Duke University
Duke University is a private research university in Durham, NC, operating ten schools and colleges with ~16,000 students, an integrated Duke Health System, and global affiliates in Singapore and China. It generates revenue across tuition, federal research grants, healthcare services, media rights, and a ~$10.7B endowment.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1838
- HeadquartersDurham, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
What Duke University does
Duke University is a private, non-profit research university founded in 1838 and headquartered in Durham, North Carolina, with approximately 8,000 undergraduate and 8,000 graduate students served by 10,000+ employees across Duke University and Duke Health System. It operates ten schools and colleges — Trinity College of Arts & Sciences, Pratt School of Engineering, Fuqua School of Business, School of Law, School of Medicine, School of Nursing, Divinity School, Nicholas School of the Environment, Sanford School of Public Policy, and The Graduate School — along with international affiliates Duke-NUS Medical School (Singapore, 2005) and Duke Kunshan University (China, 2007), and a Duke University Marine Lab in Beaufort, NC.
Duke's revenue mechanics are diversified across five streams: tuition and fees (undergraduate, graduate, professional, executive, and online), federal and private research grants (NSF, NIH, ARPA-H), healthcare services through Duke Health System, media rights and streaming (including a multi-year Amazon Prime Video partnership for basketball), and donations/endowment income (approximately $10.7 billion endowment). Pricing includes full tuition grants for NC/SC residents with family incomes under $150,000, need-based and merit scholarships, and Yellow Ribbon Program awards ranging from $5,000 (undergraduate) to $23,800 (graduate doctoral).
The institution pursues advanced research across quantum computing (collaboration with IonQ achieving 17% bounded fidelity in a three-node trapped-ion GHZ state), robotics (Argus 20-legged omnidirectional robot with 0.91 dynamic isotropy), clinical AI (multi-institutional study finding 43% of FDA-authorized AI clinical devices lack public validation data), gene therapy, sonogenetics (ARPA-H award up to $41.3M), impact-resistant polymers, and atmospheric microplastics analysis. Strategic priorities are evidenced by the Amazon Prime Video flagship media deal, retention of head basketball coach Jon Scheyer (who declined the Dallas Mavericks), extension of football coach Manny Diaz through 2032, and a leadership team including Provost Alec Gallimore and Athletic Director Nina King.
Duke University firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Duke University
- Legal name
- Duke University
- Website
- https://duke.edu
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1838
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Duke University is a private research university in Durham, NC, operating ten schools and colleges with ~16,000 students, an integrated Duke Health System, and global affiliates in Singapore and China. It generates revenue across tuition, federal research grants, healthcare services, media rights, and a ~$10.7B endowment.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Duke University industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Higher Education
- NAICS
- Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (61131)
- SIC
- Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Comprehensive Doctoral Research Universities (Multi-Disciplinary) (EDAHABAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- STEM-Focused Research Universities (Engineering & Applied Sciences) (EDAHABAB), Business & Management Research Universities (EDAHABAE), Law & Legal Studies Research Universities (EDAHABAF)
Keywords
Where Duke University is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Durham
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices5 records
Markets served
Duke University business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Tuition and Fees: Duke generates revenue from undergraduate, graduate, professional, and executive education tuition across its schools including Trinity College, Fuqua School of Business, Law School, School of Medicine, School of Nursing, Pratt School of Engineering, Divinity School, Sanford School of Public Policy, and Nicholas School of the Environment.
- Research Grants and Funding: Duke receives federal research funding from agencies including NSF, NIH, ARPA-H for various research programs in medicine, science, and engineering. Funding has been subject to administrative scrutiny and delays.
- Healthcare Services: Duke Health System provides medical care, clinical trials, and healthcare services generating significant revenue.
- Media Rights and Streaming: Amazon Prime Video multi-year partnership for streaming basketball games, providing new revenue streams including NIL opportunities for student-athletes.
- Donations and Endowments: Duke receives charitable contributions from alumni, foundations, and donors. The Duke Endowment helps gifted students from the Carolinas pursue education regardless of income.
- VA Education Benefits: Duke participates in VA education benefit programs including Yellow Ribbon Program, certifying enrollment for veterans using GI Bill benefits.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Undergraduate tuition with financial aid |
| Subscription | Annual | Yellow Ribbon Program Awards |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels5 records
Duke University product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Duke University is a private research university providing undergraduate, graduate, professional, and executive education across schools including Trinity College of Arts & Sciences, Pratt School of Engineering, Fuqua School of Business, School of Law, School of Medicine, School of Nursing, Nicholas School of the Environment, Sanford School of Public Policy, and Divinity School. The university also operates Duke Health for clinical care and research, and conducts sponsored research funded by federal agencies including NSF, NIH, and ARPA-H. International programs are delivered through Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore and Duke Kunshan University in China.
Product overview
Duke University is an educational institution offering undergraduate and graduate degree programs across multiple schools and colleges, including Trinity College of Arts & Sciences, Pratt School of Engineering, Fuqua School of Business, School of Law, School of Medicine, School of Nursing, Nicholas School of the Environment, and Sanford School of Public Policy. The university conducts research across various disciplines and provides healthcare services through Duke Health. The institution does not offer commercial software products or technology platforms with product integration capabilities.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Quantifiable outcome
- ACC Tournament Champions 2023, 2025, 2026
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Duke University
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Duke University technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature5 records
Duke University partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.
- UNC, Oxford, Columbia, University of MiamicoreMulti-institutional study from UNC, Duke, Oxford, Columbia, and University of Miami found that 43% of 521 FDA-authorized AI-driven clinical devices had no publicly available clinical validation data. The institutions are building a research network to provide independent evaluation infrastructure for clinical AI.
- IonQcoreDuke University researchers collaborating with IonQ achieved approximately 17% bounded fidelity in remotely entangling qubits across a three-node quantum network, demonstrating the first fully-distributed GHZ state using individually controlled atomic qubits. This advancement demonstrates the feasibility of modular quantum computers and moves the field closer to building practical large-scale quantum networks.
- Amazon Prime VideoflagshipMulti-year partnership for Amazon Prime Video to exclusively stream three neutral-site Duke men's basketball games per season. This marks Amazon's first college sports media rights acquisition and includes extensive NIL opportunities for Duke athletes as part of a broader retail partnership.
- Future Universities AllianceminorDuke University incubated the Future Universities Alliance which selected Vermont State Colleges for its Innovation Sandbox program. The program brings together 49 higher education institutions from 23 countries to work on challenges related to institutional design, curriculum, credentials, and workforce alignment.
- Dallas MavericksminorThe Dallas Mavericks were interested in Duke head coach Jon Scheyer as their top coaching candidate, making multiple attempts to persuade him to leave college for the NBA. Scheyer ultimately chose to remain at Duke.
- Moffitt Cancer Center, Roswell Park Cancer Center, University of Chicago, Cleveland CliniccoreDuke University collaborates with leading cancer research institutions including Moffitt Cancer Center, Roswell Park Cancer Center, University of Chicago, and Cleveland Clinic on Anixa Biosciences' clinical-stage immunotherapy programs including ovarian cancer CAR-T therapy and breast cancer vaccine.
- Fudan UniversitycoreDuke and Fudan University researchers published a study in Nature Climate Change revealing that atmospheric microplastics contribute to global warming at a level equal to 16% of black carbon, with forcing reaching 1.34 W/m2 in hotspots like the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre.
- Salk Institute, Scripps Research, MIT, UC San Diego, California Medical Innovations Institute, SonoNeucoreDuke is part of a multi-institution collaboration led by Salk Institute awarded up to $41.3 million from ARPA-H to advance sonogenetics, a noninvasive therapeutic approach using low-intensity ultrasound to control cellular activity for conditions like peripheral neuropathy.
- MIT, Purdue University, Northwestern UniversitycoreDuke collaborated with MIT, Purdue, and Northwestern on research developing impact-resistant plastics using mechanophores embedded in polymers. The research demonstrated substantial improvements in ballistic impact resistance using laser-induced microprojectile testing.
- ACC, SEC, ESPNflagshipDuke participates in inter-conference challenges including ACC/SEC Challenge matchups. Duke's Amazon Prime Video deal required approval from both the ACC and ESPN, which controls ACC media rights through the league's Grant of Rights agreement.
Scale indicators7 records
Duke University competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Vanderbilt University: Private research university and fellow ACC member with comparable comprehensive doctoral programs and similar mid-sized scale. Closely comparable as a Southern private research peer with strong athletics.
- Stanford University: Top-tier private research university with comprehensive doctoral programs across engineering, business, law, and medicine. Closely comparable to Duke in selectivity, endowment scale, research output, and athletic prominence.
- Harvard University: The benchmark private research university with multi-disciplinary doctoral programs and the world's largest academic endowment. Comparable to Duke across research output, brand prestige, and professional schools.
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology: Elite private research university with world-leading STEM and applied sciences programs. Directly comparable to Duke on research intensity, federal funding dependence, and selectivity.
- Princeton University: Ivy League private research university with comprehensive graduate programs. Comparable to Duke on selectivity, endowment, and brand-driven admissions economics.
- Yale University: Ivy League private research university with strong professional schools in law, business, and medicine. Directly comparable to Duke's structure across schools and overall prestige tier.
- Columbia University: Comprehensive private research university in an urban setting with professional schools in business, law, and medicine. Duke collaborated with Columbia on clinical AI validation research, underscoring peer positioning.
- University of Pennsylvania: Ivy League private research university with top-ranked business (Wharton) and medical schools. Directly comparable to Duke on integrated professional-school model and tuition-driven revenue.
- University of Chicago: Elite private research university with renowned economics and public policy programs. Collaborates with Duke on Anixa Biosciences cancer immunotherapy research, reflecting shared research intensity.
- Northwestern University: Private research university with strong professional schools in law, business (Kellogg), and medicine. Collaborated with Duke on mechanophore polymer research, confirming peer status.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Duke University social profiles
Digital presenceDuke University financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Duke University leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles11 records
Duke University subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries11 records
Duke University funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds8 records
Investors7 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Duke University M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments23 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Duke University
What does Duke University do?
Duke University is a private research university providing undergraduate, graduate, professional, and executive education across schools including Trinity College of Arts & Sciences, Pratt School of Engineering, Fuqua School of Business, School of Law, School of Medicine, School of Nursing, Nicholas School of the Environment, Sanford School of Public Policy, and Divinity School. The university also operates Duke Health for clinical care and research, and conducts sponsored research funded by federal agencies including NSF, NIH, and ARPA-H. International programs are delivered through Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore and Duke Kunshan University in China.
Is Duke University a public or private company?
Duke University is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Duke University founded?
Duke University was founded in 1838. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Duke University based?
Duke University is headquartered in Durham, United States, in the North America region.
How does Duke University make money?
Six revenue lines are on record. Tuition and Fees are the primary driver. The others are research Grants and Funding, healthcare Services, media Rights and Streaming, donations and Endowments and VA Education Benefits.
Who are Duke University's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Vanderbilt University, Stanford University, Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Princeton University, Yale University, Columbia University, University of Pennsylvania, University of Chicago and Northwestern University.
Does Duke University have an API?
No public API is recorded for Duke University.
What industry is Duke University in?
Duke University's product category is Higher Education. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAHABAA, Comprehensive Doctoral Research Universities (Multi-Disciplinary), with a secondary code of EDAHABAB, STEM-Focused Research Universities (Engineering & Applied Sciences). Its NAICS code is 6113 and its SIC code is 8200.