Laura Arrillaga-Andreessen

Laura Arrillaga-Andreessen is a social entrepreneur, academic, author, and philanthropic leader. She is the founder of multiple Silicon Valley organizations, including Silicon Valley Social Ventures (Chairman Emeritus), Stanford Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society (former Chairman), Andreessen Philanthropy Institute––formerly laaf.org––(President), Andreessen Philanthropies (President), and Guild Theatre (Co-founder). She is currently in stealth mode, creating two new operating foundations (in her copious free time). She has taught courses on philanthropy and women in leadership at Stanford Graduate School of Business since 2000 and authored the New York Times bestselling book, Giving 2.0: Transform Your Giving and Our World (2011). She is co-president of the Arrillaga Foundation and on the board of the Robin Hood Education + Technology Fund.

Since 2000, Laura has created and taught Stanford Graduate School of Business’s (GSB) first courses on Strategic Philanthropy; Individual Philanthropy; Philanthropy, Inclusivity and Leadership; and Philanthropic Institutions and Justice. Laura has also developed and taught Power of You: Women in Leadership to prepare students to navigate the challenges women leaders face in the workplace and to advance generosity and impact through her “meaningful leadership” model. In addition, she has created courses at Stanford University on design thinking for impact, technology’s disruption of the social sector, and grantmaking.

Laura is the Founder, Chairman Emeritus (2008–present) and former executive director (1998–2008) of Silicon Valley Social Ventures (SV2), a venture philanthropy fund of over 200 individuals who leverage their financial, intellectual, and human capital to fund and scale innovative nonprofits. To date, SV2 has funded over 200 nonprofits and social enterprises in the Bay Area, providing nearly $10 million in funding. She is a former trustee of the National Gallery of Art, Silicon Valley Community Foundation, Hoover Institution, Castilleja School, Menlo School, Eastside Preparatory School, and San Francisco Art Institute.

Laura was the Founder and Board Chairman (2006–2024) of Stanford Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society (PACS), a global research center committed to exploring ideas and strategies for the social change sector and publisher of the award-winning Stanford Social Innovation Review (SSIR). Laura’s award-winning book, Giving 2.0, empowers people of all backgrounds, ages, and passions to give their time, money, networks, and expertise with greater impact. Laura is a contributing author to Frontiers in Social Innovation (Malhotra 2022) and has written for The Washington Post, Worth Magazine, T Magazine by The New York Times, Huffington Post, and SSIR.

Laura has been profiled in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Barron’s, Forbes, The Chronicle of Philanthropy, and Vogue. She has been featured on Charlie Rose, CNN with Erin Burnett, MSNBC, and CNBC Power Lunch. In addition to receiving numerous California philanthropy awards, Laura was a 2005 Henry Crown Fellow of the Aspen Institute; received the 2005 President’s Volunteer Service Award from the Points of Light Foundation; was honored with the World Affairs Council’s Global Philanthropy Forum 2011 Global Citizen Award; and was awarded the 2014 Commonwealth Club Distinguished Citizen Award.

Laura holds an MBA from Stanford GSB, an MA in Education, and both a BA and MA in Art History, all from Stanford University.