Conquering Alzheimer’s Through Drug Discovery. Founded in 1998 by Leonard A. Lauder and Ronald S. Lauder, the Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation (ADDF) was one of the first charities to adopt the venture philanthropy model. Our mission is to rapidly accelerate the discovery of drugs to prevent and treat Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. We are the only charity focused solely on supporting new drugs for Alzheimer’s. The ADDF’s in-house team of six expert neuroscientists identifies and funds the most promising research initiatives around the world. They work to ensure that every viable option to prevent or treat Alzheimer’s is explored, and that the pipeline of drugs in development for Alzheimer’s is both diverse and robust. Since 1998, we have awarded over $100 million to fund more than 550 Alzheimer’s drug discovery programs and clinical trials in 18 countries. Today, 20% of all treatments for Alzheimer’s in clinical trials have received support from the ADDF.