ATEL FOUNDATION

What ATEL FOUNDATION does

ATEL Foundation is a San Francisco-based private philanthropic foundation founded in 2012 by Eliza Cash and Dean Cash. The foundation provides grant funding to nonprofit organizations whose work targets the enrichment of both mind and body through art, education, music, and sports. Funding decisions are made by majority vote of Foundation members, with each request evaluated on its standalone merit and its expected community impact.

The foundation does not sell products or services and operates without traditional go-to-market, distribution, or marketing functions. Its public presence is limited to a website (atelfoundation.org) with a contact form and privacy policy, and it maintains a visible affiliation with ATEL Capital Group, a separate financial services firm also connected to the founders. The grantee portfolio is diverse and high-profile, including the Asian Art Museum, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco Symphony, Stern Grove Festival, UC Berkeley HAAS School of Business, University of Southern California, Florida State University, UCSF Medical Foundation (diabetes research), Breakthrough T1D (formerly JDRF), Olympic Club Foundation, Palama Settlement, Friends of Hawaii Charities (Sony Open), and the CATO Institute. Geographic focus spans the San Francisco Bay Area, broader California, and parts of the Southeast US and Hawaii.

As a private foundation, ATEL Foundation has no disclosed headcount, no published endowment or grant budget, and no equity, debt, or external investors. Its operating model is fundamentally different from a commercial enterprise: the relevant output metric is grants deployed to community organizations rather than revenue, and the unit of analysis for any investor or acquirer would be the underlying capital pool controlled by the founders rather than the foundation itself. The foundation's connection to ATEL Capital Group suggests shared ownership and governance with a larger financial entity, but the foundation operates as a distinct charitable vehicle.

Name

ATEL FOUNDATION

Legal name

ATEL Foundation

Website

https://atelfoundation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Short description

ATEL Foundation is a San Francisco-based private philanthropic foundation founded in 2012 by Eliza and Dean Cash. It provides grant funding to community organizations focused on art, education, music, and sports, with funding decisions made by majority member vote.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Philanthropic Foundation

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132)

akta.pro primary industry

Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Arts, Culture & Humanities Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAJ), Health & Medical Research Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAL)

Keywords

• Philanthropic foundation
• Community grants
• Arts education funding
• Music sports grants
• Nonprofit charitable giving

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations

Core offering

ATEL Foundation is a private philanthropic foundation that provides grant funding to community organizations focused on the enrichment of the mind and body through art, education, music, and sports. Funding decisions are made by a majority vote of Foundation members who evaluate each request based on its merit as a standalone organization and its impact on the community.

Product overview

ATEL Foundation is a San Francisco-based private philanthropic organization, not a technology product company. It does not offer products or services in the traditional sense; rather, it operates as a grant-making foundation that provides funding to organizations focused on art, education, music, and sports. The foundation was founded by Eliza and Dean Cash and supports various charitable organizations including educational institutions, art museums, medical research centers, and community organizations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Community Enrichment Grant Funding Grant funding provided by ATEL Foundation to nonprofit and community organizations whose programs enrich the lives of citizens through art, education, music, and sports. Each request is evaluated by Foundation members through a majority-vote process based on organizational merit and community impact.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Broad incumbents

• The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation: Major Bay Area private foundation supporting education, arts, and environment. Shares ATEL's Bay Area base and arts/education focus but at materially larger scale.
• Annenberg Foundation: Large private foundation with deep commitments to arts, education, and civic causes. Overlaps with ATEL's arts-and-education thesis but operates at substantially greater scale.
• Doris Duke Charitable Foundation: National private foundation funding arts, health, environment, and education. Comparable in multi-cause private foundation structure, though meaningfully larger.
• Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation: Bay Area-based private foundation with science, environment, and patient care programs. Comparable Bay Area geography and founder-driven model, though much larger AUM.
• David and Lucile Packard Foundation: Large Silicon Valley-area private foundation with education, science, and conservation priorities. Overlaps with ATEL's education funding and Bay Area footprint but operates at a different scale.

Direct peers

• Hellman Foundation: San Francisco-based private family foundation funding arts, education, and community causes. Closely comparable in geography, founder-led governance, and thematic scope to ATEL Foundation.
• The Barr Foundation: Private family foundation funding arts, education, and climate. Comparable in being a multi-cause private foundation with focused programmatic giving, though Boston-based.
• Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Foundation: Los Angeles-based private foundation funding education, arts, and civic causes. Comparable as a California-based private family foundation with a multi-cause grantmaking model.
• The Bernard Osher Foundation: San Francisco-based private foundation supporting education, health, and the arts. Comparable as a Bay Area private foundation with a similar multi-cause grantmaking approach.
• Crankstart Foundation: San Francisco-based private foundation supporting education, climate, and the arts. Closely comparable in geography, founder-led structure, and multi-cause grantmaking philosophy.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ATEL FOUNDATION