“Non-dilutive funding for free, open-source, non-commercial work that strengthens Ethereum itself, now routed through a curated Wishlist and RFPs instead of open-ended proposals.”
ESP funds open-source infrastructure, tooling, research and education, not commercial products. A for-profit company can apply, but the funded deliverable itself must be free and open source. Sector tags reflect Wishlist and RFP themes; 2026 priorities skew toward privacy and cryptography.
The Ethereum Foundation's Ecosystem Support Program funds "free, open-source, non-commercial" work that strengthens Ethereum itself: client software, research, developer tooling, standards work, security, education and community infrastructure. It is the deepest-pocketed non-dilutive program in this directory by total dollars, having distributed $61.1M across 498 projects in 2023 and $44.4M across 677 projects in 2024, on top of $30.0M across 397 projects in 2022 and $26.9M across 136 projects in 2021.
The program changed shape in a way that matters for anyone applying today. Open, free-form applications were paused in late August 2025 following an internal Ethereum Foundation reorganisation. ESP relaunched with a targeted model built around two channels: a Wishlist, where EF teams publish specific gaps they want solved and founders propose solutions against them, and RFPs, which carry defined deliverables and timelines set by the Foundation. A for-profit company can still apply, but the deliverable that gets funded must itself be free and open source, non-commercial in the sense that it isn't your product's paywall, and useful to the wider Ethereum ecosystem rather than a single application.
ESP also runs Office Hours, where builders can get project feedback and guidance on fit before committing to a full application. Given that the Wishlist and RFP model narrows what gets funded, Office Hours is the practical first step for anyone unsure whether their work has a lane.
Key stats:
| Person or team | Role | Where to find them |
|---|---|---|
| Ethereum Foundation ESP team | Curates the Wishlist, defines RFPs, reviews applications | esp.ethereum.foundation |
| ESP Office Hours hosts | Give pre-application feedback on fit | esp.ethereum.foundation |
ESP does not publish individual reviewer or program-manager names on its public pages, and we have not guessed.