Marc Benioff and San Francisco: A Legacy of Impact

When Marc Benioff co-founded Salesforce in a small San Francisco apartment in 1999, he promised himself that the company's success would be measured not just in revenue but in the positive impact it created locally, regionally, nationally, and globally. More than 25 years later, Salesforce has become the city's largest private employer, and that promise has grown into one of the country's most ambitious corporate and personal philanthropic legacies - one that is deeply rooted in San Francisco and the broader Bay Area.

The Blueprint for Giving: The 1-1-1 Model

From Salesforce's first day of operation, Marc Benioff built philanthropy into the company's business plan. The result was the novel 1-1-1 model, a framework committing 1% of the company's equity, 1% of its product, and 1% of employee time to community causes.

Since then, Salesforce has given just shy of $900 million in grants and 10.5 million employee volunteer hours to communities around the world. More than 64,000 nonprofits currently benefit from free or deeply discounted access to Salesforce technology, helping them raise funds, scale operations, and deliver services more effectively.

The impact extends beyond Salesforce. Today, the Pledge 1% initiative, inspired by Salesforce, has been adopted by more than 19,000 companies worldwide, igniting $3 billion in new philanthropy, and proving that the 1-1-1 model can be operationalized and replicated at scale.

A Billion-Dollar Impact on the Bay Area

As a fourth-generation San Franciscan, Benioff has a personal connection to the city that goes beyond business. Together with his wife, Lynne, he has invested more than $1 billion in the Bay Area's healthcare, education, housing, and public spaces.

In 2025 alone, the combined charitable contributions of the Benioff's and Salesforce to the Bay Area surpassed $1 billion.

Transforming healthcare at UCSF
At the heart of the Benioffs' Bay Area philanthropy is their partnership with UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals. This began with a $100 million gift in 2010 to fund the construction of the Mission Bay campus, followed by another $100 million in 2014 to build the Oakland campus. Researchers at these facilities have developed breakthrough cures in gene therapy, engineered significant advancements in treatment of pediatric cancer, and innovated new approaches toward responding to rare diseases. The hospitals also support programs that provide free care to those who can't afford it.

Since 2010, Salesforce has raised more than $130 million in unrestricted funds for UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals through Concert for Kids, a concert during the annual Dreamforce event.

In October 2025, the Benioff's announced another $100 million donation, this time dedicated to modernizing the UCSF Oakland hospital campus and expanding its capacity to serve children and families from all backgrounds with a new hospital building and additional critical care services. "Their generosity has improved our pediatric health system and made life better for children and families all across the Bay Area," said Dr. Nicholas Holmes, President of UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals.

The Benioffs' healthcare giving in the Bay Area extends beyond pediatrics. They have also funded research in prostate cancer, nephrology, and pediatric strokes at UCSF.

Addressing the root causes of homelessness
Homelessness has long been a challenge and concern in San Francisco, and Marc Benioff has been one of the foremost tech leaders funding efforts to provide care and services for people experiencing homelessness in the Bay Area. In 2019, the Benioffs made a founding gift of $30 million to establish the UCSF Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative (BHHI), a research group dedicated to studying the drivers of homelessness and providing data-driven, science-based policy recommendations to city and state leaders.

In 2023, BHHI produced The California Statewide Study of People Experiencing Homelessness, which became the largest representative study of homelessness in the U.S. since the 1990s. The initiative subsequently has informed homelessness policy in Hawaii, Washington, and Oregon and has become a nationally recognized resource for understanding and addressing the homelessness crisis. Benioff also championed San Francisco's Proposition C, a 2018 ballot measure that levied a tax on large businesses, including Salesforce, to fund homelessness services. His vocal and financial support helped secure its passage in the face of opposition from some of his fellow tech executives. According to data from the city of San Francisco, as of 2025, Prop C had funded and sustained more than 5,300 units of permanent housing, shelter, and mental health beds.

Investing in local parks
Marc and Lynne Benioff have given more than $35 million to support public spaces around the city. This includes donations for day-to-day operations at the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, beautifying parks in India Basin, and rehabilitating the China Beach bathhouse, as well as seed money to help create the Presidio Tunnel Tops park. The Benioffs gave additional funds for a student-inspired playground at Presidio Middle School, a project that comprised new basketball courts, a running track, an artificial turf field, and a dedicated courtyard.

Making a difference at the corporate level
Beyond the personal philanthropy of Marc and Lynne Benioff, Salesforce has donated millions of dollars to San Francisco nonprofits. These donations have included:

• $10 million over 10 years to expand services at the Golden State Community Foundation, including Hoops 4 Kids programs, community support for nonprofits, employee engagement, teacher recognition, and a teacher recruitment fair.
• $3 million over three years to the San Francisco Police Community Foundation to fund the city's public safety command center and drone center to address street crime, property theft, carjacking, and assaults.
• $3 million over three years to back the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
• $1.4 million to purchase a new fire truck to support the San Francisco Fire Department.
• $1 million to the San Francisco Downtown Development Corporation (SFDDC) to support recruitment efforts at the San Francisco Police Department.
• $1 million to the SFDDC to extend camera surveillance in downtown San Francisco, particularly in advance of the Super Bowl in February 2026 and before the FIFA World Cup games in the summer of 2026.
• $500,000 to the SFDDC to revitalize the First Thursday markets and night markets on Howard and Second streets near Salesforce Tower.
• $500,000 to support the Connect Bay Area ballot measure that aims to prevent public transit service cuts in San Francisco and four other Bay Area counties.
• $50,000 to bolster a Partnership for San Francisco business advisory board for San Francisco city initiatives.

The Future of Giving: AI and Education

As artificial intelligence reshapes nearly every industry, Marc Benioff is working to ensure public institutions aren't left behind. Salesforce's commitment to education spans decades, long before the rise of AI - investing $319 million in global learning and skilling initiatives to date, including more than $163 million for U.S. school districts and $144 million for Bay Area schools.

Today, much of Salesforce's education philanthropy is focused on preparing communities for an AI-driven future. In 2025, Salesforce directed $13 million in grants to support public schools, including the San Francisco and Oakland unified school districts, to expand STEM education and prepare teachers and students for an agentic AI era. An additional $17 million went to 18 nonprofits focused on advancing AI literacy and education. Through Salesforce's Agentforce 360 platform, these nonprofits now have access to AI tools that help them automate workflows, improve outreach, and amplify their impact.

"As a fourth-generation San Franciscan, I've always believed in our responsibility to invest deeply in our local community," said Benioff. "The San Francisco Bay Area is the AI capital of the world. With that leadership comes a responsibility not only to innovate but to secure the future of our community - ensuring that every child has access to world-class healthcare, safe and welcoming public parks and spaces, and a great education to flourish in the AI era."

FAQ

What is Marc Benioff's 1-1-1 philanthropy model?
Marc Benioff's 1-1-1 model is an integrated model that pledges 1% of Salesforce's equity, product, and employee time to community causes - a framework now adopted by more than 19,000 companies globally. In recent years, this model has grown into the Pledge 1% movement, with more than 19,000 companies joining and generating over $3 billion in new philanthropy worldwide.

How much has Marc Benioff donated to San Francisco?
Along with Salesforce, Marc and Lynne Benioff have contributed more than $1 billion to the Bay Area, with a focus on healthcare, education, and housing solutions.

What is the Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative?
The BHHI is a research group at UCSF established by a $30 million founding gift to study the root causes of homelessness and provide evidence-based policy recommendations.

What about support from Marc Benioff and Salesforce communities outside of San Francisco?
While most of Marc Benioff's personal philanthropy focuses on San Francisco, he also supports communities outside of the Bay Area. Benioff has made notable contributions in Hawaii, including a 282-acre land donation for affordable housing and $150 million to Hawaiian healthcare organizations. Both the Benioffs and Salesforce as a whole have also given money to support different communities all over the world.

How does Salesforce support nonprofits?
Through the 1-1-1 model, more than 64,000 nonprofits currently benefit from free or deeply discounted technology access to Salesforce technology.