SecureDNA
securedna.org · organization
Swiss foundation providing free, privacy-preserving screening of DNA synthesis orders for hazardous sequences.
Leadership
- Leonard Foner · Software architect and security lead
- Kirsten Engel
- Kate Daw
Team
headcount not published
source, Oct 2026
AI safety adjacentBiosecurityOther
- Received
- $3,333,000
- from 4 funders
- Grants
- 9
- Funders
- 4
- Years active
- 2022–26
Grants over time
Biggest funders
| Jaan Tallinn | $2,611,000 | 78% | 6 |
| Dustin Moskovitz | $662,000 | 20% | 1 |
| Sentinel Bio | $60,000 | 2% | 1 |
Reviews
Zvi Mowshowitz · nonprofits.zone · full post · Nov 26, 2025
Confidence: Medium, Funding needs: Medium
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It is certainly an excellent idea. Give everyone fast, free, cryptographically screening of potential DNA synthesis to ensure no one is trying to create something we do not want anyone to create. AI only makes this concern more urgent. I didn’t have time to investigate and confirm this is the real deal as I had other priorities even if it was, but certainly someone should be doing this.
There is also another related effort, Secure Bio, if you want to go all out. I would fund Secure DNA first.
To donate, contact them at contact@securedna.org.
Grants received
| Date ↓ | Funder | Via | Amount | Cause | Source | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 2026 | Dustin Moskovitz | Survival and Flourishing Fund | $662,000 | Biosecurity | sff | General support of SecureDNA Foundation |
| Sep 2026 | Jaan Tallinn | Survival and Flourishing Fund | $30,000 | Biosecurity | sff | General support of SecureDNA Foundation |
| Jan 2026 | Sentinel Bio | $60,000 | Biosecurity | sentinel_bio | We provided $60,000 to SecureDNA to support the development of a go-to-market and community outreach plan for increasing the adoption of DNA synthesis screening tools among nucleic acid providers worldwide. This grant is the first step in a potential three-phase effort; subsequent phases would execute and scale an outreach campaign based on results. We aim for this effort to support not only the freely available SecureDNA screening tool, but also other synthesis screening tools and services, as well as the broader biosecurity community. As screening policies advance globally, we expect demand for screening tools to grow significantly and view this as an opportunity to build the capacity to meet that need. We expect outreach and marketing efforts to build industry momentum that supports policymakers considering new regulations and accelerate adherence to best practices and regulatory requirements. | |
| Sep 2025 | Jaan Tallinn | Survival and Flourishing Fund | $1,500,000 | AI × bio | sff | General support of SecureDNA |
| Nov 21, 2024 | Jaan Tallinn | Founders Pledge | $108,000 | Other | jaan_online | General support |
| Oct 30, 2024 | Jaan Tallinn | Survival and Flourishing Fund | $128,000 | AI × bio | sff | General support of SecureDNA |
| Oct 17, 2024 | Jaan Tallinn | Survival and Flourishing Fund | $10,000 | Other | jaan_online | For general operating support |
| Oct 26, 2023 | Jaan Tallinn | Survival and Flourishing Fund | $835,000 | Biosecurity | sff | General Support |
| 2022 | Longview Philanthropy | — | Biosecurity | longview | Featured grant on longview.org (no amount published; added July 2022): secure, automatic screening of DNA synthesis orders for bioweapon sequences (MIT/Tsinghua collaboration). — Longview advised/recommended grant (biosecurity) |