John Arnold

John Arnold is co-founder and co-chair of Arnold Ventures, a philanthropy that supports research to understand the root causes of America’s most persistent and pressing problems, as well as evidence-based solutions to address them. By focusing on systemic change and bipartisan policy reforms, AV works to improve the lives of American families, strengthen communities, and promote economic opportunity.

John and his wife, Laura, first launched a charitable foundation in 2008. Their philanthropic focus has since expanded, and today, Arnold Ventures concentrates on areas such as education, criminal justice, health, infrastructure, and public finance, advocating for bipartisan policy reforms that will lead to lasting, scalable change. With an extensive, 15+-year history, Arnold Ventures has been one of the foremost results-oriented philanthropies in the United States. 

In addition to his work at Arnold Ventures, John is co-founder and chairman of Grid United, a developer of interregional, high-voltage transmission projects with a mission to make America’s power grid more reliable, resilient, and efficient. He serves on the boards of Meta, Vanderbilt University, Columbia Center on Global Energy Policy, and The City Fund. He also chairs the Houston 2026 FIFA World Cup Host Committee.

John grew up in Dallas, Texas, and earned his bachelor’s degree from Vanderbilt University. He and Laura have three children and live in Houston.