Some of the biggest names in philanthropy today are women. In fact, the biggest megadonor of 2025 was MacKenzie Scott, the famed novelist and philanthropist (and ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos) whose $7 billion in donations accounted for more than one-third of America’s $19.2 billion in megagifts last year. Her total giving stands at more than $26 billion.
Then there’s Melinda French Gates, who stepped away from the Gates Foundation to create her own philanthropy, Pivotal Ventures, which has pledged $2 billion to women and families since 2019. French Gates was also one of the founders of the Giving Pledge, which encourages billionaires to give away the majority of their net worth during their lifetimes. (Although she’s recently called out fellow billionaires for not following through.)
Finally, Lauren Sánchez Bezos has more recently entered the spotlight, having taken on more philanthropic work and responsibility since marrying Bezos in 2025. She leads the charge behind the $10 billion Bezos Earth Fund, and has been the face of the couple’s other large philanthropic work during the past few years.
Each of these three women have the power, influence, and funds to make major change in the world possible. But they each have very different approaches in making that happen.
