What ideas42 does

ideas42 is a nonprofit behavioral science research and design organization founded in 2008 and headquartered in New York with primary operations in Washington, DC. Legally incorporated as Behavioral Ideas Lab, Inc., the organization describes itself as the first stand-alone nonprofit in the United States to apply behavioral science research to solving complex social challenges. The organization partners with mission-driven clients globally across seven verticals: Civil Society, Financial Health, Global Development, Government, Health, Postsecondary Education, and Safety & Justice.

The firm's core offering is a complete package of deep research, creative design, and rigorous evaluation services. Its methodological approach involves diagnosing behavioral barriers (cognitive biases, present bias, information overload, social norms, friction in systems), prototyping interventions, and measuring outcomes through controlled evaluation. Notable embedded platforms and tools include VoterCast (a behaviorally-informed voter outreach platform launched in 2024 that reached 21M+ voters across 35 US states in year one), the Civic Action Time Capsule (built with Vote.org), Tanzania cash transfer savings tools (self-affirmation cards, goal-setting activities, plan-making trackers, fund separation pouches), California WIC app enhancements, and published sector-specific toolkits for FAFSA renewal, course registration, and enrollment.

ideas42 generates revenue through professional services consulting and advisory engagements with foundations, government agencies, and nonprofits, supported by disclosed foundation grants including MacArthur Foundation ($375K in 2014, $450K in 2015, $375K in 2016) and the Global Innovation Fund ($2.2M in 2018). Pricing is not publicly disclosed. The GTM motion is sales-led direct engagement with enterprise/mission-driven buyers, augmented by a content distribution network that includes the Behavioral Scientist magazine and B-HUB community platform. The organization has 51-100 employees and an extensive affiliate network of academic researchers from Princeton, Harvard, University of Chicago, and MIT.

Name

ideas42

Legal name

Behavioral Ideas Lab, Inc.

Website

https://ideas42.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

ideas42 is a nonprofit behavioral science research and design lab that partners with mission-driven organizations across seven sectors to apply evidence-based research, design, and evaluation methods for solving complex social challenges.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Consulting and Advisory Services: ideas42 operates as a nonprofit behavioral science research organization, partnering with mission-driven organizations to deliver behavioral design solutions. Revenue appears to be generated through consulting engagements with government agencies, nonprofits, and foundations.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

ideas42 is a nonprofit behavioral science research organization that partners with mission-driven organizations globally to apply behavioral economics research to complex social problems. The organization delivers a complete package of deep research, creative design, and rigorous evaluation services across seven sectors — Civil Society, Financial Health, Global Development, Government, Health, Postsecondary Education, and Safety & Justice — to improve program outcomes, increase staff satisfaction, and reduce costs.

Product overview

ideas42 is a nonprofit behavioral science organization offering consulting services and standalone products/toolkits. Their core offering is behavioral science consulting to help mission-driven organizations improve outcomes through evidence-based design, research, and evaluation. They work across seven sectors: Civil Society, Financial Health, Global Development, Government, Health, Postsecondary Education, and Safety & Justice. Notable products include VoterCast (voter outreach platform), the Civic Action Time Capsule (civic engagement tool), and various toolkits for postsecondary education (FAFSA Renewal, Course Registration, Enrollment Map, Appointments). They also develop context-specific program tools like the Tanzania Cash Transfer Savings Tools and California WIC App Enhancements.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• VoterCast: An online platform that incorporates evidence about effective voter communications to generate off-the-shelf voter outreach materials for election officials, tailored to jurisdiction specifics. VoterCast was acquired by The Elections Group in December 2025 and is now run by Ready for Tuesday.
• B-HUB

Products and services

• Behavioral Science Consulting Services Evidence-based behavioral design services that help mission-driven organizations improve program outcomes, increase staff satisfaction, and reduce costs through research, design, and evaluation. Services are delivered through direct partnership engagements across Civil Society, Financial Health, Global Development, Government, Health, Postsecondary Education, and Safety & Justice sectors, and are intended for government agencies, nonprofits, foundations, financial institutions, healthcare systems, international development organizations, and educational institutions.
• VoterCast An online platform that incorporates evidence about effective voter communications to generate off-the-shelf voter outreach materials for election officials, tailored to jurisdiction specifics, supporting communications via social media, radio, email, mail, and in-person channels.
• Civic Action Time Capsule A web-based tool developed in partnership with Vote.org that captures people's civic motivations and voting intentions and returns personalized prompts to encourage future civic engagement.

Quantifiable outcome

• 65% increase in savings by cash transfer recipients in Tanzania with goal-setting and storage tools
• +10 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Elections GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Acquired VoterCast platform in December 2025, bringing deep expertise in election administration to the platform's management and strong relationships to continue scaling VoterCast nationwide.
• Ready for TuesdaycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNow runs the VoterCast tool following acquisition from Elections Group, continuing to scale voter outreach materials nationwide.
• Vote.orgcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to develop the Civic Action Time Capsule - a web-based tool that captured people's civic motivations and voting intentions to motivate future voter engagement.
• TASAF (Tanzania Social Action Fund)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment program implementing the Productive Social Safety Net (PSSN) in Tanzania. Committed to scaling behavioral tools developed by ideas42 to 500,000-600,000 households.
• Charity NavigatorcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPlatform partnership to develop donor recommendation features that direct funds to underfunded, smaller nonprofits, resulting in 253% increase in donations to recommended organizations.
• NYC Community Re-Entry Assistance Network (CRAN)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to improve access to mental health services for people released from jail through redesigned information materials and client communications.
• Peoples Advantage Federal Credit UnioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRedesigned Fast Cash loan application and implemented text message reminders, resulting in 20% drop in delinquent balances and $1.3 million reduction in monthly delinquency.
• Tulare County Superior CourtcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to redesign traffic citation notices to increase usage of MyCitations program and timely responses, resulting in 140% increase in applications.
• California WIC ProgramcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEnhanced the California WIC app with improved food balance display, expiration reminders, barcode scanner with alternatives, and shopping list features.
• Harris County, TexascoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to help more people show up to court through redesigned citation forms and reminder notifications, building on previous 36% reduction in non-appearance rates.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Behavioral Insights Team (BIT): BIT applies behavioral science to government policy and social problems globally. As the closest direct peer, BIT competes for the same government contracts, foundation grants, and behavioral science talent that ideas42 targets.
• Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA): IPA conducts randomized evaluations of poverty alleviation programs with strong global development focus. Like ideas42, IPA serves low- and middle-income country clients and competes for evaluation contracts from the same foundations and government donors.
• Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL): J-PAL is an MIT-based research center focused on randomized evaluations for poverty reduction. It competes directly with ideas42 on global development and education sector engagements, drawing from overlapping academic talent pools.
• Evidence Action: Evidence Action scales evidence-based health and education programs globally (e.g., Deworm the World, where ideas42's Managing Director Alissa Fishbane previously worked). It is a direct peer in applying rigorous research to global development and education interventions.
• Common Cents Lab: Common Cents Lab is a Duke University-based behavioral design lab focused on financial health for low-income Americans. It directly overlaps with ideas42's Financial Health sector work, including savings behavior and consumer lending products.
• Center for Advanced Hindsight: Duke University's Center for Advanced Hindsight applies behavioral science research to real-world problems. It is a direct peer sharing methodology, talent pool, and government/nonprofit client relationships with ideas42.

Regional players

• Busara Center for Behavioral Economics: Busara is a Nairobi-based behavioral economics research organization operating primarily in East Africa. It has substantial overlap with ideas42's Global Development sector work in Tanzania and could serve as either partner or competitor on regional engagements.

Broad incumbents

• The Elections Group: The Elections Group is an elections administration consulting firm that acquired VoterCast from ideas42 in December 2025. It now manages a platform ideas42 developed, representing a partnership-overlap with prior VoterCast work.

Emerging players

• Third Sector Capital Partners: Third Sector Capital Partners focuses on outcomes-based financing for social programs. Its co-founder, George Overholser, is also ideas42's Interim Board Chair, indicating strategic alignment and overlap in government/nonprofit advisory engagements.
• B-HUB: B-HUB is referenced as an adjacent behavioral science resource on ideas42's main navigation alongside Behavioral Scientist magazine. It is an emerging ecosystem player supporting the broader applied behavioral science community.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ideas42
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ides42

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds4 records

Investors2 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ideas42