What EQt Foundation does

EQT Foundation is an independent charitable foundation established in 2019 by Partners at EQT during EQT AB's stock exchange listing. Headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, the foundation is a long-term shareholder in EQT and deploys dividends from its equity stake to fund grants and catalytic investments, operating with a small team of 1-10 people under Head of Foundation Cilia Holmes Indahl and four named partners. Its mission, framed as "pushing the frontiers of impact," couples philanthropic grant-making with ecosystem stewardship of EQT's cultural values.

The foundation runs three core programs: Science Grants (non-dilutive funding of €25,000-€100,000 for researchers at accredited nonprofit institutions before company formation), the EQT Foundation Fund (catalytic investments in impact-driven startups from lab stage through first commercial demonstration, including bridge rounds), and Scale Grants (supporting organizations closing capital gaps for scientific progress). In 2026, the foundation formalized thematic programs in Critical Minerals (over €1 million to 11 institutions across 9 countries for lithium recovery, battery recycling, and low-iridium hydrogen production) and Blood-Brain Barrier CNS drug delivery, alongside a €500,000 grant to Elemental Impact for climate financing innovation and participation in Biographica's €8 million seed round for AI-driven crop trait discovery.

Its business model is grant-making and catalytic investing funded by EQT equity dividends rather than commercial revenue, with customer segments defined as researchers at nonprofit institutions, impact-driven entrepreneurs, and "agents of change" working on climate, healthcare, and agricultural innovation. Go-to-market is community-led: open grant applications submitted through the EQT Foundation website, promoted via press releases on PR Newswire and Cision and amplified through EQT Group's LinkedIn, X, YouTube, and Instagram channels. The foundation has no proprietary technology stack of its own; its competitive advantage derives from access to EQT's investment platform, technical advisors, and commercialization network rather than internal R&D.

Name

EQt Foundation

Legal name

EQT Foundation

Website

https://eqtfoundation.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

EQT Foundation is an independent charitable foundation established in 2019 as a long-term shareholder of EQT, deploying dividend income as non-dilutive grants and catalytic investments to support early-stage researchers and impact-driven entrepreneurs working on climate, healthcare, and agricultural innovation.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Philanthropy and Impact Investing

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Voluntary Health Organizations (813212), Other Grantmaking and Giving Services (813219), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132)

SIC

Finance Services (6199)

akta.pro primary industry

Research & Science Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Health & Medical Research Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAL), Environmental & Climate Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAM), International Grantmaking & Development Foundations (BPAGAKAH), Healthcare Access & Life Sciences Impact Funds (FSANAJAI)

Keywords

• Science research grants
• Catalytic impact investing
• Startup investment funding
• Climate technology grants
• Non-dilutive grantmaking

Headquarters

HQ city

Stockholm

HQ country

Sweden

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Dividend Income from EQT Holdings: EQT Foundation is a long-term shareholder in EQT and uses dividends from its EQT holdings to fund grants and investments. The foundation was founded during EQT's 2019 stock exchange listing and operates as a perpetual steward of EQT's values.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

EQT Foundation is an independent charitable foundation that provides non-dilutive science grants (€25,000–€100,000) to researchers at accredited nonprofit institutions and catalytic investments in impact-driven startups through the EQT Foundation Fund. It also operates scale grants supporting individuals and organizations working to close capital gaps for scientific progress, with thematic focus areas including critical minerals, climate financing, blood-brain barrier drug delivery, and agricultural biotechnology.

Product overview

EQT Foundation is a catalytic investor and grant maker that operates through three main programs: Science Grants (non-dilutive funding of €25,000-€100,000 for researchers), the EQT Foundation Fund (startup investments from lab stage to first commercial demonstration), and Scale Grants (supporting organizations closing capital gaps). The foundation also runs specific initiatives like the Critical Minerals Science Grants program and Blood-Brain Barrier grants, and has made strategic investments in companies like Biographica.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Science Grants Program Non-dilutive grant program awarding €25,000 to €100,000 per project to scientists at accredited nonprofit research institutions globally, supporting high-risk, deeptech research before company formation while technologies are still being validated in the laboratory.
• EQT Foundation Fund (Startup Investments) Catalytic investment program making flexible, long-term equity-style investments in impact-driven startups from lab stage to first commercial demonstration. Invests strategically with the ability to join via various structures including bridge rounds, and provides portfolio companies with access to EQT's network of technical advisors, industry partners, and commercialization support.
• Scale Grants Grant program supporting individuals and organizations working as agents of change to close capital gaps and overcome structural barriers preventing scientific progress from reaching its impact potential, including intermediation organizations that unlock follow-on climate and impact capital.
• Critical Minerals Science Grants Program Thematic grant program under the Science Grants umbrella that awarded over €1 million to researchers at 11 institutions across 9 countries for deeptech solutions reducing dependence on critical minerals in climate technologies, including lithium recovery from seawater, battery recycling, and low-iridium hydrogen production systems.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over €1 million awarded to 11 institutions across 9 countries for critical minerals research
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• BASF | NunhemsminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 7 January 2026Biographica announced a commercial partnership with BASF | Nunhems for AI-driven crop trait development. This partnership is with EQT Foundation's portfolio company Biographica, not directly with EQT Foundation.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Novo Nordisk Foundation: Novo Nordisk Foundation is a Danish enterprise-backed foundation that funds scientific research, biotech, and sustainability. It is comparable to EQT Foundation as a corporate-affiliated philanthropic foundation with a Nordic heritage and science/health focus, but with a substantially larger endowment and broader grant portfolio.
• IKEA Foundation: The IKEA Foundation is the philanthropic arm of IKEA, funded by dividends and long-term shareholding, with a focus on climate, renewable energy, and inclusion. It is highly comparable to EQT Foundation in structure — an enterprise-funded foundation distributing grants globally — and shares a similar Nordic-rooted operating model.
• Wellcome Trust: The Wellcome Trust is a major UK-based charitable foundation funding scientific research and health innovation. It is comparable to EQT Foundation as a science-focused grantmaker with a global research portfolio, but operates at vastly greater scale (tens of billions in assets) and with a more mature impact-measurement framework.
• Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation: The Gates Foundation is a global philanthropic foundation funding health, development, and education. It is comparable to EQT Foundation in funding health and development research via non-dilutive grants, but operates at orders-of-magnitude greater scale and a more institutionalized structure.

Direct peers

• Schmidt Sciences: Schmidt Sciences (formerly Schmidt Futures) is a philanthropic initiative funding scientific research and emerging technology. It is comparable to EQT Foundation as a science-focused, equity-backed foundation that supports frontier research with patient capital and ecosystem leverage.
• Quadrature Climate Foundation: Quadrature Climate Foundation is a climate-focused philanthropic foundation that deploys catalytic capital into climate solutions, including grants and investments. It is comparable to EQT Foundation in funding climate infrastructure and critical-minerals-adjacent themes through grants and catalytic investments.
• Children's Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF): CIFF is a UK-based philanthropic foundation with origins in private-sector wealth, focusing on climate, health, and child welfare. It is comparable to EQT Foundation as a privately-originated, professionally-managed foundation that deploys catalytic capital into both grants and impact investments across frontier themes.
• Arcadia Fund: Arcadia is a UK-based charitable fund that supports scientific research, open access, and environmental conservation. It is comparable to EQT Foundation as a science-and-environment-focused philanthropic fund that provides long-horizon, non-dilutive grants to researchers and cultural organizations.

Emerging players

• Climate Investment Funds (CIF): CIF is a multilateral climate financing mechanism providing concessional capital to clean technology and climate infrastructure projects. It is comparable to EQT Foundation's Elemental Impact grant thesis in bridging the $2-5M development-stage capital gap between venture capital and project finance for climate technologies.
• Breakthrough Energy (Bill Gates): Breakthrough Energy funds climate technology companies through grants, investments, and venture funds. It is comparable to EQT Foundation in deploying catalytic capital to bridge climate-technology commercialization gaps, but operates as a multi-vehicle platform with significantly larger capital deployment.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/eqt
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@eqtgroup
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/eqt-foundation
• Instagraminstagram.com/eqtgroup

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments11 records

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Frequently asked questions about EQt Foundation