Gates Medical Research Institute

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
821808476
IRS 990 coverage
2017–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Cambridge, MA, USA
Phone
(857) 702-2108
Rating
66
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Research Institutes and/or Public Policy Analysis

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$132,834,027
Expenses
$341,131,798
Assets
$613,229,640
Liabilities
$66,523,963

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

17 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • PATRICE MATCHABA (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER (START 6/24))
  • EMILIO EMINI (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER (END 6/24))

Highest reported compensation

  • TREVOR MUNDEL (DIRECTOR, BOARD CHAIR): $1,466,448 total reported compensation
  • CAROLYN AINSLIE (DIRECTOR): $1,109,332 total reported compensation
  • MICHAEL DUNNE (CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER (END 12/24)): $910,041 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The Gates Medical Research Institute is a non-profit organization dedicated to the discovery, development and effective use of novel biomedical interventions addressing substantial global health concerns, for which investment incentives are limited.

What it reported doing in 2024

Gates medical research institute ("gates mri") is aligned with the purpose of the gates foundation and guided by the vision that every person deserves the opportunity to lead a healthy and productive life. The gates mri is dedicated to the research, development, and effective use of novel biomedical interventions addressing substantial global health concerns for which the required development investment by traditional biopharmaceutical organizations is lacking. The gates mri works with collaborating partners and organizations, coordinating and driving biopharmaceutical research and development activities, including pre-clinical development and clinical development. In addition to the tuberculosis work noted in 4(b) the mri focuses on programs aimed at reducing the burden of malaria, diarrheal diseases, and maternal, newborn, and child illnesses worldwide.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 68% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and program spending has grown recently. A relatively small share of voting board members are independent and the filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 87
  • Transparency & Controls: 53
  • Accountability: 42
  • Sustainability: 33
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 94.8%; rating input score 95
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 90.9%; rating input score 91; 6th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Pass
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Grant itemization coverage: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 0%; rating input score 0; 4th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -156.8%; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.8; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.11; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 2.4%; rating input score 48; 48th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 37% per year; rating input score 100; 97th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 21.5% per year; rating input score 100; 95th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 18% per year; rating input score 100; 91st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 2 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 94.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 0 of 5 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $323.3M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $1.5M · 17 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $130.5M reported
  • Consistency: 29 of 30 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 7 filing years from 2017 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 12 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 16 filed related-organization links
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 0/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 59/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Schedule R controlled transactions itemized did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 48/100.