American Center For Democracy

What American Center For Democracy does

The American Center for Democracy (ACD) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit policy research organization founded in 2001 and headquartered in New York, focused on monitoring and exposing threats to free speech, political and economic freedoms, and U.S. national security. Its core analytical areas include economic warfare, cyber security, political Islam, terrorism financing, anti-corruption, and foreign election observing. ACD's outputs are primarily human-authored editorial content rather than technology products: it publishes articles, books, and white papers on its website, produces a podcast series, and disseminates research through op-eds and interviews in outlets such as Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, American Greatness, and Blaze Media. Its founder and director, Rachel Ehrenfeld, PhD, is the principal author and public voice of the organization, with notable works including 'The Soros Agenda' and a multi-part investigative series on George Soros's influence.

ACD's business model is donation-driven rather than transactional: as a tax-exempt nonprofit, it generates revenue through charitable contributions solicited via its website and email list, with no commercial products, services, or pricing tiers. It serves a horizontal audience spanning government and policy professionals, the general public interested in geopolitical and security issues, and media outlets seeking expert commentary. Distribution is community-led and content-first, relying on organic reach through the website, social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter/X, YouTube, LinkedIn, Rumble), and recurring media appearances rather than paid acquisition or enterprise sales. The organization maintains a network of PhD-level contributors and former intelligence officials who lend subject-matter credibility, but it has no disclosed technology platform, AI capabilities, or commercial revenue streams.

Name

American Center For Democracy

Legal name

American Center for Democracy

Website

https://acdemocracy.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

American Center for Democracy is a New York-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2001 that publishes research and commentary on threats to free speech, economic warfare, political Islam, and national security, serving policymakers, media, and the general public through its donation-funded website, podcasts, and books.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Policy Research

NAICS

Political Organizations (813940), Human Rights Organizations (813311), National Security and International Affairs (9281)

SIC

International Affairs (9721)

akta.pro primary industry

Civil Liberties & Constitutional Rights Advocacy (BPAGAFAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Democracy, Voting Rights & Civic Participation Advocacy (BPAGAFAJ), Government Accountability, Ethics & Anti-Corruption Advocacy (BPAGAFAN), Electoral Support & Election Observation (BPADAGAA), Media Freedom, Access to Information & Digital Rights (BPADAGAE)

Keywords

• Policy research
• National security analysis
• Economic warfare research
• Counter-terrorism research
• Free speech advocacy

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Donations and Contributions: As a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, ACD operates primarily through charitable donations and contributions from supporters. The organization encourages visitors to donate through its website.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

American Center for Democracy is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit policy research organization that monitors and exposes threats to free speech, political and economic freedoms, and national security. It produces publications, podcasts, books, and papers covering economic warfare, cyber security, political Islam, terrorism financing, anti-corruption, and foreign policy issues for policymakers and the general public.

Product overview

The American Center for Democracy operates as a policy research organization offering publications, podcasts, and educational content focused on monitoring and exposing threats to freedom. The organization provides analytical content through its website including books, multi-part article series, and audio content that examining economic warfare, terrorism, political Islam, and foreign policy issues. The core offerings consist of ACD Publications (articles, books, papers, and presentations), ACD Podcasts, and the book "The Soros Agenda" along with the multi-part "Soros: The Man Who Would Be Kingmaker" series.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The Soros Agenda (Book)
• ACD Publications
• ACD Podcasts
• Soros: The Man Who Would Be Kingmaker (Multi-Part Series)

Quantifiable outcome

• Recognized by former CIA Director R. James Woolsey: 'The ACD/EWI ability to predict future threats is second to none'

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators1 record

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Gatestone Institute: Non-profit policy think tank publishing analysis on national security, political Islam, Middle East conflicts, and civil liberties — closely aligned in subject-matter and small/advocacy-driven publishing model.
• Investigative Project on Terrorism (IPT): Non-profit research organization producing investigations into radical Islamist networks and terrorism financing — comparable subject focus and donated-funded operating model.
• Middle East Forum: Philadelphia-based 501(c)(3) producing research and commentary on political Islam, U.S. foreign policy, and counter-terrorism — directly comparable subject mix and organizational structure to ACD.
• Foundation for Defense of Democracies: Washington D.C.-based policy institute focused on threats to democratic societies, national security, Iran, counter-terrorism, and economic warfare — overlapping closely with ACD's mission areas and producing similar analytical output for policymakers.
• Center for Security Policy: National security-focused policy organization that publishes research on terrorism, radical Islam, and threats to the U.S. — closely matching ACD's coverage of terrorism financing, political Islam, and free speech.

Broad incumbents

• Council on Foreign Relations: Influential foreign-policy think tank covering international security, economic statecraft, and geopolitical threats — addresses the same policy readership as ACD but from a far more mainstream institutional perch.
• RAND Corporation: Major non-profit research institution with extensive output on national security, terrorism, cyber threats, and counter-proliferation — overlapping with ACD's analytical subject matter at vastly greater scale and budget.
• Heritage Foundation: Large U.S. policy think tank covering national security, foreign policy, and free speech among many other domains — overlaps with ACD's policy-publishing model and national-security analysis.
• Washington Institute for Near East Policy: Established think tank producing policy research on the Middle East, Iran, and U.S. foreign policy — same regional and threat-analysis subject area as ACD but at significantly greater institutional scale.
• Hoover Institution: Stanford-affiliated public policy research center producing research on national security, political Islam, and U.S. foreign policy — comparable publishing and policy-influence model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/rachelehrenfeld
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/ehrenfeldr
• Facebookfacebook.com/acdemocracyeconwarfare
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/economic-warfare-institute-at-acd

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about American Center For Democracy