The Arthur C. Clarke Foundation

What The Arthur C. Clarke Foundation does

The Arthur C. Clarke Foundation is a private 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1983 and headquartered in Washington, D.C. The Foundation's stated mission is to promote, enable, and recognize the power of imagination to benefit humanity, honoring the legacy of Sir Arthur C. Clarke — the author and futurist who calculated the geostationary satellite orbit. The Foundation operates four core programs: the annual Arthur C. Clarke Awards (Lifetime Achievement, Innovator, and Imagination in Service to Society categories), the Clarke Conversations on Imagination series, the Unleash Imagination intergenerational initiative (launched in 2017 for Clarke's centenary), and the HAL 9000 Challenge youth program (developed for 2025 launch) focused on ideas for beneficial AI and advanced technologies. Supporting youth programs include Clarke Changemakers and the Youth Video Challenge delivered through partnerships with Youth Service America, KID Museum, and UCSD's Arthur C. Clarke Center for Human Imagination.

The Foundation does not develop technology products or sell commercial services. Its assets are programmatic: a multi-decade awardee roster including Nobel laureates, astronauts, technologists, and authors (e.g., Stephen Hawking, Jeffrey Bezos, Elon Musk, Vinton Cerf, NASA, CERN); a global partner network spanning academic, cultural, and corporate institutions; and the Clarke brand and intellectual legacy. The annual Unleash Imagination event is hosted at the Embassy of France in Washington, D.C., with both in-person and virtual participation.

The Foundation's revenue model is donations and corporate sponsorships. It offers tiered event packages — Unleash Imagination Package at $1,000 (two seats, dinner, conversation access), Individual Evening Tickets at $300, and virtual program tickets at $10 (students) and $15 (adults) — with proceeds treated as donations supporting programs. Named corporate sponsors include SES, Hughes (EchoStar), Iridium, OneWeb, Eutelsat, Google, Lockheed Martin, Penguin Random House, and the Internet Society. The Foundation is governed by a Board of Directors led by Chair Timothy J. Logue, with key leadership including Vice Chair Charles G. Schott, Treasurer Marcia Johnson Bateson, and Executive Director Holly Russell.

Name

The Arthur C. Clarke Foundation

Legal name

The Arthur C. Clarke Foundation

Website

https://clarkefoundation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1983

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Arthur C. Clarke Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that promotes imagination to benefit humanity through annual awards, intergenerational programming, and youth education initiatives honoring Sir Arthur C. Clarke's legacy.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Innovation Awards and Education Programs

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

akta.pro primary industry

Education Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Research & Science Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAI), STEM, Digital Literacy & Maker Education Nonprofits (BPAGADAG), Arts, Culture & Humanities Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAJ)

Keywords

• Nonprofit foundation programs
• Innovation awards recognition
• Youth imagination education
• Intergenerational leadership programs
• Science technology arts events

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Sponsorships: The Foundation operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that relies on donations and corporate sponsorships to fund its programs, including the Unleash Imagination initiative, youth programs, and annual awards ceremony.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Arthur C. Clarke Foundation runs an annual Arthur C. Clarke Awards program recognizing individuals and organizations for contributions to technology, sciences, and arts, alongside the Clarke Conversations on Imagination discussion series and the Unleash Imagination intergenerational initiative. It also delivers youth programs including the HAL 9000 Challenge, Clarke Changemakers, and Youth Video Challenge, partnering with universities, museums, and satellite industry sponsors to promote imagination as a tool for addressing global challenges.

Product overview

The Arthur C. Clarke Foundation operates as a unified awards and education organization centered around its Unleash Imagination program. The core offerings include the annual Arthur C. Clarke Awards (Lifetime Achievement, Innovator, and Imagination in Service to Society categories), the Clarke Conversations on Imagination (live and streamed discussions), and the new HAL 9000 Challenge youth program. Supporting initiatives include Young Leaders Initiatives with Clarke Changemakers and Youth Video Challenge. All programs promote imagination paired with science, technology, and arts.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Unleash Imagination: An intergenerational initiative exploring how imagination fuels the future, launched in 2017 as part of Arthur C. Clarke's centenary celebration.
• HAL 9000 Challenge
• Arthur C. Clarke Awards
• Clarke Conversation on Imagination

Products and services

• Arthur C. Clarke Awards Annual awards program recognizing individuals and organizations for outstanding contributions to technology, sciences, and arts, with categories including Lifetime Achievement Award, Innovator Award, and Imagination in Service to Society Award.
• Clarke Conversations on Imagination Ongoing series of live and live-streamed curated conversations between highly imaginative solution seekers, bringing together awardees and experts to promote a culture for fresh ideas.
• Unleash Imagination Program Intergenerational initiative exploring how imagination fuels the future, combining the Young Leaders program, Clarke Conversations, Intergenerational Forum, and Clarke Awards.
• HAL 9000 Challenge Program inspired by 2001: A Space Odyssey that inspires young people to develop ideas, designs, policies, and programs for benefitting Earth inhabitants in a world dominated by AI and advanced technologies, featuring intergenerational pairing with adult experts and grants.
• Young Leaders Initiatives Youth leadership programs including Clarke Changemakers and Youth Video Challenge, focused on science, technology, engineering, arts and math powered by imagination (I-STEAM).

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

15 partnerships are on record, tiered core and secondary.

• Arthur C. Clarke Center for Human Imagination (UCSD)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1983The Foundation's sister organization located at the University of California San Diego. Collaborates on Clarke Conversations on Imagination and supports the Foundation's intergenerational programs.
• Youth Service AmericacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for presenting the Young Leaders Initiatives, including youth service programs and Global Youth Day initiatives.
• KID MuseumcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner for Young Leaders programming and I-STEAM education initiatives. Hosts Clarke Changemakers events.
• Carnegie Institution for SciencesecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Unleash Imagination 2018 programs for youth education in science and technology.
• Museum of Science FictionsecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in 2018 Unleash Imagination programs focusing on science fiction and education.
• Hughes (Echostar Company)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerMarketing partner since 2018, supporting the Unleash Imagination program and annual awards ceremony. Hughes is a satellite communications company.
• SEScoreGTM or Marketing PartnerMajor sponsor and partner for the annual awards program. SES is a major satellite operator.
• IridiumsecondaryGTM or Marketing PartnerSatellite communications company sponsoring the Unleash Imagination program.
• GooglesecondaryGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate sponsor of the 2021 Unleash Imagination awards program.
• Penguin Random HousesecondaryGTM or Marketing PartnerPublisher sponsor providing literary connections to the awards program.
• Internet SocietysecondaryGTM or Marketing PartnerNonprofit sponsor supporting Internet and technology-focused programs.
• British Interplanetary SocietysecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization for the UK Arthur C. Clarke Awards given in partnership with the Foundation.
• OneWebsecondaryGTM or Marketing PartnerSatellite communications company sponsoring the awards program.
• EutelsatsecondaryGTM or Marketing PartnerSatellite operator sponsoring the awards program.
• Lockheed MartinsecondaryGTM or Marketing PartnerAerospace and defense company sponsoring the 2020 awards program.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• SETI Institute: Nonprofit research and education organization focused on the search for extraterrestrial intelligence and space science. Past recipient of the Clarke Foundation's Innovator Award (Jill Tarter, 2018), making it a peer in space science education and outreach.
• British Interplanetary Society: Long-standing space advocacy nonprofit and direct partner of the Clarke Foundation on the UK Clarke Awards. Shares the Clarke Foundation's space/technology mission and event-driven operating model.
• Internet Society: Nonprofit that supports Internet-related education and policy. Multiple overlapping leadership figures (Walda Roseman was COO) and a direct sponsor relationship, making it a tightly connected peer in the technology-philanthropy space.
• Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings: Nonprofit that convenes Nobel laureates and young scientists. Highly comparable to the Clarke Foundation's intergenerational model and its prestige-driven events honoring top-tier scientists; both rely on institutional and corporate sponsorship.
• X Prize Foundation: Nonprofit that incentivizes breakthrough innovation through large cash prizes and recognition. Highly comparable to the Clarke Foundation's model of honoring visionary technologists and scientists; also pursues a global, mission-driven awards strategy rather than direct grants.
• World Science Festival: Nonprofit that produces public-facing events and conversations celebrating science. Shares the Clarke Foundation's emphasis on interdisciplinary dialogue between scientists, artists, and the public, and operates comparable flagship events and major donor fundraising.

Emerging players

• Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics: Independent research and science outreach nonprofit. Shares the Clarke Foundation's emphasis on theoretical science education and public engagement, but is focused on physics specifically rather than cross-disciplinary imagination.

Broad incumbents

• National Geographic Society: Large nonprofit with a science communication mission and past Clarke Award recipient (2023). Comparable in mission (science exploration, public education) but vastly larger in scale and resources, putting it in a broad incumbent position.
• IEEE Foundation: Philanthropic arm of IEEE supporting engineering and technology education. Shares the Clarke Foundation's mission of advancing technology for humanity and uses awards and educational programs, but operates at significantly larger scale with a professional society infrastructure.
• TED Foundation: Nonprofit behind the TED conference and ideas dissemination platform. Shares the Clarke Foundation's mission of spreading ideas at the intersection of technology, science, and society, but operates at significantly larger scale and reach.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/SirArthurClarke
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC5ubeTVCGnvlMX7NpcykTxQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/clarkefoundation
• Instagraminstagram.com/arthurcclarkefoundation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-arthur-c.-clarke-foundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about The Arthur C. Clarke Foundation