American Association for the Advancement of Science

What American Association for the Advancement of Science does

The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), founded in 1848 and headquartered in Washington, D.C., is the world's largest general scientific society and a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. It serves individual scientists, engineers, educators, and science-adjacent professionals through a portfolio that includes the Science family of journals (Science, Science Advances, Science Signaling, Science Translational Medicine, Science Immunology, and Science Robotics), the AAAS Annual Meeting, fellowships (Science & Technology Policy Fellows, Mass Media Science & Engineering Fellowship, Diverse Voices in Science Journalism Internship), advocacy and training programs (CASE Workshop, SciLine, EPI Center), and diversity initiatives (ISEED, SEA Change, IF/THEN Ambassadors). AAAS also operates a federation of 250+ affiliated societies and academies of science that together reach approximately 10 million individuals globally.

AAAS generates revenue through individual and institutional membership dues, journal subscriptions across the Science family, foundation and federal grants (notably NSF, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Carnegie Corporation, Ford Foundation, Tiger Global Impact Ventures), individual philanthropy and planned giving through the 1848 Society, and programming such as the newly launched AAAS Learning Hub (March 2026) and the Mani L. Bhaumik Breakthrough of the Year Award. Pricing is subscription-based with annual billing cadence and student discounts for .edu addresses; specific pricing is not publicly disclosed. The organization also operates the (AI)2 Initiative to examine AI's societal implications and is engaged in active federal science policy advocacy, including formal opposition to the OMB's proposed Uniform Guidance revisions.

Strategically, AAAS functions as both a learned society and a publishing and policy enterprise. Leadership includes CEO and Executive Publisher Sudip S. Parikh (Ph.D.) and President-Elect Gilda A. Barabino (Ph.D.). The organization has secured transformational philanthropic commitments in recent years, including the $11.4 million Bhaumik pledge (2022) and nearly $20 million in STEMM equity grants from NSF, TGIV, and Sloan (2022), alongside an ongoing federal advocacy posture on R&D appropriations, NSF governance, and peer review integrity.

Name

American Association for the Advancement of Science

Legal name

American Association for the Advancement of Science

Website

https://aaas.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1848

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), founded in 1848, is the world's largest general scientific society. It publishes the Science family of journals, runs fellowships, advocacy, and STEMM equity programs, and serves 10 million individuals through 250+ affiliated societies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership fees from individual scientists, engineers, and science professionals serving as the primary revenue stream
2. Journal Subscriptions: Subscription revenue from the Science family of journals including Science, Science Advances, Science Signaling, Science Translational Medicine, Science Immunology, and Science Robotics
3. Grants and Awards: Major grants from NSF, foundations, and philanthropists including nearly $20M in awards for STEMM initiatives, $11.4M from Mani L. Bhaumik for Breakthrough of the Year Award
4. Philanthropy and Planned Giving: Donations, endowments, and legacy gifts from members and supporters including the 1848 Society for planned giving

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

AAAS is a nonprofit scientific society that publishes the Science family of six peer-reviewed journals and delivers membership services, fellowship programs, science policy advocacy, public engagement with science, and STEMM equity initiatives to a global community of scientists, engineers, educators, and students. Its flagship outputs are the Science journal brand, the AAAS Annual Meeting, and a portfolio of professional development, fellowship, and diversity programs funded by member dues, subscriptions, grants, and donations.

Product overview

AAAS operates as a multidisciplinary scientific society offering a portfolio of publications, professional development programs, fellowship opportunities, and public engagement initiatives. The core Science family of journals (Science, Science Advances, Science Signaling, Science Translational Medicine, Science Immunology, Science Robotics) represents the flagship publication products. Beyond publishing, AAAS provides the AAAS Learning Hub for professional training, operates fellowship programs (Science & Technology Policy Fellows, Mass Media Fellowship), runs advocacy training (CASE Workshop), and administers diversity initiatives (ISEED, SEA Change, IF/THEN Ambassadors). The organization also delivers scientific evidence to policymakers through the EPI Center and facilitates science-religion dialogue through DoSER. Recent initiatives include the (AI)2 Initiative examining AI implications and the Mani L. Bhaumik Breakthrough of the Year Award recognizing scientific breakthroughs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Science Journals: The Science family of journals including Science, Science Translational Medicine, Science Signaling, Science Advances, Science Immunology, and Science Robotics.

Products and services

• Science Family of Journals Subscription-based portfolio of six peer-reviewed scientific journals (Science, Science Advances, Science Translational Medicine, Science Signaling, Science Immunology, Science Robotics) sold to individual and institutional subscribers worldwide.
• AAAS Membership Annual individual membership in the AAAS scientific society with access to member benefits, the Science journal, member community, and engagement programs; student discounts available.
• AAAS Annual Meeting Major annual scientific gathering bringing together scientists, policymakers, and science communicators for sessions, networking, and program launches.
• AAAS Learning Hub Online professional development and training platform offering learning sessions for STEMM professionals, accessible to members and the broader scientific community.
• Diverse Voices in Science Journalism Internship Paid summer internship placing undergraduate students underrepresented in science writing on the Science news team in Washington, D.C. for a 10-week term.
• Science & Technology Policy Fellows (STPF) Program Fellowship program placing scientists and engineers in federal government assignments, with STEMM diversity outcomes tracked across cohorts.
• AAAS Mass Media Science & Engineering Fellowship Fellowship placing science students in media organizations to strengthen science journalism through practical experience; 2026 cohort welcomed.
• Catalyzing Advocacy in Science and Engineering (CASE) Workshop Workshop equipping STEM students with science policy engagement skills and direct experience in the policymaking process, including congressional process and federal budget training.
• AAAS Fellows Recognition Program Lifetime honor recognizing scientists, engineers, and innovators for scientifically and socially distinguished achievements, with nearly 500 elected in each annual class.
• Mani L. Bhaumik Breakthrough of the Year Award International science prize awarding $250,000 annually to up to three scientists whose foundational research best exemplifies the Science Breakthrough of the Year, funded by an $11.4M endowment.

Quantifiable outcome

• Nearly 500 scientists and engineers recognized annually as AAAS Fellows
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature1 record

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• National Geographic Society: The National Geographic Society is a large non-profit science and exploration organization that combines membership dues, philanthropic funding, and grants to researchers - a comparable operating model in adjacent space. Its focus on public engagement with science parallels AAAS's mission and public-facing programs.
• Elsevier: Elsevier is a global commercial publisher of scientific, technical, and medical journals, including Cell, The Lancet, and thousands of others. It is a broader incumbent competitor in the scientific journal publishing market where AAAS competes with its Science family of journals, though Elsevier operates across many disciplines rather than anchoring a single society.
• Smithsonian Institution: The Smithsonian Institution is a comparable large U.S. science and education non-profit with research, public engagement, fellowship, and education missions, but operates from museums, research centers, and the Smithsonian museum network rather than scientific journals. They have collaborated directly (IF/THEN Ambassadors exhibit of 120 3D-printed statues at the Smithsonian).

Direct peers

• American Medical Association: The AMA is a 501(c)(6) professional association and journal publisher (JAMA family) that mirrors AAAS's blend of individual membership, peer-reviewed publishing, fellowship credentials, and policy advocacy. It serves as a structural peer for understanding AAAS's diversified professional-society revenue model.
• American Physical Society: APS is a major U.S. scientific society that publishes leading peer-reviewed physics journals (Physical Review Letters, Physical Review, etc.) and operates fellowship and advocacy programs structurally similar to AAAS's. The model of discipline-specific society publishing competes directly with Science journal's multidisciplinary positioning.
• National Academy of Sciences: The National Academy of Sciences is the closest U.S. peer to AAAS - a congressionally-chartered, non-profit scientific society that advises the U.S. government on science and publishes the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). Both organizations serve as authoritative voices for the scientific community, recognize scientific excellence through elected membership, and engage in science policy advocacy.
• Springer Nature: Springer Nature, the publisher of Nature and the Nature Research journal family, is AAAS's most direct competitor in high-impact scientific publishing. Both compete for top scientific manuscripts, institutional subscription dollars, and the attention of working researchers, with comparable journal brand portfolios.
• American Chemical Society: ACS is a 501(c)(3) scientific society and journal publisher with a similar membership dues + journal subscription revenue model, comparable headcount, and a network of divisions and local sections analogous to AAAS's 250+ affiliated societies. Its portfolio of peer-reviewed journals competes with Science in chemistry and adjacent fields.
• IEEE: IEEE is a large non-profit professional society with a comparable operating model - membership dues, conference revenue, fellowship programs, and a substantial journal portfolio (over 200 active titles). It is a relevant structural peer for understanding AAAS's membership + publishing + standards + conferences architecture.
• Royal Society: The Royal Society is the U.K.'s national academy of science and publishes Philosophical Transactions and Proceedings of the Royal Society. It mirrors AAAS in combining fellowship election, scientific publishing, government science advisory work, and public engagement, and is the most internationally comparable peer society to AAAS.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/AAAS
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCU_uRsjNMd1qP6CaKyFND_Q
• Facebookfacebook.com/AAAS.Science
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/aaas
• Instagraminstagram.com/aaasorg

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

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

M&A

Investments1 record

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

Frequently asked questions about American Association for the Advancement of Science