An InfluenceWatch look at the 2026 TIME100 Philanthropy list

In May 2026, TIME Magazine released its TIME100 Philanthropy 2026 list documenting the “100 most influential” philanthropists. Out of that list, here are the people and groups you can read more about on the new and improved InfluenceWatch.

***

Miguel Santana is the chief executive officer of the Weingart foundation, a left-of-center grantmaking foundation.

Rajiv Shah is a former administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) under the Obama Administration and current president of the Rockefeller Foundation.

Richard Besser is a former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and current president and chief executive officer of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Heather Gerken is the chief executive officer of the Ford Foundation.

Deepak Bhargava is the president of the Freedom Together Foundation and former executive director and president of the Center for Community Change.

Louise Richardson is the president of the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Julian Castro is the chief executive officer of the Latino Community Foundation and former secretary of housing and urban development under the Obama Administration.

Ryan Rippel served on the executive board of the Families and Workers Fund as of 2024.

Richard R. Buery Jr. is the chief executive officer of the Robin Hood Foundation.

Asif Saleh is the chief executive officer of international development organization BRAC USA.

William A. Schambra is a senior fellow emeritus at the Hudson Institute, a right-of-center think tank.

Michael Dell is the founder, chairman, and chief executive officer of Dell Technologies who, along with his wife Susan, operates the Susan and Michael Dell Foundation.

MacKenzie Scott is the founder of Yield Giving, her primary philanthropic initiative, and ex-wife of Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos.

Charles Koch is an abundant funder of right-of-center and libertarian nonprofits and the current chairman and chief executive officer of Koch Industries, the second largest privately held company in the United States.

Chase Koch is the son of Charles Koch, president of Koch Disruptive Technologies, and chairman of Stand Together Ventures.

Howard G. Buffett operates the Howard G. Buffett Foundation and is the second son of billionaire investor Warren Buffett.

Christopher Hohn is an English philanthropist and co-founder of the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation who has given money to the environmentalist advocacy group Extinction Rebellion US.

John D. Arnold and his wife Laura Arnold operate the Laura and John Arnold Foundation and Arnold Ventures.

David Tepper is the founder and board chair of the Tepper Foundation and owner of the National Football League’s Carolina Panthers.

Lynn Schusterman is the founder and chair emerita of the Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation.

Stacy Schusterman is the daughter of Lynn Schusterman, chair of the Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation, and has previously sat on the board of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).

Steven Spielberg is a film director who operates the Heartland Foundation along with his wife Kate Capshaw.

Robyn Rihanna is a singer who is president of the Clara Lionel Foundation which offers disaster relief, education, and health services to countries in the Caribbean.

Carmen Rojas is the president and chief executive officer of the Marguerite Casey Foundation.

Philip T. Ragon is a tech entrepreneur, philanthropist, and supporter of left-of-center causes.

Lyda Hill is the founder of the Lyda Hill Foundation, a private grantmaking foundation that contributes to scientific research.

Erik Stegman is the chief executive officer of Native Americans in Philanthropy.

Ray D. Madoff is a law school professor and fervent critic of donor advised funds.

Tynesha McHarris is the co-founder of the Black Feminist Fund and president of the consulting firm Black Harvest, LLC.

Xin Liu is the president of the Enlight Foundation which has donated to the Voter Participation Center and Solutions Journalism Network.

Elie Hassenfeld is the CEO of GiveWell, a nonprofit aligned with the effective altruist movement.

Amy Wyss is the daughter of Swiss entrepreneur and philanthropist Hansjorg Wyss and co-founder of the LOR Foundation.

Emily Tow is the executive director the Tow Foundation.

Stewart W. Bainum Jr. is a former Democratic state legislator from Maryland who is married to Sandy Bainum, an actress and left-of-center donor.

Rip Rapson is president and chief executive officer of the Kresge Foundation and former president of the McKnight Foundation.

Hasso Plattner is a German businessman who funded the creation of the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design at Stanford University.

Tom Isgitt is the CEO of the Public Media Company, a nonprofit consulting firm that initiated a 2025 campaign to raise $100 million in funding for struggling radio stations.

Source: https://capitalresearch.org/article/an-influencewatch-look-at-the-2026-time100-philanthropy-list/