Fundacion Lilly

What Fundacion Lilly does

Fundación Lilly is a non-profit foundation established in 2001 in Madrid, Spain, and funded entirely by Lilly, S.A.U., the Spanish subsidiary of Eli Lilly and Company. Its mission is to promote science, medicine, and humanism in Spain, and it operates as a grant-making, award-giving, and content-publishing institution rather than a commercial enterprise. Core programs include the Premios Fundación Lilly de Investigación Biomédica (biomedical research awards, running since the early 2000s and continuing with new categories in the 2024-2026 cycle), the MEDES initiative to promote Spanish-language medical knowledge (the MEDES database was suspended in April 2024), the Cátedra de Educación Médica created in partnership with Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM) in 2006, the Andrés Laguna humanism programs, and science communication campaigns. The foundation also maintains an extensive publications library and has expanded into digital channels including a YouTube channel and podcast series. It marked its 25th anniversary in 2025 with a royal audience. The Scientific Council, previously chaired by Mariano Barbacid (whose tenure ended in 2024), provides scientific oversight, with new leadership appointments including Padilla made during 2024.

The foundation's business model is non-commercial: it does not sell products or services and has no pricing model or go-to-market motion. It receives contributions from a single corporate sponsor (Lilly, S.A.U.) and deploys those funds across awards, education, content production, and institutional partnerships. Its served community is the Spanish biomedical, medical, and academic ecosystem, including biomedical researchers (cumulative ~40 scientists recognized through awards), healthcare managers (1,300+ trained via foundation programs), medical students at UCM, and the broader Spanish-speaking scientific readership of its publications. Notable institutional partners include UCM, FECYT, SRUK/CERU, and Círculo de Bellas Artes.

Name

Fundacion Lilly

Legal name

FUNDACIÓN LILLY

Website

https://fundacionlilly.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Fundación Lilly is a Madrid-based non-profit foundation established in 2001, funded by Lilly, S.A.U., that promotes science, medicine, and humanism in Spain through biomedical research awards, an educational chair at UCM, publications, and science communication campaigns.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Scientific and Medical Promotion Foundation

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Voluntary Health Organizations (813212), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

akta.pro primary industry

Health & Medical Research Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Grantmaking & Philanthropic Funds (Institutional Donors) (BPADAOAB), Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC)

Keywords

• Biomedical research awards
• Medical education programs
• Science communication campaigns
• Medical humanism initiatives
• Nonprofit scientific foundation

Headquarters

HQ city

Alcobendas

HQ country

Spain

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Contributions from Lilly, S.A.U. Fundación Lilly receives economic contributions from Lilly, S.A.U. The foundation is a nonprofit entity with no commercial activity, operating through an annual plan of activities funded by these contributions and governed by transparency and good governance principles.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Fundación Lilly is a nonprofit foundation that promotes science, medicine, and humanism in Spain through award programs, academic chairs, annual encounters, conferences, peer-reviewed publications, books, podcasts, and science communication campaigns. It is funded by contributions from Lilly, S.A.U., and operates a tripartite mission covering biomedical research recognition, medical education improvement, and humanistic values in medicine.

Product overview

Fundación Lilly is a non-profit foundation established in 2001 with three pillars: Science (fomento de la ciencia), Medicine (impulso de la medicina), and Humanism (humanismo médico). The organization operates through award programs, academic initiatives, scientific communication campaigns, publications, and conferences. Key products include the Premios de Investigación Biomédica (biomedical research awards), MEDES initiative (promoting Spanish in medicine), the Cátedra de Educación Médica with Universidad Complutense de Madrid, the Lección Magistral Andrés Laguna and Aula Andrés Laguna (humanism initiatives), the Citas con la Ciencia series, and the Comunicando ciencia con ciencia/Informando de ciencia con ciencia science communication campaigns. The organization also publishes the Revista Educación Médica journal and maintains a publications library. Funded by Lilly S.A.U., it does not develop or sell commercial products or technology solutions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• MEDES – MEDicina en ESpañol: An initiative to promote the use of Spanish as a language for transmitting scientific knowledge in biomedical and health sciences.
• Premios Fundación Lilly de Investigación Biomédica
• Medicina Centrada en el Paciente
• Premios MEDES
• Cátedra de Educación Médica Fundación Lilly - UCM
• Citas con la Ciencia
• Comunicando ciencia con ciencia
• Informando de ciencia con ciencia

Products and services

• Premios Fundación Lilly de Investigación Biomédica Annual awards recognizing outstanding Spanish scientists in biomedical research, awarded in Preclinical and Clinical categories since 2002. Open to the Spanish biomedical research community.
• Cátedra de Educación Médica Fundación Lilly – UCM University chair at Universidad Complutense de Madrid established to improve medical education through training, research, and knowledge dissemination. Targets medical school faculty and healthcare training institutions.
• Premio Fundación Lilly a la Mejor Tesis Doctoral en Bioquímica y Biología Molecular Award recognizing excellence in doctoral research in biochemistry and molecular biology, awarded in collaboration with SEBBM (Sociedad Española de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular). For PhD candidates in life sciences.
• Premio Luis Felipe Torrente de Divulgación sobre Medicina y Salud Award promoting health and medical science communication in Spanish, for researchers and science communicators under 35 years old, in collaboration with The Conversation.
• Premio Fundación Lilly de Divulgación Científica Award recognizing researchers who dedicate efforts to scientific dissemination and science communication.
• Premios MEDES Awards recognizing initiatives and institutions promoting Spanish language in biomedical knowledge communication.
• Jornada MEDES Annual forum on biomedical publishing in Spanish, held since 2005 in the framework of Complutense Summer Courses at El Escorial.
• Premios de Educación Médica

Quantifiable outcome

• Nearly 40 leading Spanish scientists recognized through the Premio Fundación Lilly de Investigación Biomédica since 2002
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• Consejo de Fundaciones por la Ciencia (FECYT)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014Since 2014, Fundación Lilly is a member of the Consejo de Fundaciones por la Ciencia, promoted by the Fundación Española para la Ciencia y la Tecnología (FECYT), under the Ministry of Science and Innovation. The foundation participates in meetings and proposals aimed at promoting good practices and increasing investment in science.
• Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2006Created in 2006, the Cátedra de Educación Médica Fundación Lilly – UCM is a unique initiative in Spanish university education. It aims to improve medical education through study, promotion, and implementation of best teaching practices, including annual awards, encounters, a medical education journal, and a book collection.
• The Conversation EspañaflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerFundación Lilly maintains a strategic partnership as a strategic partner of The Conversation España, an independent web platform for scientific and technical knowledge dissemination. The collaboration supports science journalism and the publication of explanatory articles by researchers, contributing to public scientific debate. The foundation co-conveys the Premio Luis Felipe Torrente de Divulgación sobre Medicina y Salud with The Conversation.
• Sociedad de Científicos Españoles en Reino Unido (SRUK/CERU)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFundación Lilly collaborates with SRUK/CERU on the 'Science Zone' project and the 'Ciénciame un cuento' (Science-me a Story) contest of bilingual English-Spanish children's science stories. This initiative promotes scientific writing among children and scientific curiosity through storytelling.
• Círculo de Bellas Artes de MadridcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFundación Lilly and Círculo de Bellas Artes co-develop the conference cycle 'Ciencia, medicina y humanismo,' now in its third edition (January–March 2026). The collaboration brings together intellectuals and scientists to reflect on the intersection of science and humanities.
• Real Academia de Historia y Arte de San QuircecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFundación Lilly collaborates with this academy on the 'Aula Andrés Laguna' initiative and a conference cycle on science, medicine, and humanism, aiming to disseminate scientific and humanistic knowledge in a rigorous yet accessible manner.
• Asociación Española de Fundaciones (AEF)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFundación Lilly is a member of the AEF and participates in the Health, Research, and Wellbeing working group, which aims to raise awareness of foundations' role in health promotion and disease prevention.
• Fundación Española para la Ciencia y la Tecnología (FECYT)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFundación Lilly collaborates with FECYT on the 'Informando de ciencia con ciencia' campaign and the book-guides 'Comunicando ciencia con ciencia' and 'Enseñando Ciencia con Ciencia.' FECYT provides institutional support and co-publishing for science communication resources.
• Asociación Española de Comunicación Científica (AEC2)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFundación Lilly collaborates with AEC2 on science communication campaigns including 'Informando de ciencia con ciencia' and 'Comunicando ciencia con ciencia,' combining expertise in science journalism and communication to improve public understanding of science.
• Fundación Ortega-MarañóncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFundación Lilly and Fundación Ortega-Marañón co-publish special issues of the Revista de Occidente on topics at the intersection of science, medicine, and humanism. A bust of Gregorio Marañón was unveiled at the Fundación Ortega-Marañón's Madrid headquarters in 2025.
• FISABIOminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFISABIO (Fundación para el Fomento de la Investigación Sanitaria y Biomédica de la Comunidad Valenciana) collaborated with Fundación Lilly on a multidisciplinary conference on transhumanism within the 'Medicina Centrada en el Paciente' initiative.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Fundación AstraZeneca: Pharmaceutical company foundation supporting biomedical research, medical education, and health outcomes in Spain and globally; comparable as a pharma-parent-funded science/health foundation targeting researchers and healthcare professionals.
• Fundación Pfizer: Pharmaceutical company foundation focused on biomedical research awards, health communication, and scientific education in Spain; directly comparable model to Fundación Lilly as a pharma-funded grantmaking foundation targeting the Spanish medical and scientific community.
• Fundación BBVA: Spanish foundation running the prestigious 'Premios Fronteras del Conocimiento' and major biomedical/health research grant programs; comparable in scale, governance prestige, and mission to promote science in Spain, though broader in scope than Fundación Lilly.
• Fundación Ramón Areces: Spanish foundation awarding biomedical research grants and supporting scientific conferences; operates Consejo Científico and runs the Premios Fundación Ramón Areces for life sciences and other fields, directly comparable to Fundación Lilly's biomedical research awards and science promotion mission in Spain.
• Fundación La Caixa: Major Spanish foundation with CaixaResearch biomedical grants, university chairs, and health research promotion programs; comparable in operating multi-pillar health/education/social programs with significant annual budgets and institutional partnerships in Spain.
• Fundación Botín: Spanish foundation promoting science, education, and rural development through awards, conferences, and academic programs; comparable as a multi-pillar Spanish foundation with a science promotion mission and Patronato-style governance.
• FECYT (Fundación Española para la Ciencia y la Tecnología): Spanish government-linked foundation promoting science and scientific culture, and a direct institutional partner of Fundación Lilly; comparable in promoting scientific dissemination, science communication training, and supporting Spanish science policy initiatives.
• Fundación GSK: Pharmaceutical foundation supporting biomedical research, science education, and health professional training in Spain; comparable model as a pharma-parent-funded grantmaking foundation supporting medical research and science promotion in the Spanish market.
• Fundación María Cristina Masaveu Peterson: Spanish foundation supporting science research grants, educational chairs, and cultural dissemination; comparable in operating academic chairs and biomedical research grant programs within Spain, though with broader cultural scope.
• Fundación Amgen: Biopharmaceutical company foundation supporting biomedical research, patient-centered care, and health professional education; comparable as a pharma-funded foundation targeting the Spanish scientific/medical community with research and education grants.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/fundacionlilly
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/FundacionLilly
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/fundaci%C3%B3n-lilly

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 Fundacion Lilly