Jeffrey Epstein VI Foundation

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Jeffrey Epstein VI Foundation
J. Epstein Virgin Islands Foundation, Inc.
Formation2000; 26 years ago (2000)
FounderJeffrey Epstein
Dissolved2019; 7 years ago (2019)
TypePhilanthropy
66-0585379
Legal statusDefunct Private Foundation
PurposeFunding science and education, philanthropy
Professional title
Enhanced Education
Headquarters6100 Red Hook Quarter, Suite B-3
Location
Vice President
Darren Indyke
Websitejeffreyepsteinfoundation.com (archived)
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The Jeffrey Epstein VI Foundation was[3] a private foundation established in 2000 by New York convicted sex offender and disgraced financier[4] Jeffrey Epstein.[5] The foundation sometimes went by the name Enhanced Education,[6] but was officially registered as J. Epstein VI Foundation. The "VI" stood for Virgin Islands, as the foundation was based on the Epstein-owned Little Saint James within the archipelago.

Activity

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Darren Indyke served as the vice president,[6] and Erika Kellerhals served as the secretary, treasurer, and trustee.[6] The foundation's board included Cecile de Jongh, wife of the former governor of the United States Virgin Islands, John de Jongh.[citation needed]

In 2003, the foundation pledged $30 million to Harvard University[7] to establish the Program for Evolutionary Dynamics, directed by Martin Nowak, a professor of mathematics and biology.[8] The university received only $6.5 million of this pledge.[9] The foundation also supported NEURO.tv, a video series featuring experts discussing topics related to the brain,[10] and the OpenCog project, an open-source software initiative for Artificial intelligence.[11][12][13] The foundation held scientific conferences around topics including gravity, global threats to the Earth, and language.[14]

From 2005 until 2007, the foundation funded the work of geneticist George Church for "cutting edge science & education".[15][16] In 2008, the foundation lost its tax-exempt status and later investigation by The New York Times found that Epstein that had grossly overexaggerated how much the foundation had actually donated to causes.[17]

As a representative of the foundation, Epstein sat on the Mind, Brain and Behavior Advisory Committee at Harvard University, and was involved in the Santa Fe Institute, the Theoretical Biology Initiative at the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton, and the Quantum Gravity Program at the University of Pennsylvania.[18] Epstein also served on the Trilateral Commission and the Council on Foreign Relations.[7]

In January 2015, Eric Schneiderman contacted Darren Indyke, the foundation's vice president, to ask why the foundation had not registered with the New York Charities Bureau. The bureau required any charity based outside of New York to register and file annual reports. Indyke responded, claiming that the foundation did not operate within New York, and that any references to them running a New York office were added to the foundation's website by mistake.[19] Later in 2015, the foundation registered with the New York Charities Bureau.[6]

Later investigation

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2009 mugshot of Epstein, the founder of the Jeffrey Epstein VI Foundation

Following Epstein's 2019 arrest, press began investigating his charities to validate claims of donations and to track who received them.[20][17] The last tax filing on record for the foundation was in 2002[20], reporting assets valued at $13,432,769[21].

NBC News revealed that Epstein claimed to have donated to the Metropolitan Museum of Art through the foundation between 2010 and 2012, but the Museum claimed they had not received any major donations from Epstein or his foundation.[20] The New York Times found that the foundation had falsely claimed to have underwritten the Tribeca Festival. Instead, the foundation had donated $28,000 to a related organization that offered grants and educational support to students.[17]

In July 2014, the foundation claimed it had donated to the MIT Media Lab, to fund a program teaching toddlers how to code.[22] They also claimed to fund the restoration of five Mark Rothko murals through the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.[23] A spokesperson from the lab dismissed both claims as "completely incorrect."[23]

References

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  1. ^ "Jeffrey Epstein VI Foundation". GuideStar/Candid. Archived from the original on 2025-12-10. Retrieved 2025-12-20.
  2. ^ "Jeffrey Epstein's Charity: An Image Boost Built on Deception". Archived from the original on 2025-10-31. Retrieved 2025-12-20.
  3. ^ Stewart, James B.; Goldstein, Matthew; Silver-Greenberg, Jessica (31 July 2019). "Jeffrey Epstein Hoped to Seed Human Race With His DNA". New York Times. Archived from the original on 31 July 2019. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
  4. ^ Dargan, Michele (November 21, 2011). "Jeffrey Epstein must register as NY's highest level sex offender". Palm Beach Daily News. Archived from the original on July 11, 2019.
  5. ^ "The Edge Organization: Profile Page". Archived from the original on 2014-04-13. Retrieved 2013-07-24.
  6. ^ a b c d Reporter, Kate Briquelet Senior (2019-04-16). "REVEALED: We Found Billionaire Pedophile Jeffrey Epstein's Secret Charity". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on 2025-12-24. Retrieved 2026-02-03.
  7. ^ a b The Harvard Crimson, June 5, 2003, "People in the News: Jeffrey E. Epstein" [1] Archived 2016-12-01 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ "Program for Evolutionary Dynamics". www.ped.fas.harvard.edu. Archived from the original on 2021-03-24. Retrieved 2013-07-24.
  9. ^ "Harvard To Keep Epstein Gift | News | The Harvard Crimson". www.thecrimson.com. Archived from the original on 2007-10-27. Retrieved 2019-07-09.
  10. ^ "NEURO.tv Episodes - YouTube". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2019-08-31. Retrieved 2019-07-09.
  11. ^ "Jeffrey Epstein backs OpenCog Artificial Intelligence Research". h+ Media. 2013-11-14. Archived from the original on 2019-07-09. Retrieved 2019-07-09.
  12. ^ "About". OpenCog Foundation. 2010-04-27. Archived from the original on 2019-07-09. Retrieved 2019-07-09.
  13. ^ Hendricks, Drew. "Science Funder Jeffrey Epstein Launches Radical Emotional Software For The Gaming Industry". Forbes. Archived from the original on 2015-01-03. Retrieved 2019-07-09.
  14. ^ National Review Online, July 10, 2013, "Evolution at Harvard: How Financier Jeffrey Epstein Changed the Course of Evolutionary Studies at Harvard University" [2] Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine
  15. ^ Begley, Sharon (2019-08-05). "Citing 'nerd tunnel vision,' biologist George Church apologizes for contacts with Jeffrey Epstein". STAT. Archived from the original on 2022-01-26. Retrieved 2023-01-14.
  16. ^ Church, George (2022-04-19). "Tech transfer - Church Lab". Harvard Molecular Technologies. Archived from the original on 2023-01-13. Retrieved 2023-01-14.
  17. ^ a b c Eder, Steve; Goldstein, Matthew (26 November 2019). "Jeffrey Epstein's Charity: An Image Boost Built on Deception". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 12 December 2024. Retrieved 3 February 2026.
  18. ^ "Jeffrey Epstein Science website profile". Archived from the original on 2014-04-07.
  19. ^ Ingram, David. "Exclusive: New York attorney general seeks information on financier Epstein's philanthropy". U.S. Archived from the original on 2023-10-13. Retrieved 2026-02-03.
  20. ^ a b c "Jeffrey Epstein appears to have exaggerated his donations to charity". NBC News. 2019-07-11. Retrieved 2026-02-03.
  21. ^ "ProPublica Nonproflt Explorer records for EIN 66-0585379". ProPublica. Retrieved 2026-02-09.}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  22. ^ "MIT Financier, Jeffrey Epstein, Helps Launch Revolutionary Computer Coding for Toddlers". Jewish Business News. Archived from the original on 2023-01-10. Retrieved 2026-02-03.}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  23. ^ a b Ingram, David. "Exclusive: Some charities to refuse money from U.S. financier accused in sex case". U.S. Archived from the original on 2023-10-05. Retrieved 2026-02-03.
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