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18. Alfred Mann

Medical devices, aerospace

2004-08 Giving* $600 million

The founder of 11 biomedical companies, Mann plans to parlay his wealth into creating stellar biomedical research institutes, the first of which opened at the University of Southern California with an endowment of more than $100 million. In 2007 the Mann Institute for Research & Development in Biomedicine opened after Mann pledged $100 million to the school on 2006. Also last year, his foundation gave $100 million to endow a similar research center at Purdue University. The institutes, he hopes, will devise innovative technologies to help those suffering from debilitating medical impairments.

For more, visit the Alfred Mann Foundation topic on Business Exchange.

*Based on public records and interviews with donors
Data: BusinessWeek, The Chronicle of Philanthropy and the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University

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