The Giving Pledge sees a sharp decline in new sign-ups

The Giving Pledge—a voluntary and unenforceable promise to give away half of one’s fortune—is experiencing a steady decline in new sign-ups, according to The New York Times. Launched in 2010 by Warren Buffett and Bill Gates, the campaign initially drew participation from the world’s wealthiest individuals. In its first five years, 113 families signed the Pledge. That momentum has slowed over the subsequent decade: 72 families signed over the next five years, followed by 43 families in the five years after that. In 2024, just four families joined the initiative.

This slowdown comes as some tech figures in Silicon Valley openly criticize the campaign. Tech investor Peter Thiel has reportedly encouraged signers to undo their commitments to the Giving Pledge. Thiel, who is a critic of the campaign and has reportedly described Gates as an awful, awful person, told The New York Times that the initiative has lost its momentum. He noted that while the branding may not be entirely negative, joining the campaign now feels far less important, adding that most of the signatories he has spoken with have expressed regret about signing. Thiel, a tech investor, described the Giving Pledge as an “Epstein-adjacent, fake Boomer club.” Signatories of the Pledge include tech figures such as Elon Musk, as well as Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan.

While some founders are stepping back, others are shifting their philanthropic strategies. At the start of 2026, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative—the philanthropic organization led by Zuckerberg and Chan—cut about 70 jobs, representing 8% of its workforce. Zuckerberg asserted that the organization is shifting its focus away from education and social justice to prioritize its Biohub network, which operates as a network of nonprofit, biology-focused research institutes. Meanwhile, Bill Gates is taking a different approach to his wealth. Gates plans to close the Gates Foundation permanently by December 31, 2045, intending to distribute more than $200 billion before that date. In doing so, Gates invoked Andrew Carnegie’s historical sentiment that those who die wealthy die in disgrace.

This shift in billionaire philanthropy occurs alongside growth in billionaire wealth. Globally, billionaire wealth has grown 81% since 2020, reaching a total of $18.3 trillion. According to a global inequality report from Oxfam, the wealth gains accumulated by billionaires in 2025 alone could have provided $250 to every person on earth, while still leaving the wealthiest individuals more than $500 billion richer. In contrast, the crowdfunding platform GoFundMe reported that fundraisers for basic necessities surged 17% over the last year, highlighting the reliance on public campaigns to meet basic needs.

Why it matters

The Giving Pledge, once a hallmark of billionaire philanthropy, is seeing a sharp decline in new sign-ups as prominent tech figures express regret and shift toward private philanthropic vehicles.