layered on top are Major Research Initiatives and Directed Funding (Wellcome Leap, Wellcome Sanger Institute, Health Data Research Service, Discovery Research Platforms, and partner-funded centres like the Francis Crick Institute and UK Biobank). Public-facing Engagement and Advocacy offerings include Wellcome Collection (the free museum and library), Wellcome Global Monitor, Wellcome Photography Prize, When Science Finds a Way podcast, Canopy art-science festival, and Centres for Exchange, while policy work is driven through Wellcome Policy Lab (Science Policy Labs).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Wellcome Collection: Free museum and library exploring the past, present and future of health, opened in London in 2007 near Euston station.
• Wellcome Leap
• Wellcome Sanger Institute
• Wellcome Genome Campus
• Wellcome Global Monitor
• Wellcome Photography Prize

Products and services

• Research Funding Schemes A portfolio of competitive grant schemes for researchers worldwide spanning all career stages and disciplines, supporting discovery research plus three worldwide health challenges (mental health, infectious disease, climate and health). Available to researchers globally (with geographic restrictions excluding mainland China and India for some schemes).
• Wellcome Funding Platform An online portal (funding.wellcome.org) that manages the full lifecycle of grant applications for researchers, institutions, and reviewers. Used by applicants and grant administrators globally.
• Wellcome Collection A free museum and library in London exploring health and human experience through collections, exhibitions, events, books, and online access. Open to the general public since 2007.
• Wellcome Sanger Institute A world-leading genomic research institute operated by Wellcome, based at the Wellcome Genome Campus in Hinxton, Cambridgeshire. Conducts genomic and biodata research for global health impact.
• Wellcome Leap A not-for-profit organisation set up by Wellcome to accelerate discovery and innovation for the benefit of human health through high-risk, high-reward research programmes.
• Health Data Research Service (HDRS) A partnership between Wellcome and the UK government providing a secure single access point to national-scale UK health datasets for approved researchers across commercial and academic sectors.
• Discovery Research Platforms A network of eight research platforms at leading universities (UK and global) that bring together researchers and collaborators to address field-specific technological and methodological barriers in different research areas.
• Wellcome Research Centres and Institutes Network of long-term co-funded research centres and institutes at UK universities where Wellcome supports researchers to work and train in world-class research environments across multiple disciplines.
• Wellcome Global Monitor The world's largest study of public attitudes to science, surveying adults in 140 countries every two to three years to learn how people think and feel about science and health.
• Wellcome Photography Prize A biennial competition celebrating compelling imagery that captures stories of health, science, and human experience from around the world.
• Wellcome Prize for Mental Health Science with Nature The world's largest global prize dedicated to mental health science, awarded in partnership with Nature for breakthrough interventions in anxiety, depression, and psychosis with demonstrated real-world impact.
• When Science Finds a Way Podcast A podcast series exploring groundbreaking research and innovations transforming health, hosted by Alisha Wainwright. Open to the general public as part of Wellcome's public engagement work.
• Wellcome Policy Lab (Science Policy Labs) A space for experimenting with creative approaches to science and health policy processes, including the UK research and development system, global collaboration, and frontier discovery governance.

Quantifiable outcome

• 2,723 active grants across 133 countries with total award value of £7.3 billion
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers24 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration10 records

AI capability17 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

36 partnerships are on record, tiered major, minor and flagship.

• Digital Medicine Society (DiMe) DATAccmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 June 2026Commissioned and co-developed the first set of digital measures for common mental health disorders (sleep, physical activity, cognitive function, speech/language, autonomic function, facial/gaze) with 20+ industry, advocacy, and research partners including FDA.
• Active PhilanthropyminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 May 2026Co-published analysis on integrating climate change and mental health funding in philanthropy; highlights Wellcome's climate-mental health portfolio including Connecting Climate Minds initiative at Imperial College London.
• Kids Help Phone (KHP) and Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 May 2026Five-year research partnership backed by a $3.2 million Wellcome grant to develop generative AI-powered conversation simulator for crisis responder training using 750,000+ de-identified transcripts.
• Springer NatureflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 May 2026Partnership launched the Wellcome Prize for Mental Health Science with Nature on 14 May 2026, awarding $1M to overall winner and $250K to each of three finalists. Applications open to 18 September 2026; winner announced June 2027. World's first and largest prize dedicated to mental health science.
• UK Government (Hinxton driverless vehicle trial)minorOthers · 15 April 2026Year-long government-funded study at Wellcome Genome Campus in Hinxton, Cambridge, trialling self-driving vehicles for commuting between the site and Whittlesford Parkway station. CEO Robert Evans described as potentially "game-changing" model for autonomous vehicle use.
• Rockefeller FoundationmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 March 2026Co-funds Africa's first regional Climate-Health Desk in Niamey, Niger, hosted by ACMAD. Part of a global rollout of climate-health platforms across Africa, Asia, and the Americas.
• WMO-WHO Climate and Health Joint ProgrammemajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 February 2026Co-launch of South Asia Climate-Health Desk and South Asia Scientific Research Consortium with Rockefeller Foundation at Mumbai Climate Week 2026, backed by US$11.5 million investment. Addresses extreme heat causing 200,000+ deaths annually in South Asia.
• Michael J. Fox Foundation (MJFF) and Lario TherapeuticsminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 February 2026Co-funded $2.4 million in grants to Lario Therapeutics: MJFF $1.5M for CaV1.3-linked Parkinson's biology; Wellcome $900K to validate CaV2.3 as a PTSD target. Edinburgh-based biopharma expanding CNS drug platform.
• Lario TherapeuticsminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 February 2026Biopharmaceutical company developing precision medicines for neurological disorders; awarded $900,000 by Wellcome to validate CaV2.3 as a target for post-traumatic stress disorder; plans to initiate IND-enabling studies for leading CaV2.3 programme in 2026.
• Imperial College London Fleming Initiative (Gr-ADI programme)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 18 February 2026£3.1 million over 3 years through Gram-Negative Antibiotic Discovery Innovator (Gr-ADI) programme, jointly funded by Gates Foundation, Novo Nordisk Foundation, and Wellcome. Part of 18 projects globally in a $60M portfolio.
• Wysa and academic partners (Tata Institute, Imperial College London, Milaan Foundation, University of Cambridge)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 February 2026£5.3 million Wellcome grant to Wysa to scale digital mental health intervention for adolescent girls in rural India, with three-year study with UK and India academic and community partners.
• UK Government (Health Data Research Service)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 January 2026£600 million partnership to create the new Health Data Research Service (HDRS), providing a secure single access point to national-scale health datasets, based at the Wellcome Genome Campus. Targets reducing clinical trial approval times from 91 to 41 days by March 2026. Dr Melanie Ivarsson appointed first CEO.
• University of Melbourne (Orygen Digital)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 December 2025$14 million Wellcome grant to develop MOST-Nexus AI-powered digital mental health platform for youth aged 12-25, with phase two expansion to Netherlands, Germany, and Spain.
• Pandemic Sciences Institute, PREPARE, and Oxford University Clinical Research Unit (DEN-HOST trial)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 December 2025Funded the largest-ever clinical study to test therapeutics for moderate-severe dengue, multi-site placebo-controlled randomized adaptive trial on ~8,000 patients across 10 countries in Asia and Latin America; five-year trial to 2031.
• System (Public Benefit Corporation)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 December 2025$6.5 million program-related investment from Wellcome to develop the System Graph platform and promote systems thinking in health and environmental research; supports open science initiatives including free data access and open-source tools.
• Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and NICEmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 27 November 2025£2 million grant to develop standards for digital mental health apps, with activities extending until 2028. Aimed at improving safety, regulation, and evidence standards for digital tools.
• Academy of Medical SciencesmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 November 2025New five-year partnership worth £27.3 million to support UK biomedical research and talent development, from early career to leadership roles.
• Medical Research Council and Innovate UKmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 November 2025£15.9 million joint initiative to develop advanced human-based in vitro models of disease (cancer, blood clot, pain, liver disease) to improve drug discovery and reduce animal model reliance.
• ApoliticalminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 17 September 2025Funded Apolitical's online training resource on climate negotiations and health, helping participants understand how health considerations can be incorporated into climate negotiations and policymaking.
• WHO, PAHO, Government of Brazil (2025 Global Conference on Climate and Health)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 July 2025Wellcome supported the 2025 Global Conference on Climate and Health in Brasília, Brazil (July 29-31, 2025) alongside Spain, UK, Gates Foundation, and The Rockefeller Foundation. Produced inputs to the Belém Health Action Plan ahead of COP30.
• University of Nottingham (Paul Dyer fungal disease research)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2025£1.2 million four-year grant for research on how genes responsible for human fungal diseases and antifungal resistance evolve and spread, involving Universities of Manchester and Pretoria.
• South African Government (BRILLIANT 011 HIV vaccine trial)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Co-funded restart of flagship HIV vaccine trial ($33M) in South Africa after USAID cancelled its $45M grant as part of Trump's aid funding cuts. Co-funder alongside Gates Foundation.
• Gates Foundation and Novo Nordisk FoundationflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024$300 million global health R&D partnership established in 2024. Co-funds initiatives including the $60 million Gr-ADI antibiotic discovery consortium (18 projects, 17 countries) and the $60 million Evidence for AI in Health (EVAH) initiative with J-PAL and APHRC. Flagship tripartite philanthropic alliance of the three largest health foundations.
• Francis Crick InstituteflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership between Wellcome, Medical Research Council, Cancer Research UK, UCL, Imperial College London, and King's College London; largest biomedical research institute in Europe. 73 funded grants via Wellcome.
• Wellcome Sanger InstituteflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerUK-based genomic research centre in Hinxton, Cambridgeshire, established 1993 to collaborate on the Human Genome Project; world-leading in human genomics research.
• Diamond Light SourcemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUK's national synchrotron; partnership with UK government through the Science and Technology Facilities Council, set up in 1998. Largest scientific facility in the UK providing state-of-the-art facilities for life and physical sciences.
• UK BiobankmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOver 15 years UK Biobank has collected data on health and lifestyle of half a million UK people; world's most comprehensive source of health data, including the largest whole genome sequence dataset.
• Sainsbury Wellcome CentremajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFunded through a partnership between Wellcome and the Gatsby Foundation; focuses on furthering understanding of neural circuits in the brain.
• Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSupported development and implementation of a leadership programme to train policymakers on mental health across Africa.
• Natural History Museum (London)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership on the "Fixing our Broken Planet" gallery exploring climate change impacts on human health and sharing science-backed solutions.
• OKRE and Climate SpringminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEntertainment partnerships to expand people's understanding of climate and health through cultural and creative sectors.
• WHO–WMO Joint Programme (Climate-Health Desk)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-developed the Climate-Health Desk in Niamey, Niger, with WHO–WMO and ACMAD; producing early warning bulletins for heatwaves, malaria, and meningitis risks. Part of global rollout across Africa, Asia, and the Americas.
• Babraham Institute (Discovery Research Platform for Hidden Cell Biology)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of 8 Discovery Research Platforms funded by Wellcome at leading UK universities; others include Manchester (Cell-Matrix Biology), Durham (Medical Humanities), Cape Town (Infection), Oxford (Ethics and Humanities), UCL (Naturalistic Neuroimaging), Cambridge (Metabolic/Endocrine Science, Tissue Scale Biology), Edinburgh (Hidden Cell Biology).
• Wellcome LeapmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNot-for-profit organisation set up by Wellcome to accelerate discovery and innovation for the benefit of human health.
• Climate and Health community (Connecting Climate Minds, Heat and Mental Health funding call)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSince 2020, Wellcome has developed a climate-mental health portfolio including the Connecting Climate Minds initiative at Imperial College London and a Heat and Mental Health funding call that supported eight projects.
• Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics / Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging / Wellcome Centre for Mitochondrial Research / Wellcome / CRUK Gurdon Institute / Wellcome / EPSRC Centre for Medical Engineering / Wellcome / MRC Cambridge Stem Cell Institute / Wellcome Centre for Anti-Infectives Research / Wellcome Centre of Cultures and Environments of Health / Wellcome Centre for Ethics and Humanities / Wellcome Centre for Integrative ParasitologyflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerMultiple Wellcome Centres across UK universities (Oxford, Dundee, Exeter, Glasgow, Newcastle, Cambridge, Manchester) representing long-term co-funding partnerships between Wellcome and UK research institutions. These centres form a major part of Wellcome's research infrastructure investment.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• Howard Hughes Medical Institute: US biomedical research organization and one of the largest private funders of biomedical research, operating HHMI Janelia Research Campus and Investigator programme. Highly comparable to Wellcome in mission, scale, and operating model of research funding and direct operation of research institutes.
• Children's Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF): UK-based global philanthropic foundation focused on children's health, climate, and opportunities. Comparable scale, mission overlap in global health and infectious disease (especially in LMICs), and operates a similar programme-related investment model for commercial health entities.
• Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation: The world's largest charitable foundation, focused on global health, poverty, and education. Direct peer and explicit partner through the $300M tripartite global health R&D alliance with Wellcome and Novo Nordisk Foundation, co-funding initiatives like the Gr-ADI antibiotic consortium and HIV vaccine trials.
• Rockefeller Foundation: Historic US charitable foundation focused on global health, climate, and equity. Direct peer and active partner — co-funds Wellcome's South Asia Climate-Health Desk, Africa Climate-Health Desk, and global conference activities including the Belém Health Action Plan ahead of COP30.
• Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: US philanthropic foundation focused on health, health equity, and social determinants of health. Comparable in scale and mission, with overlapping interests in mental health and health systems reform, though primarily US-focused whereas Wellcome is global.
• Chan Zuckerberg Initiative: US philanthropic organization founded by Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan, with major programmes in biomedical research (CZ Biohub Network, Rare Disease platforms). Comparable in operating large-scale biomedical research infrastructure and AI/health convergence, though with a more venture-style approach.
• Novo Nordisk Foundation: Danish enterprise foundation focused on health, science, and sustainability, with one of the largest charitable endowments globally. Direct peer and tripartite alliance partner alongside Gates Foundation and Wellcome, co-funding EVAH, Gr-ADI, and other global health R&D programmes.

Broad incumbents

• Simons Foundation: US philanthropic foundation supporting mathematics, basic sciences, and autism research. Operates Flatiron Institute (comparable to Wellcome Sanger Institute model). Comparable in operating major computational research infrastructure and supporting basic discovery science, though with a focus on math and physical sciences rather than health.

Others

• Academy of Medical Sciences: UK independent academy that funds biomedical research talent and convenes the research community. Not a direct competitor — recently entered a £27.3M five-year partnership with Wellcome to support UK biomedical research and talent development, from early career to leadership roles.

Emerging players

• Open Philanthropy: US philanthropic organization funding global health, biosecurity, and scientific research with a longtermist, evidence-based approach. Overlaps with Wellcome on biosecurity, pandemic preparedness, and AI safety/health applications, though with a smaller portfolio and different grantmaking style.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat7 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/wellcometrust
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/wellcometrust
• Facebookfacebook.com/WellcomeTrust
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wellcome-trust
• Instagraminstagram.com/wellcometrust
• TikToktiktok.com/@wellcometrust

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 records

Subsidiaries5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors

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M&A1 record

Investments135 records

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Frequently asked questions about Wellcome Trust