Why billionaire Michael Moritz and wife Harriet Heyman are offering up to $150 million to transform San Francisco

Billionaire investor Michael Moritz and his wife, artist Harriet Heyman, are offering up to $150 million to find bold ideas that could improve life in San Francisco. Their private foundation, Crankstart, has launched a global competition called “Boundless San Francisco,” inviting organisations from anywhere in the world to submit proposals that directly benefit the city’s residents.

“The best ideas rarely come from where you expect them,” Moritz, 71, said in an emailed statement.

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Up to $50 million for winning ideas

Up to three organisations could receive between $10 million and $50 million each to implement their proposals.

The competition is open to ideas involving affordable housing, homelessness, public safety, transportation, education, climate resilience and vacant spaces.

The initiative comes as San Francisco continues to deal with expensive housing, homelessness and economic changes following the pandemic.

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How the competition works

Crankstart is working with Lever for Change, a nonprofit that manages major philanthropic competitions.

Applicants must register by September 11, 2026, with full proposals due by October 9. Between three and seven finalists will later receive $1 million to $3.5 million in development funding and technical support.

Final proposals will be judged on Transformative Ambition, Viability, Evidence of Results and Durability. Winners are expected to be announced in autumn 2027.

Michael Moritz has already invested heavily in San Francisco

Moritz, a former Sequoia Capital partner, made his fortune through investments in companies including Google, YouTube and PayPal.

He has lived in San Francisco for more than four decades. According to Bloomberg calculations based on public records, Crankstart has donated more than $1 billion since 2020 to nonprofits, scholarships, museums and healthcare organisations across the region.

The new competition is another major philanthropic bet on San Francisco, with Moritz and Heyman hoping a fresh idea could help tackle some of the city’s biggest challenges and create lasting improvements for residents.

According to Bloomberg calculations based on public records, Crankstart has donated more than $1 billion since 2020 to regional nonprofits, academic scholarships, art museums and healthcare providers.

In June, the foundation pledged $9.2 million to help address illegal dumping in nearby Oakland after voters rejected a tax measure that would have funded cleanup crews.

Moritz has also backed local journalism, political ballot measures and California Forever, a proposed planned city in Solano County.