Economists for Ukraine

What Economists for Ukraine does

Economists for Ukraine is a US-registered non-profit think tank, founded in February 2022 and operational since March 2022, that operates as the policy arm of the AI for Good Foundation (a 501(c)(3) Public Charity, EIN 81-1631000). Its mission is to apply economic expertise and technology to support Ukraine during Russia's full-scale invasion through humanitarian aid delivery, academic preservation, war documentation, and sanctions advocacy. The organization runs a portfolio of interconnected programs including LifeForce Ukraine (a real-time aid-matching platform partnered with Diia eGov and UN OCHA, handling 252K matches per month), Svidok (a war journal archive partnered with Ukraine's Ministry of Culture and exhibited in the US Congress, with 100,000+ daily visits), the U4U Fellowship Program ($5K fellowships supporting 72 Ukrainian scholars in-country), resilient internet infrastructure deployed across Odesa, the Policy Implications podcast, and a research repository of working papers on the war economy.

The organization is led by an academic network of more than 400 economists from institutions including MIT, Harvard, UC Berkeley, Columbia, Stanford, and the Kyiv School of Economics, with co-founders Tania Babina, Tatyana Deryugina, Anastassia Fedyk, and Yuriy Gorodnichenko, and operational leadership from AI for Good Foundation CEO James Hodson. In-country execution is carried out by 24 full-time staff active across 5 regions of Ukraine, operating 7 physical shelters and delivering direct civilian aid and non-lethal military equipment. To date the organization has raised and deployed more than $1.6M in Ukraine, with donations collected through the AI for Good Foundation and 100% of funds directed to Ukraine.

Revenue is generated entirely through charitable donations via the AI for Good Foundation; there are no commercial products or services sold. The go-to-market is event-driven and mission-driven — combining programmatic fundraising appeals (winter aid, internet infrastructure, military aid, cultural patrimony), a podcast and seminar series, op-eds in outlets such as Project Syndicate and National Interest, and direct stakeholder engagement with Ukrainian government, UN OCHA, and academic institutions. Customer segments span Ukrainian civilians, scholars, the Ukrainian military, and Ukrainian government/policymakers.

Name

Economists for Ukraine

Legal name

AI for Good Foundation (Economists for Ukraine is the think tank arm of this organization)

Website

https://econ4ua.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Economists for Ukraine is a US 501(c)(3) think tank, founded in February 2022, that combines a 400+ economist network with on-the-ground technology platforms (LifeForce aid matching, Svidok war archive) to deliver humanitarian aid, academic fellowships, resilient internet infrastructure, and sanctions policy research in support of Ukraine.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Humanitarian Aid & Policy Research

NAICS

Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (541720), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

SIC

International Affairs (9721), Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Economic Research, Statistics & Policy Advisory (BPADAMAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Refugee, Migration & Displacement Support (BPAGABAH), Education Economics, Finance & Funding Policy Research (EDADADAE)

Keywords

• Humanitarian aid platform
• Economic policy research
• Academic fellowship program
• War documentation archive
• Civilian aid delivery

Headquarters

HQ city

Odesa

HQ country

Ukraine

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: Economists for Ukraine is a non-profit organization that raises funds through donations collected via the AI for Good Foundation (IRS 501(c)(3) Public Charity, EIN 81-1631000). All contributions are fully tax-deductible and 100% of funds are used for Ukraine. The organization runs specific fundraisers for distinct programs: emergency humanitarian internet, winter survival aid, civilian protection, and cultural patrimony.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Economists for Ukraine is a non-profit think tank and humanitarian organization that delivers civilian aid, builds technology platforms for aid coordination and war documentation, funds academic fellowships for Ukrainian scholars, and produces economic policy research to support Ukraine during Russia's invasion and reconstruction. The organization operates the LifeForce aid matching platform (handling 252K matches per month), the Svidok war testimony archive (5,000+ stories), the Universities for Ukraine (U4U) fellowship program (72 scholars supported), and resilient internet infrastructure across Odesa, while channeling 100% of donor funds into Ukrainian humanitarian and policy programs through the parent AI for Good Foundation.

Product overview

Economists for Ukraine operates as a non-profit think tank leveraging economic expertise and technology to support Ukraine during Russia's invasion. The organization runs multiple interconnected programs: LifeForce Ukraine (humanitarian aid matching platform), Svidok (war diary archive), U4U Fellowships (academic support), Policy Implications Podcast, and resilient internet infrastructure. The portfolio also includes policy research initiatives, an aid valuation analysis tool, and a research repository. The organization partners with AI for Good Foundation, Ukrainian government agencies, and international academic institutions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• LifeForce Ukraine: Ukraine's largest real-time needs platform for aid matching: food, shelter, basic supplies, medicine, transport, healthcare. Partnered with Diia, Ukraine's eGov platform, and UN OCHA.
• Svidok
• Universities for Ukraine (U4U)
• Policy Implications Podcast

Products and services

• LifeForce Ukraine Real-time humanitarian aid matching platform that coordinates government and NGO resources to provide immediate support to Ukrainians affected by the war. Matches needs across food, shelter, medicine, transport, and healthcare sectors; partnered with Diia (Ukraine's eGov platform) and UN OCHA.
• Svidok (Witness) Ukraine's largest living museum documenting citizens' experiences of the full-scale invasion through private and publicly shared war journal entries, serving as a time-stamped archive for evidence of war crimes.
• Universities for Ukraine (U4U) Fellowship Program Non-residential fellowship providing $5,000 one-time unconditional funding to Ukrainian scholars who choose to remain in Ukraine, matched with sponsoring universities worldwide to support continued research and teaching in higher education.
• Policy Implications Podcast Podcast series exploring new research in economics and finance and its implications for policymakers, with current season focused on Ukraine, the war economy, and institutions shaping the country's future.
• Resilient Internet Infrastructure Deployed network of public WiFi hotspots across the city of Odesa providing free internet for up to 50 hours during blackouts, designed to withstand missile strikes and maintain civilian connectivity.
• Viktoriia Chatbot AI-powered explainer chatbot providing information about Ukraine, built as an AI for Good initiative leveraging natural language interactions.

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability4 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• AI for Good FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 March 2022Economists for Ukraine is the think tank arm of the AI for Good Foundation, a global non-profit 501(c)(3) Public Charity (EIN 81-1631000). Donations are collected through the AI for Good Foundation, which administers the funds for all humanitarian initiatives.
• Diia (Ukraine's eGov Platform)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLifeForce platform is partnered with Diia, Ukraine's electronic government platform. Diia is considered among the most advanced eGov systems in the world and enables effective documentation of disbursements.
• UN OCHAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLifeForce platform is partnered with UN OCHA (United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs) for coordinated humanitarian response.
• Yermak-McFaul International Group on Russian SanctionscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLeadership team plays a leading role in developing sanctions for energy, finance, tech, and other critical areas as part of the Yermak-McFaul International Group on Russian Sanctions.
• Kyiv School of Economics (KSE)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIlona Sologoub serves as Director of Political and Economic Research at Kyiv School of Economics. Close collaboration on policy research and economic analysis related to Ukraine's reconstruction.
• VoxUkrainecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIlona Sologoub works as Scientific Editor at VoxUkraine. Multiple joint publications and policy analyses. VoxUkraine is a key outlet for the organization's research.
• Science for UkrainecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJointly manages the Universities for Ukraine (U4U) Non-Residential Fellowship Program with Science for Ukraine to support Ukrainian scholars remaining in Ukraine.
• U4U Fellowship Sponsors (Universities)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorParticipating universities sponsor Ukrainian scholars at $5,000 per fellow. Sponsors include: University of Illinois, InDrive, Johns Hopkins, Tulane, UC Berkeley, UCLA, University of Iowa, Yale, Wellesley, University of Georgia, Duke, Columbia, University of Pittsburgh, VCU, and others.
• Ukraine's Ministry of CulturecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSvidok platform partnered with Ukraine's Ministry of Culture for documenting and preserving war experiences. Exhibited in US Congress as a 21st Century Anne Frank diary.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• International Committee of the Red Cross: Major global humanitarian organization with active operations in Ukraine. Comparable as a humanitarian aid provider serving conflict-affected populations, though with much broader geographic scope and institutional scale.
• Mercy Corps: Large international humanitarian NGO with active programming in Ukraine addressing displacement, food security, and economic recovery. Comparable in humanitarian aid mission but operates at vastly greater scale and geographic breadth.
• UN OCHA (United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs): Global humanitarian coordination body that partners with E4U's LifeForce platform. Functions as a much larger incumbent in humanitarian coordination, but serves overlapping beneficiaries through different mechanisms.

Direct peers

• AI for Good Foundation: Parent organization of Economists for Ukraine and a global non-profit 501(c)(3) that coordinates humanitarian initiatives including the LifeForce platform. Functions as the operational and financial backbone for E4U's programs.
• Razumkov Centre: Leading Ukrainian policy think tank focused on economic, political, and social policy research. Comparable as a Ukraine-focused policy research organization producing analysis on war, governance, and reconstruction.
• Yermak-McFaul International Group on Russian Sanctions: International working group developing sanctions on Russia across energy, finance, and tech. E4U leadership plays a core role; comparable as a policy advisory body shaping Russia's economic isolation strategy.
• Come Back Alive Foundation: Major Ukrainian charitable foundation providing military and humanitarian aid including equipment, training, and medical supplies. Comparable as a Ukraine-focused non-profit channeling donor funds to frontline needs and civilian resilience.
• Kyiv School of Economics: Ukrainian economics think tank that closely collaborates with Economists for Ukraine on policy research and reconstruction analysis. Director Ilona Sologoub holds dual roles at both organizations, making KSE the most directly comparable peer in the Ukraine economic policy space.
• Science for Ukraine: Non-profit supporting Ukrainian researchers displaced or affected by war. Directly partners with E4U on the U4U fellowship program; comparable in mission to retain Ukrainian academic talent in-country.
• VoxUkraine: Ukrainian economics policy publication and research platform where E4U's Ilona Sologoub serves as Scientific Editor. Both organizations produce economic analysis on Ukraine's war, sanctions, and reconstruction from complementary angles.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/economists-for-ukraine

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Economists for Ukraine