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Long Now Foundation

EIN 68-0384748 · San Francisco, CA

Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.

LegitimacyPassesRegistration and standingFinancial healthGood77 out of 100GovernanceStrong100 out of 100Impact evidenceDescribes programsHow well its results are evidenced

What it says it does

The Long Now Foundation is a globally-recognized champion of long-term thinking and responsibility, operating within the context of the next and last 10,000 years a timespan we call the long now.

Income
$4.2 million
Spending
$4.2 million
Spent on programs
73%
Reserves
23.4 months of spending
Largest source of income
donations and private grants, 38%
Employees
36
Volunteers
10
Highest pay
$286,917, executive dir.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Financial health

Good: 77 out of 100. Higher than 63% of charities in its peer group (education, $1m to $10m).

  • Reserves

    35 of 35

    Spendable reserves would cover 23.4 months of spending.

  • Debt

    10 of 20

    It owes 42% of what it owns.

  • Living within its means

    12 of 15

    Income exceeded spending by 1% of income.

  • Income trend

    5 of 15

    Income fell 11% on the year before.

  • Spending floor

    15 of 15

    73% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 17 cents.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Governance

Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 74% of charities in its peer group (education, $1m to $10m).

  • Independent board

    25 of 25

    13 of 14 voting board members are independent.

  • Conflict of interest policy

    15 of 15

    Has a written conflict of interest policy.

  • Whistleblower policy

    8 of 8

    Has a written whistleblower policy.

  • Record keeping policy

    7 of 7

    Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.

  • Board minutes

    5 of 5

    Keeps minutes of board meetings.

  • Board sees the tax return

    10 of 10

    Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.

  • Pay set independently

    5 of 5

    Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.

  • Independent check of accounts

    15 of 15

    Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.

  • No reported misuse

    10 of 10

    Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Impact evidence

Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.

Programs described in its return (20)
  1. $1.2 million spent. THE INTERVAL - AN AWARD WINNING BAR, CAFE AND EVENT SPACE IN SAN FRANCISCO WITH 30,000 VISITORS ANNUALY. IT FEATURES CRAFT COCKTAILS, ARTISAN COFFEE AND TEA, A BOTTLE KEEP, A CHALK BOARD-DRAWING ROBOT, AN ART INSTALLATION BY BRIAN ENO, A LIBRARY THAT STRETCHES FROM FLOOR TO CEILING, AND EXHIBITS ON LONG TERM THINKING THAT INSPIRE CURIOSITY AND WONDER.
  2. $601,071 spent. Programs - Long Now Talks, a lecture series featuring leading thinkers who share ideas with live audiences in San Francisco and millions worldwide; Centuries of the Bristlecone, an artwork by philosopher and conceptual artist Jonathon Keats commissioned by the Nevada Museum of Art in partnership with Long Now; Pace Layers, our annual journal of long-term thinking that gathers ideas, art, and insights; and other bold public projects that ignite imagination.
  3. $465,899 spent. Communications - Marketing, promotion and distribution of content and learnings from Long Nows programs, projects, and public resources, including our video and podcast episodes, and print and digital publishing, and long term digital archive.
  4. $412,488 spent. Untitled - A Project Dedicated To Laying Foundations For A Deeper Ecosystem Of Thought Around Technology, Philosophy, And The Future.
  5. $140,443 spent. THE CLOCK OF THE LONG NOW - AN IMMENSE MECHANICAL MONUMENT, INSTALLED IN MOUNTAIN, DESIGNED TO KEEP ACCURATE TIME FOR THE NEXT TEN MILLENIA. CLOCK PROTOTYPES CAPTIVATE MILLIONS OF VISITORS ONLINE AND AT MUSEUMS INCLUDING SMITHSONIAN NATIONAL AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM IN LONDON
  6. $72,215 spent. LONG NOW TALKS - THE LONG NOW TALKS, LAUNCHED BY STEWART BRAND IN 02003, HAS INVITED MORE THAN 280 LEADING THINKERS TO SHARE THEIR WORK WITH A LIVE AUDIENCE AND MILLIONS AROUND THE GLOBE TUNING IN TO OUR FREE POSCAST AND YOUTUBE CHANNEL. LONG NOW TALKS HAVE BEEN SUPPORTED BY OVER 12,000 MEMBERS ACROSS 65 COUNTRIES
  7. $56,500 spent. Sponsored Projects - umbrella category for Long Now fiscally sponsored projects.
  8. $22,500 spent. Deep Time - a fiscally sponsored project dedicated to landing a 700-gram (1.54 lb.) aluminum time capsule containing 24 sapphire discs on the surface of the Moon.
  9. $9,898 spent. SPECIAL EVENTS - Fundraising and network building onsite events
  10. $8,853 spent. NEVADA - OUR NEVADA BRISTLECONE PRESERVE IS A TWO MILE LONG MOUNTAIN HABITAT OF THE WORLD'S OLDEST LIVING TREES.
  11. $4,710 spent. IDEAS - Online publication on long term thinking
  12. $3,052 spent. LONG BETS - LONG BETS IS AN ONLINE ARENA FOR ACCOUNTABLE LONG-TERM PREDICTIONS WITH ALL THE STAKES GOING TO THE VICTOR'S CHOSEN NON PROFIT.
  13. $2,578 spent. MANUAL CIVILIZATION - A small library of books which maybe needed to restart civilization from scratch
  14. $321 spent. ROSETTA PROJECT - A COLLABORATION WITH LINGUISTS TO COMPILE AN ARCHIVE OF OVER 1,500 HUMAN LANGUAGES AND MICRO-ETCH IT ONTO A SERIES OF ARTIFACTS WHICH ARE DISTRIBUTED FOR LONG-TERM PRESENTATIONS. WE MEAN SERIOUSLY DISTRIBUTED - ONE LIVES ON SURFACE OF THE MOON AND ANOTHER ON A DISTANT COMET. YOU CAN ALSO WEAR ONE AROUND YOUR NECK
  15. PanLex - PanLex is a nonprofit program whose mission is to overcome language barriers to human rights, information, and opportunities. Their purpose is to make it so that nobody should have their rights restricted because of the language they speak.
  16. Membership - The Long Now Foundation's membership program has connected more than 11,000 long-term thinkers across more than 65 countries. Our global membership receives regular updates on key ideas around long-term thinking through our frequent talks, original writing and monthly newsletter, as well as special invitations to online video lectures and in-person gatherings. Each member also receives an etched stainless steel membership card featuring their unique member number. The Long Now membership program provides substantial financial support to the organization, its activities, and its programs.
  17. Organizational Continuity Project - The Organizational Continuity Project hopes to discover the lessons behind the longest lived organizations, and build a discipline of shareable knowledge that will help contemporary institutions, companies, and governments develop into robust, long-lasting structures. In turn, we hope these institutions will be better equipped to address civilizational-scale problems with multi-generational thinking.
  18. Future Fund - The purpose of these funds is to support efforts to convert Long Now from a successful start-up project into a sustainable institution that can survive for the long term.
  19. Naming Names - a fiscally sponsored project by artists Eve Sussman and Simon Lee dedicated to investigating the act of naming through a theatrical and sonic performance connecting the Bay Area and Athens, Greece.
  20. Fellowship - academics, authors, researchers, artists, and others dedicated to long-term thinking.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Legitimacy checks

  1. Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.

    Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  2. Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.

    Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.

    Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  3. Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.

    On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.

    Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  4. Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.

    Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2024.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  5. How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.

    Recognized by the IRS since March 1998.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  6. Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.

    Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.

    Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 21, 2026.

Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.