The ALS Association
The ALS Association is a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit that funds ALS research, delivers free care services to people living with ALS and their families across all 50 US states, and advocates for federal and state policy supporting the ALS community.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1974
- HeadquartersWashington, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What The ALS Association does
The ALS Association (legally Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Association) is a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, founded in 1985 to fight amyotrophic lateral sclerosis on three fronts: research funding, care services, and public policy advocacy. It serves people living with ALS (an estimated 30,000 in the United States), their caregivers and families, military veterans with elevated ALS risk, and the healthcare professionals who treat them, while also engaging individual donors, corporate partners, and foundations that finance its programs.
The Association operates a portfolio of interconnected digital products and programs. The ALS Focus Data Dashboard delivers open access to five years of community-driven clinical, demographic, and socioeconomic survey data through Mass General's NeuroVERSE platform. My ALS Journey™ is an interactive web tool that helps patients navigate disease stages, while the ThinkALS diagnostic aid supports physicians in earlier specialist referral. The ALS Insurance Navigator™ assists patients with coverage denials and appeals, and the ALS State Policy Report Cards score all 50 states plus DC on ALS-relevant public policy. Research is funded through the Accelerate the Cure campaign, which directs 100% of donations to research, and the Hugh and Herbert Hoffman ALS Impact Fund, which backs early-stage clinical trials such as the 2025 Hoffman Awards to Mayo Clinic Jacksonville and Molefy Pharma SL.
Revenue is generated entirely through donations, charitable contributions, and fundraising events such as Walk to Defeat ALS, Team Challenge ALS, Ride to Defeat ALS, and the recurring Ice Bucket Challenge campaign, which raised $115 million in 2014 and was relaunched in 2026 after Chris Johnson's diagnosis. All services delivered to patients and families are free of charge, and cumulative research commitments exceed $160 million across 580+ studies. The Association is a Charity Navigator four-star charity, BBB accredited, and a member of the International Alliance of ALS/MND Associations.
The ALS Association firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- The ALS Association
- Legal name
- Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Association
- Website
- https://als.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1974
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- The ALS Association is a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit that funds ALS research, delivers free care services to people living with ALS and their families across all 50 US states, and advocates for federal and state policy supporting the ALS community.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
The ALS Association industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Nonprofit Health Association
- NAICS
- Voluntary Health Organizations (813212), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)
- SIC
- Services-Membership Organizations (8600)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Disease-Specific Research & Support (e.g., Cancer, Diabetes, ALS) (BPAGACAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Neurogenetics & Rare Neurologic Diseases (HLAKAIAO), Global Health Research, Evidence & Technical Assistance Organizations (HLAJAKAN), Care Navigation & Service Coordination (Medical, Social, Community) (HSABAIAB)
Keywords
Where The ALS Association is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Washington
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
The ALS Association business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Donations and Charitable Contributions: The organization relies on donations from individuals, corporations, and foundations to fund research, care services, and advocacy programs. Donors can give monthly, make tribute gifts, donate securities, cryptocurrency, or through workplace giving programs.
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels9 records
The ALS Association product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The ALS Association is a national nonprofit that funds global research into amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), delivers free care services and support to people living with ALS and their families, and advocates for public policy changes that benefit the ALS community. The organization operates digital navigation and information tools (such as My ALS Journey™, the ALS Insurance Navigator™, and the ALS Focus Data Dashboard) and runs clinical-trial connectivity programs to accelerate treatment access.
Product overview
The ALS Association operates a comprehensive digital ecosystem of patient support, research facilitation, and advocacy tools. The core portfolio includes the ALS Focus Data Dashboard for community-driven research data access, My ALS Journey™ for personalized patient journey management, and the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge as a major public fundraising platform. Research acceleration is driven through the Accelerate the Cure Campaign directing 100% of donations to ALS research, and the Hugh and Herbert Hoffman ALS Impact Fund supporting early-stage clinical trials. Patient care tools include the ThinkALS diagnostic aid, the ALS Insurance Navigator™ for coverage navigation, and the ALS State Policy Report Cards for advocacy tracking. These interconnected tools work together to support people living with ALS, caregivers, researchers, and advocates in the mission to make ALS livable and ultimately cure it.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- ALS Ice Bucket Challenge: Viral social media fundraising campaign that raised $115 million in 2014
- Walk to Defeat ALS
- Team Challenge ALS
- Ride to Defeat ALS
- ALS Nexus Conference
- ALS Insurance Navigator
- My ALS Journey
- ALS Focus
Products and services
- Care Services Program
- My ALS Journey™
- ALS Insurance Navigator™ Online resource that helps people with ALS understand and access their health insurance benefits, including Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance, as well as disability and other benefits.
- ALS Focus Data Dashboard Patient-reported outcomes (PRO) data platform that collects information directly from people living with ALS and exposes aggregated insights via a public dashboard, supporting research and community understanding of disease experience.
- ThinkALS Tool Tool designed to support healthcare providers in recognizing potential ALS symptoms and expediting referrals to ALS specialists, addressing the diagnostic delay common in ALS.
- ALS Research Grants Program Competitive grant awards to academic and medical research institutions funding global scientific research into the causes, treatments, and potential cures for ALS.
- Walk to Defeat ALS National signature community fundraising walk events held in markets across the United States to raise funds and awareness for the ALS community.
- ALS State Policy Report Cards Annual state-level policy assessments that grade each U.S. state on policies affecting people with ALS, used to drive advocacy and legislative action at the state level.
- Public Policy Advocacy Program Federal and state advocacy program that works with policymakers, regulators, and coalitions to advance legislation, appropriations, and policies that benefit people living with ALS, including research funding, access to therapies, and benefits reform.
Quantifiable outcome
- The 2014 Ice Bucket Challenge raised $115 million and helped develop the first treatment for a specific genetic form of ALS that helps 2% of patients with that gene mutation
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use The ALS Association
Customer profileSegments5 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
The ALS Association technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature2 records
The ALS Association partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Pasithea TherapeuticscoreThe ALS Association awarded $1 million to Pasithea Therapeutics in November 2025 to study PAS-004 for ALS treatment. The Association also committed $2 million in 2025 Hoffman ALS Clinical Trial Awards supporting early-stage clinical trials including PAS-004 by Mayo Clinic Jacksonville and AP-2 by Molefy Pharma SL.
- Mayo Clinic JacksonvillecoreMayo Clinic Jacksonville received funding through the 2025 Hoffman ALS Clinical Trial Awards program to conduct early-phase clinical trials of PAS-004 for ALS treatment.
- Molefy Pharma SLcoreMolefy Pharma SL received funding through the 2025 Hoffman ALS Clinical Trial Awards program to conduct early-phase clinical trials of AP-2 for ALS treatment.
- ALS Society of CanadaminorCo-hosted the International Alliance of ALS/MND Associations Annual Meeting and Allied Professionals Forum in December 2025 in Toronto, bringing together over 300 health professionals, caregivers, and people living with ALS.
- Mass General's NeuroVERSE PlatformcoreThe ALS Focus Data Dashboard is available through the Mass General's NeuroVERSE platform, providing open access to five years of clinical, demographic, and socioeconomic data from ALS community surveys.
- International Alliance of ALS/MND AssociationscoreThe ALS Association is a member of the International Alliance of ALS/MND Associations, an organization of national ALS associations working together to share knowledge and resources.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
The ALS Association competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- National Multiple Sclerosis Society: Another major neurodegenerative disease nonprofit with the same operating playbook: research grants, care coordination, state chapters, signature Walk MS events, and federal advocacy.
- ALS Therapy Development Institute: The world's largest nonprofit biotech focused exclusively on ALS drug discovery, directly comparable as an ALS-specific research organization competing for the same donor dollars and research collaborations.
- Muscular Dystrophy Association: National nonprofit funding research and care services across neuromuscular diseases including ALS, with a comparable model of research grants, Certified Care Centers, and large-scale fundraising events (e.g., MDA Telethon).
- Parkinson's Foundation: National nonprofit funding Parkinson's research and providing care services, comparable in size and structure to the ALS Association with a similar chronic neurodegenerative disease mission.
- Cystic Fibrosis Foundation: Disease-specific nonprofit that pioneered the venture philanthropy model for drug development, comparable as a rare-disease voluntary health organization with a research-grant-driven operating model.
- Alzheimer's Association: Largest nonprofit funder of Alzheimer's research with a near-identical operating model: disease-specific research grants, nationwide care services, advocacy, Walk to End Alzheimer's events, and a multistate chapter network.
- American Cancer Society: The benchmark voluntary health organization in the US, comparable as a large disease-specific nonprofit combining research funding, patient services, advocacy, and event-driven fundraising (Relay for Life).
Regional players
- ALS Society of Canada: Direct counterpart in Canada, comparable in mission (ALS research, patient services, advocacy) and has co-hosted events with the ALS Association, including the 2025 International Alliance meeting in Toronto.
- Les Turner ALS Foundation: Chicago-area ALS nonprofit funding research at Northwestern and providing local patient services, comparable as a regional ALS organization that competes for the same Midwest donor base.
Others
- International Alliance of ALS/MND Associations: Umbrella organization of which the ALS Association is a member; relevant as the global coordinating body for ALS/MND nonprofits and a peer in convening the annual Allied Professionals Forum.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
The ALS Association social profiles
Digital presenceThe ALS Association compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance5 records
The ALS Association financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
The ALS Association leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
The ALS Association funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
The ALS Association M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments18 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about The ALS Association
What does The ALS Association do?
The ALS Association is a national nonprofit that funds global research into amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), delivers free care services and support to people living with ALS and their families, and advocates for public policy changes that benefit the ALS community. The organization operates digital navigation and information tools (such as My ALS Journey™, the ALS Insurance Navigator™, and the ALS Focus Data Dashboard) and runs clinical-trial connectivity programs to accelerate treatment access.
Is The ALS Association a public or private company?
The ALS Association is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was The ALS Association founded?
The ALS Association was founded in 1974. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is The ALS Association based?
The ALS Association is headquartered in Washington, United States, in the North America region.
How does The ALS Association make money?
One revenue line is on record: donations and Charitable Contributions.
Who are The ALS Association's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are National Multiple Sclerosis Society, ALS Therapy Development Institute, Muscular Dystrophy Association, Parkinson's Foundation, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, Alzheimer's Association and American Cancer Society. Regional players are ALS Society of Canada and Les Turner ALS Foundation. International Alliance of ALS/MND Associations is listed as an others.
Does The ALS Association have an API?
No public API is recorded for The ALS Association.
What industry is The ALS Association in?
The ALS Association's product category is Nonprofit Health Association. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGACAA, Disease-Specific Research & Support (e.g., Cancer, Diabetes, ALS), with a secondary code of HLAKAIAO, Neurogenetics & Rare Neurologic Diseases. Its NAICS code is 813212 and its SIC code is 8600.