Creating the “Silicon Valley Way of Giving,” 1970−2000

Silicon Valley is today home to an abundance of philanthropic wealth, a region where donors, martialing historic fortunes in tech, finance, and real estate, seek to transform the world much as they did in their entrepreneurial enterprises. While Silicon Valley is now well-known for its “disruptive” philanthropists, the development of philanthropy in the region was far from inevitable. Instead, a coterie of advisors, researchers, and attorneys helped cultivate giving in the region starting in the 1980s, developing models of giving that appealed to an entrepreneurial elite that foreswore much of the noblesse oblige and localism that animated their predecessors. By the close of the century, these intermediaries nurtured a culture of giving in Silicon Valley that was distinct from philanthropic norms of the past, giving rise to modes of giving that promised donors greater discretion, measurable outcomes, and an opportunity to instill their enterprising ethos in civil society. Their efforts facilitated the growth of philanthropy in Silicon Valley, but also gave rise to modes of giving that were more responsive to the interests of donors than the nonprofit organizations and people closest to social problems.