# The Michael J. Fox Foundation The Michael J. Fox Foundation is a Foundation based in New York, United States. ## Overview - **Organization type:** Foundation - **Headquarters:** New York, United States - **Region:** North America - **Address:** 111 West 33rd Street, Floor 10, New York, NY 10001, United States - **Founded:** 2000 - **Assets under management:** Undisclosed - **Website:** michaeljfox.org - **LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/michaeljfoxorg ## Regulatory record - **Reports private funds:** No ## About The Michael J. Fox Foundation is dedicated to finding a cure for Parkinson's disease through an aggressively funded research agenda and to ensuring the development of improved therapies for those living with Parkinson's today. ## Sectors - Healthcare Services ## People - Michael J. Fox — Founder - Deborah W. Brooks — Co-Founder and CEO - Ryan Reynolds — Board Member - David Einhorn — Board Member ## Questions ### How does the Michael J. Fox Foundation choose which research programs to fund? The foundation uses a centralized portfolio review process led by internal scientific staff and external peer reviewers. Proposals are evaluated on scientific rationale, milestone feasibility, and strategic alignment against an internal therapeutic roadmap that spans genetic targets, biomarker development, and symptomatic treatments. Unlike traditional grantmakers, MJFF requires data-sharing agreements and active project management from its program officers, who often sit on steering committees for funded consortia. ### Who makes the final investment decisions at the foundation? Deborah W. Brooks, co-founder and CEO, oversees the executive team that approves major grant allocations. The scientific strategy is driven by the chief scientific officer and a network of external scientific advisors. The board of directors, which includes David Einhorn and Ryan Reynolds, provides governance oversight and fundraising leadership rather than day-to-day grant decisions. ### How is the foundation funded, and who are its largest backers? Funding comes from a diversified mix of major gifts, grassroots events through the Team Fox community, corporate partnerships, and planned giving vehicles. Google co-founder Sergey Brin is the most prominent individual donor, having directed over $150 million to MJFF-affiliated research programs (per Forbes, 2020), motivated in part by his own LRRK2 genetic status. The foundation does not maintain a large endowment; it raises capital programmatically for specific initiatives. ### Does the foundation invest directly in for-profit biotech companies? No, MJFF is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and does not take equity positions. However, it operates like a venture investor by providing milestone-based funding to companies developing Parkinson's therapeutics. These grants often de-risk early clinical programs, enabling portfolio companies like Denali Therapeutics and Voyager Therapeutics to attract subsequent venture capital or pharmaceutical partnerships. ### What is the relationship between the foundation and Michael J. Fox's personal wealth? Michael J. Fox is the founder and public face of the organization, not its sole funder. The foundation is a separately incorporated nonprofit that raises the vast majority of its capital from external donors. Fox's contribution is primarily in advocacy, visibility, and governance — he does not function as a single-family-office principal directing a personal fortune, though his name and story are central to the foundation's fundraising identity. ### Where does the foundation deploy the largest share of its research funding? The largest allocation historically has gone to therapeutic development programs targeting disease-modifying treatments. This includes funding for genetic targets like LRRK2 and GBA, alpha-synuclein pathology research, and neuroprotective strategies. The foundation also invests heavily in biomarker validation and clinical trial infrastructure, which collectively aim to accelerate regulatory endpoints for Parkinson's therapies. ## Related profiles - [The Mendota Group](https://altss.com/profile/the-mendota-group) - [The Miller Group](https://altss.com/profile/the-miller-group) --- Last updated: 2026-06-03T20:00:00.000Z Canonical page: https://altss.com/profile/the-michael-j-fox-foundation Maintained by Altss — https://altss.com — methodology: https://altss.com/methodology