What Institute for Progress (IFP) does

The Institute for Progress (IFP) is a Washington, D.C.-based non-partisan think tank founded in 2013 that produces research and policy recommendations aimed at accelerating American scientific, technological, and industrial progress. It operates across five vertical research areas: Metascience, High-Skilled Immigration, Biotechnology, Infrastructure, and Emerging Technology. Its core deliverables are research publications, policy frameworks, and recommendations targeting US federal policymakers, federal science agencies (NIH, NSF, FERC), and Congress, with quantified outputs ranging from NIH reform proposals (for example, a proposed $20 billion biomedical innovation fund) to infrastructure permitting reform (NEPA, Section 106 of NHPA) and AI readiness roadmaps (The Launch Sequence, CAISI resourcing). The organization extends its reach through dedicated programs (The Launch Sequence, The Transit Abundance Playbook, The Deliverome Project), publications and podcasts (Factory Settings, Statecraft, Macroscience, Metascience 101), and a PhD-level Economics of Ideas course. IFP is governed as a private 501(c)(3) nonprofit funded by philanthropic grants and donations, with all research distributed free of charge. Its go-to-market is policy-influencer-led rather than commercial: staff engage directly with Congress and federal agencies, co-publish with institutional partners (Brookings, J-PAL, NBER, USC-Brookings Schaeffer, Good Science Project), and amplify outputs through a Substack newsletter, an active X account (22.2K followers), and podcast channels. No revenue or funding-round figures are disclosed.

Name

Institute for Progress (IFP)

Legal name

Institute for Progress

Website

https://ifp.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Institute for Progress is a Washington, D.C.-based non-partisan think tank that produces policy research and recommendations to accelerate US scientific, technological, and industrial progress, serving federal policymakers, federal science agencies, and the research community.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Policy Research Services

NAICS

Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (541720)

akta.pro primary industry

Think Tanks, Policy Research & Public Policy Institutes (BPAGAFAO)

akta.pro secondary industry

Education Policy Research Institutes & Think Tanks (EDADADAA)

Keywords

• Science policy research
• Innovation policy analysis
• Metascience policy reform
• Biotechnology policy research
• Infrastructure permitting reform

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

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

Revenue model

1. Philanthropic/Grant Funding: As a nonprofit think tank, IFP is funded through grants and donations from foundations and individuals supporting science and technology policy research. The organization receives support from various philanthropic sources to conduct policy research and advocacy work.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

IFP is a non-partisan think tank that produces policy research and analysis focused on accelerating scientific, technological, and industrial progress in the United States. The organization publishes research papers, policy recommendations, and frameworks across five focus areas: Metascience, High-Skilled Immigration, Biotechnology, Infrastructure, and Emerging Technology. IFP translates academic research into actionable policy for federal agencies and Congress, and offers educational programs including the Economics of Ideas, Science and Innovation Course.

Product overview

IFP is a think tank that produces research publications, policy analysis, and educational programs focused on accelerating scientific, technological, and industrial progress. The organization's offerings span five research focus areas (Metascience, High-Skilled Immigration, Biotechnology, Infrastructure, and Emerging Technology), along with specialized programs including The Launch Sequence (AI readiness), The Transit Abundance Playbook, and The Deliverome Project. IFP also publishes newsletters and podcasts (Macroscience, Statecraft, Metascience 101) and offers an academic course on Economics of Ideas through Zoom and Discord. These offerings work together to advance IFP's mission of pragmatic policy reform to drive breakthrough discoveries, attract talent, and expand national capacity to build.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Factory Settings: A publication by former senior leadership of the CHIPS Program Office about building government capacity and production capacity in critical industries.
• Statecraft
• Macroscience

Products and services

• Research Publications IFP's primary research output covering five focus areas: Metascience, High-Skilled Immigration, Biotechnology, Infrastructure, and Emerging Technology. Publications include reports, analysis, and policy recommendations for accelerating scientific, technological, and industrial progress, distributed free of charge to policymakers and the public.
• The Launch Sequence A project initiative focused on preparing the world for advanced AI, involving scoping and building important projects related to AI readiness and progress.
• The Transit Abundance Playbook A resource providing guidance on bringing down transit costs and speeding up project delivery, focused on infrastructure permitting reform.
• The Deliverome Project A project focused on breaking the delivery bottleneck in precision medicine.
• Economics of Ideas, Science and Innovation Course A PhD-level course covering fundamental concepts of how ideas differ from other goods, origins of economic growth, role of science institutions, innovation incentives, diffusion of innovations, and geography of innovation. Includes 13 Zoom lectures, paper reading clubs, happy hours, and a Discord server.

Quantifiable outcome

• NIH funding delays of up to 20 months documented, with recommendations for enabling faster funding through mechanisms like NSF's RAPID/EAGER grants
• +3 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• J-PAL (Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIFP Director Heidi Williams serves as Co-Chair (with Paul Niehaus) of J-PAL's Science for Progress Initiative, a strategic partnership focused on using randomized controlled trials and policy experimentation to accelerate scientific progress.
• USC-Brookings Schaeffer Initiative for Health PolicymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative project partnership for the 'Building a Better NIH' publication series, bringing together health policy researchers from USC, Brookings, and IFP to produce comprehensive NIH reform recommendations.
• Hutchins Center on Fiscal and Monetary PolicymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-publishing partner for the 'Building a Better NIH' initiative, contributing fiscal and monetary policy expertise to science funding reform discussions.
• Good Science ProjectmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProject partner in the 'Building a Better NIH' collaboration, focused on improving science policy and funding mechanisms through evidence-based research.
• Brookings InstitutionmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost and co-publisher of IFP's 'Building a Better NIH' project series, with David Wessel and Richard Frank serving as co-editors. Brookings provides institutional platform for IFP's health policy research.
• Future of Life InstitutemajorGTM or Marketing PartnerIFP co-leads open letters and advocacy efforts with the Future of Life Institute on biosecurity issues including mandatory DNA synthesis screening, bringing together AI leaders like Sam Altman and Dario Amodei as signatories.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF): DC-based nonpartisan think tank producing policy research on technology, innovation, and science funding. Directly comparable to IFP on metascience, R&D productivity, and emerging-tech policy, with a similar DC-advocacy model.
• Hudson Institute: DC-based policy research organization focused on innovation, industrial policy, and emerging technology. Comparable to IFP on CHIPS-related industrial policy, manufacturing capacity, and federal advocacy.
• Federation of American Scientists (FAS): Nonprofit policy organization focused on science, technology, and biosecurity policy. Comparable to IFP on biosecurity/DNA synthesis work, science funding reform, and researcher-driven engagement with federal agencies.
• Niskanen Center: Libertarian-leaning DC think tank working on innovation, immigration, technology, and infrastructure policy. Closely comparable to IFP on high-skilled immigration, infrastructure permitting reform, and pragmatic cross-ideological approach to innovation.
• New America Foundation: DC-based nonpartisan think tank with programs on science, technology, and future of work. Comparable to IFP on high-skilled immigration, AI/emerging technology policy, and federal engagement model.

Broad incumbents

• American Enterprise Institute (AEI): Major DC establishment think tank with research on science policy, innovation, and regulation. Comparable as a senior policy-research institution working on science funding reform and emerging technology governance.
• Brookings Institution: Major DC establishment think tank with a science and innovation policy portfolio. Already a direct partner of IFP via the 'Building a Better NIH' series; serves as the institutional incumbent IFP co-publishes with.
• RAND Corporation: Large nonprofit research institution producing policy analysis across science, technology, and infrastructure. Comparable in the breadth of policy domains and federal engagement model, though much larger and longer-established than IFP.
• Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS): Major bipartisan DC think tank covering technology, security, and industrial policy. Comparable to IFP on emerging-technology policy and direct engagement with federal officials, though operating at a much larger scale.

Emerging players

• Georgetown Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET): Academic-affiliated policy research center focused on AI and emerging-technology policy. Comparable to IFP on AI policy, emerging-technology governance, and federal engagement; former employer of IFP Senior Fellow Tim Hwang.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/IFP
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/institute-for-progress

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Institute for Progress (IFP)