Augie's Quest to Cure ALS

What Augie's Quest to Cure ALS does

Augie's Quest to Cure ALS is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2005 by fitness industry executive Augie Nieto following his ALS diagnosis, and now led by Chair Lynne Nieto, President and Co-Founder Shannon Shryne, and Vice President Gretchen Simoneaux. The organization is purpose-built to raise and deploy philanthropic capital into amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) research, with the explicit mission of accelerating the discovery of effective treatments and a cure. Operating from a Denver, CO mailing address (EIN 83-0934624) with a 1-10 person staff, Augie's Quest functions as a focused translational-research funder rather than a laboratory operator, channeling grants to a small set of high-leverage research and clinical partners.

The organization's core offerings are research programs and patient resources rather than commercial products. The centerpiece is the Augie's Quest Translational Research Center (AQTRC), a dedicated laboratory embedded within the ALS Therapy Development Institute (ALS TDI) — the world's most comprehensive drug discovery lab focused solely on ALS, and Augie's Quest's core partner since 2006. Augie's Quest co-funds the ALS Research Collaborative (ARC) and the ARC Data Commons, an open data platform hosted on Google Cloud and visualized through Google Looker, which permits global researchers to search, analyze, and download de-identified ALS data. Newer programs include the Champion Insights nationwide study of elevated ALS risk among high-performance athletes, military veterans, and first responders (integrated with Answer ALS's Neuromine Data Portal), a renewed partnership with the UCI Health ALS & Neuromuscular Center funding patient-care positions, and a portfolio of patient education resources branded as "Your ALS Guide." Underlying outputs of the funded research include the tegoprubart (AT-1501) drug development program.

Revenue is generated entirely through donations and fundraising events. Streams include one-time and recurring individual gifts, signature events (Tradition of Hope Gala, Cure ALS Golf Classic, Walk to End ALS), the GO90 workout fundraiser co-hosted with Life Time Foundation, corporate matching gift programs, planned/legacy giving, and stock donations. Corporate partnerships are concentrated in the U.S. fitness industry — Life Time, Orangetheory Fitness, Life Fitness, IHRSA, and ClubCorp — reflecting the founder's legacy as co-founder of Life Fitness. Distribution is primarily domestic (United States) through the organization's website, the Classy.org donation portal, and in-person events; the organization has raised more than $50 million since inception (with some sources citing over $56 million).

Name

Augie's Quest to Cure ALS

Legal name

Augie's Quest to Cure ALS

Website

https://augiesquest.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Augie's Quest to Cure ALS is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2005 that raises and deploys philanthropic capital into translational ALS research, primarily through its long-standing partnership with ALS TDI, while funding patient education, clinical partnerships, and fitness-industry-led fundraising events across the United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

ALS Nonprofit Research Funding

NAICS

Voluntary Health Organizations (813212), Grantmaking Foundations (813211)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Disease-Specific Research & Support (e.g., Cancer, Diabetes, ALS) (BPAGACAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Health & Medical Research Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAL), Grantmaking & Philanthropic Funds (Institutional Donors) (BPADAOAB)

Keywords

• ALS research funding
• Nonprofit fundraising
• Translational research
• Patient advocacy
• Community fundraising events

Headquarters

HQ city

Denver

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: One-time and recurring monthly donations from individual supporters through the organization's website and donation platforms.
2. Event-Based Fundraising: Revenue generated from signature events including the annual Tradition of Hope Gala, Cure ALS Golf Classic, Walk to End ALS, and various community fundraising activities.
3. Corporate Partnerships: Partnerships with fitness industry companies and corporations who sponsor events and campaigns, such as Life Time GO90 workouts and Orangetheory Fitness campaigns.
4. Matching Gifts: Corporate matching gift programs where employers match employee donations to amplify impact.
5. Planned Giving/Legacy Gifts: Estate planning gifts and legacy donations that create long-term sustainable funding.
6. Stock Donations: Donations of appreciated securities including stocks, bonds, and mutual funds.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Augie's Quest to Cure ALS is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that raises charitable donations and grants to fund ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) research, primarily through a long-standing partnership with the ALS Therapy Development Institute (ALS TDI). It funds the Augie's Quest Translational Research Center (AQTRC), supports the ALS Research Collaborative (ARC) and its ARC Data Commons, runs the Champion Insights research initiative, and supplements research with patient education resources and signature fundraising events.

Product overview

Augie's Quest to Cure ALS is a nonprofit organization that funds ALS research primarily through its partnership with the ALS Therapy Development Institute. Its core offerings include the Augie's Quest Translational Research Center (AQTRC) and the ALS Research Collaborative (ARC), which collect and share comprehensive ALS data through the ARC Data Commons platform. The organization also runs the Champion Insights initiative to study ALS risk in athletes and military members. Additional programs include patient education resources (Your ALS Guide, ALS Resources), fundraising events (Walk to End ALS, Golf Classic, Tradition of Hope Gala), and community support through the ALS Champions storytelling initiative. The organization does not operate as a traditional software product company but rather as a research funding and patient advocacy nonprofit.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Champion Insights: A nationwide research initiative to investigate the elevated risk of ALS among high-performance athletes, military members, and first responders.

Products and services

• Augie's Quest Translational Research Center (AQTRC) A cutting-edge laboratory at ALS TDI dedicated to developing treatments for ALS, studying cells from people with ALS to uncover biological processes driving disease onset and progression and identifying high-quality drug candidates. Funded by Augie's Quest.
• ALS Research Collaborative (ARC) Research collaborative that collects comprehensive natural history data from people with ALS and layers it with biological data through omics, with data accessible worldwide via the ARC Data Commons. Supported by Augie's Quest.
• ARC Data Commons An innovative data-sharing platform powered by Google Cloud and Google Looker that allows researchers worldwide to log in, search, analyze, and download de-identified ALS data from the world's largest openly accessible ALS research repository.
• Champion Insights
• Your ALS Guide and ALS Resources
• Annual Signature Fundraising Events

Quantifiable outcome

• $6.3 million granted to the Augie's Quest Translational Research Center
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and major.

• UCI Health ALS & Neuromuscular CentercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 February 2026Funding for dedicated position at the UC Irvine ALS clinic. Nearly 20 years ago, Augie's Quest made an initial catalytic donation that helped establish the clinic. The renewed support will enable hiring of an advanced practice practitioner to strengthen patient care. Augie Nieto received care at this clinic from Dr. Tahseen Mozaffar.
• Answer ALScoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 August 2025Collaboration on Champion Insights initiative - a nationwide research study investigating elevated ALS risk among high-performance athletes, military members, and first responders. Augie's Quest contributed $750,000 to this initiative. The study aims to enroll 500 participants using remote participation technology.
• Life Time FoundationflagshipGTM or Marketing Partner · 12 September 2024Co-host of annual GO90 workout fundraiser event. Life Time hosts 90-minute workout events at their athletic country clubs nationwide, with 100% of funds raised split equally between Augie's Quest and the Life Time Foundation. 2024 event raised $253,000. The partnership leverages the fitness industry connection dating back to Augie Nieto's founding of Life Fitness.
• ALS Therapy Development Institute (ALS TDI)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 December 2021Primary research partner since 2006. Augie's Quest has funded the Augie Quest Translational Research Center (AQTRC) with a $5.8 million commitment fulfilled in 2024. The partnership supports drug discovery programs, clinical trials, and the ARC (ALS Research Collaborative) study. ALS TDI is the world's most comprehensive drug discovery lab focused solely on ALS.
• Orangetheory FitnessflagshipGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 March 2017Major fundraising campaign partner that raised over $2 million through their #IBurn4ALS campaign across 620 locations. Their inaugural two-week campaign was the largest in-club fundraiser to date and largest single-year campaign for the organization.
• Life FitnessmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerAugie Nieto was cofounder of Life Fitness (originally Lifecycle). The company continues to support Augie's Quest through equipment provision for events and ongoing fundraising. Partnership rooted in the founder's legacy in the fitness equipment industry.
• IHRSA (International Health, Racquet and Sports Association)majorGTM or Marketing PartnerAnnual BASH for Augie's Quest event held during IHRSA's International Tradeshow. The fitness industry association has been a key partner in rallying companies across the sector to support ALS research.
• ClubCorpmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerHost of ClubCorp Charity Classic which raised a record $3,053,312 for ALS research. Major corporate partner in hosting golf and social events.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Answer ALS: All-encompassing ALS research initiative operating the Neuromine Data Portal; Augie's Quest is a $750K co-funder of its Champion Insights program. Both compete for the same research-grant donor pool and partner with overlapping scientific teams.
• Project ALS: Nonprofit funding high-risk, high-reward ALS research at leading academic and biotech labs since 1998. Closely comparable mission — research grantmaking to accelerate treatments — and overlaps with Augie's Quest on translational and preclinical priorities.
• Live Like Lou Foundation: Nonprofit named for Lou Gehrig that funds ALS research, particularly through the Live Like Lou Center for ALS Research. Directly comparable disease-specific research-grant model and donor base, competing for ALS philanthropy dollars.
• ALS Therapy Development Institute (ALS TDI): The world's largest drug-discovery lab focused solely on ALS and Augie's Quest's primary research partner since 2006. Also operates as a nonprofit raising its own research funds, with overlapping donor and corporate-partner relationships in the fitness and biotech communities.
• Les Turner ALS Foundation: Chicago-based ALS nonprofit funding research, patient services, and clinical care (including the Les Turner ALS Center at Northwestern). Comparable in mission, comparable in size, and competes for the same regional and national ALS donor pool.
• Team Gleason: ALS nonprofit founded by former NFL player Steve Gleason, funding technology, equipment, and research to support ALS patients. Comparable in mission and mid-size donor base, with a different funding mix (technology/equipment grants vs. Augie's Quest's lab research grants).

Broad incumbents

• Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA): Large nonprofit covering ALS, muscular dystrophy, and related neuromuscular diseases. ALS is one of many program areas; broad incumbent with established corporate partnerships (e.g., MDA Shamrocks) and federal advocacy that compete for related donor dollars.
• ALS Association: The largest US ALS-focused nonprofit, funding research, advocacy, and care services nationwide. Direct competitor for ALS donor dollars and awareness, but operates a broader portfolio (advocacy, certified centers, care services) rather than Augie's Quest's focused research-grant model.

Emerging players

• Prize4Life: ALS-focused nonprofit using prize-based incentives to drive research progress and biomarker development. Comparable research-funding mission, but smaller and more niche; partial overlap with Augie's Quest's translational focus.
• Her ALS Story: Smaller, more recent ALS nonprofit focused on community, storytelling, and fundraising. Partial overlap with Augie's Quest's "Champions" storytelling work; competes for the same digitally-engaged ALS donor demographic.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/augiesquest
• Facebookfacebook.com/augiesquest1
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/augie%27s-quest-to-cure-als
• Instagraminstagram.com/augiesquest

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Augie's Quest to Cure ALS