Knight Foundation
VC Fund
Miami, United States
Knight Foundation is a national foundation with strong local roots. We invest in journalism, in the arts, and in the success of cities where brothers John S. and James L. Knight once published newspapers. Our goal is to foster informed and engaged communities, which we believe are essential for a healthy democracy. Through our Knight EnterpriseFund, we provide early-stage venture funding for media innovation.We invest in early-stage companies at the frontier of media and technology that improve people’s access to quality information because we believe this leads to healthier communities.
- Total investments:
- 60
- Last investment:
- Lead investor:
- 85%
Last updated:
For AI agents: llms.txt
Industries Knight Foundation invests in
Stages Knight Foundation invests in
Countries Knight Foundation invests in
Contacts
| Name | Phone | Socials | |
|---|---|---|---|
| See all 10 contacts → | |||
Investment Focus
Industry
- Non Profit 17 (28%)
- Education 16 (27%)
- News 12 (20%)
- Communities 11 (18%)
- Universities 8 (13%)
Stage
- Grant 54 (90%)
- Seed 2 (3%)
- Venture - Series Unknown 2 (3%)
- Series B 1 (2%)
- Funding Round 1 (2%)
Country
- United States 52 (87%)
- Canada 2 (3%)
- United Kingdom 1 (2%)
Team
| Name | Title | Investments | Links | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Christopher Thompson
Program Director
|
Program Director | Total investments: 1 | Find email | |
Heidi Barker
VP, Communications and Chief DEI Officer
|
VP, Communications and Chief DEI Officer | Total investments: 0 | Find email | |
James L. Knight
Co-Founder
|
Co-Founder | Total investments: 0 | Find email | |
Jennifer Farah
Director/Arts
|
Director/Arts | Total investments: 0 | Find email | |
Jennifer Preston
VP, Journalism
|
VP, Journalism | Total investments: 0 | Find email | |
| See all 10 team members → | ||||
Investments
| Company | Description | Round | Links |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scout is a development and design practice. The company focuses on reimagining underutilized spaces and transforming them into vibrant areas. Scout offers expertise in design, planning, project management, and community engagement. The company works on adaptive reuse projects, repurposing existing structures for new uses such as spaces for makers,nonprofits, small businesses, and artists. | $2.5M / Grant / Aug 12, 2026 | ||
| Village Media operates several local news and community. | $5M / Grant / Jul 23, 2026 | ||
| The News Media Help Desk provides local newsrooms with a hub to access information, support, and fractional services. | Grant / Dec 10, 2025 | ||
| Founded in 1990 by a group of prominent U.S. women journalists, the International Women’s Media Foundation is a Washington-based organization that is dedicated to strengthening the role of women journalists worldwide. The IWMF believes the news media worldwide are not truly free and representative without the equal voice of women. The IWMFcelebrates the courage of women journalists who overcome threats and oppression to speak out on global issues. | $200K / Grant / Oct 06, 2025 | ||
| Black Tech Saturdays is an organization that promotes Detroit’s Black tech entrepreneurs. | $2M / Grant / Sep 08, 2025 | ||
| Black Leaders Detroit is a non-profit organization that provides financial support for diverse social and community impact projects. | $1M / Grant / Sep 08, 2025 | ||
| The Eastside Community Network (formerly Warren/Conner Development Coalition) has been spearheading community development on Detroit's east side for over 30 years. Eastside Community Network develops people, places and plans for sustainable neighborhood growth on Detroit's Eastside. | $1.5M / Grant / Sep 08, 2025 | ||
| Vanguard has been the driving force behind strategic growth and development in Detroit’s historic North End. | $2M / Grant / Sep 08, 2025 | ||
| The Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit or MOCAD is a non-collecting contemporary art museum located in Detroit's cultural center. | $2M / Grant / Sep 08, 2025 | ||
| The Detroit Design Network can link businesses with like-minded designers and businesses, as well as provide them with the tools and resources that they need to grow. They are looking to hire design talent, learn new skills, or locate a business opportunity. They can significantly strengthen the design community if they work together. | $1M / Grant / Sep 08, 2025 | ||
| See all 60 investments → | |||
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FAQ
What does Knight Foundation invest in?
Knight Foundation invests primarily in Non Profit, Education and News startups, most often at Grant and Seed stage. Most of the 60 investments tracked by Shizune back companies in United States. The Investment Focus section breaks down every industry, stage and country in the portfolio.
How do I contact Knight Foundation?
Public channels for Knight Foundation include LinkedIn, X (Twitter) and the website linked on this profile. For a verified work email and phone number, create a free Shizune account — contact data is searched across 20+ sources and validated before delivery, so your outreach lands in the right inbox.
Who are the partners at Knight Foundation?
The team at Knight Foundation includes Christopher Thompson (Program Director), Heidi Barker (VP, Communications and Chief DEI Officer) and James L. Knight (Co-Founder), among 10 team members tracked by Shizune. The Team section lists each member with their title, investment count and links.
Is Shizune's investor data accurate?
Yes — every stat on this profile is calculated from confirmed public funding rounds monitored across hundreds of sources since 2020. This profile was last refreshed in Oct 2026 and is updated monthly. Spotted something off? Use the “Suggest an edit” link near the top of the page.
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