Open Medicine Foundation

The Open Medicine Foundation (OMF) is a United States-based nonprofit organization that funds and coordinates biomedical research into myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), fibromyalgia, post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome, and long COVID. Its work is directed at illnesses that have historically received limited research funding, inconsistent clinical recognition, and relatively few validated diagnostic or treatment options. OMF was established in 2012 by Linda Tannenbaum after her daughter developed ME/CFS in 2006. Tannenbaum's experience with the illness shaped the foundation's emphasis on patient and family participation, collaborative science, and the need for substantially greater public and governmental investment in research. The organization presents itself less as a conventional medical provider than as a philanthropic research platform: it raises funds, supports scientific teams, facilitates collaboration among investigators, and communicates research findings to affected communities. A central feature of OMF's model is its support for collaborative research centers. The foundation has funded centers and research partnerships associated with institutions including Stanford University, Harvard University, and the University of Montreal, as well as groups in Australia and Sweden. The exact composition of these collaborations can change over time, but the broad objective is to connect laboratory researchers, clinicians, data scientists, and patient communities across countries. Much of the foundation's funding has come from patients and families who contribute to research because conventional funding mechanisms have not adequately addressed these diseases. The scientific programs supported by OMF have covered a wide range of biological questions. Reported areas of investigation include immune-cell and immunological-gene activity, muscle and other tissue biology, familial patterns among patients, mitochondrial function, altered metabolism, blood-cell density and deformability, and whole-genome analysis of people with severe ME/CFS. The organization has also supported or publicized efforts to develop more objective diagnostic tools, including research involving a nanoneedle-based blood test. Longer-term plans have included multicenter clinical trials of potential treatments, although research programs and trial plans should not be interpreted as proof that an intervention is effective. In 2018, the foundation received a reported donation of approximately $5 million in Bitcoin from the anonymous Pineapple Fund. The contribution was significant in the context of ME/CFS research philanthropy and increased OMF's ability to support laboratory and collaborative projects. Financial details beyond this reported donation are not included here because they require separately verified source and time-period information. OMF also operates infrastructure intended to strengthen research participation and medical education. Its StudyME patient registry is designed to help researchers identify and recruit potential study participants. Together with the Bateman Horne Center, the foundation maintains the Medical Education Resource Center, an online resource intended to help clinicians understand the diagnosis and management of ME/CFS and other complex chronic illnesses. The foundation's public leadership includes Linda Tannenbaum as chief executive officer and president, and geneticist Ron Davis as chair of its scientific advisory board. Overall, OMF's positioning combines disease-focused philanthropy, international research coordination, patient-centered fundraising, and translation of emerging biomedical knowledge for clinicians and patients. It is not an artificial-intelligence platform or a commercial healthcare brand; its core identity is that of a nonprofit research-funding and education organization.

The Open Medicine Foundation was founded in 2012 by Linda Tannenbaum, whose daughter had become ill with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome in 2006. Tannenbaum's experience led her to create an organization focused on improving the scientific understanding of ME/CFS and increasing resources available for research. The foundation emerged in a context in which patients and advocates argued that ME/CFS had been under-recognized by parts of the medical system and had received insufficient government and institutional research support. OMF developed as a philanthropic funding and coordination organization rather than as a commercial healthcare company. Its approach has been to raise donations, particularly from patients and families, and direct them toward collaborative biomedical programs. The foundation has supported research centers and partnerships linked to Stanford University, Harvard University, the University of Montreal, and research groups in Australia and Sweden. This international structure is intended to reduce fragmentation and encourage researchers working on different biological aspects of ME/CFS to share methods, data, and findings. The research portfolio described by the foundation and referenced in public accounts has included studies of T-cell behavior and immunological genes, muscle and other tissues, families affected by ME/CFS, mitochondrial activity, altered metabolism, and the physical properties of blood cells. One line of work examined whether a nanoneedle-based technology could help distinguish blood from people with ME/CFS from healthy controls. Other projects included whole-genome mapping of a group of patients with severe ME/CFS. These programs reflect OMF's emphasis on identifying measurable biological abnormalities and developing more objective approaches to diagnosis. A notable funding event occurred in 2018, when OMF received a reported Bitcoin donation of about $5 million from the anonymous Pineapple Fund. The gift became one of the foundation's most visible fundraising milestones and illustrated the role of private philanthropy in supporting research in a field that advocates consider underfunded. The foundation has also discussed plans for multicenter trials of possible treatments, although plans, laboratory findings, and research hypotheses are distinct from demonstrated clinical efficacy. Beyond direct research funding, OMF has built supporting infrastructure. Its StudyME registry helps investigators find potential participants for research, while the Medical Education Resource Center, maintained with the Bateman Horne Center, provides educational material for clinicians dealing with ME/CFS and related complex chronic illnesses. These activities extend the foundation's role from grantmaker to research-network builder and medical-information provider. OMF's disease scope has included ME/CFS, fibromyalgia, post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome, and long COVID. The inclusion of long COVID reflects the foundation's interest in overlapping mechanisms and persistent post-infectious illness, while its established work remains strongly associated with ME/CFS. Linda Tannenbaum is identified as the organization's chief executive officer and president. Geneticist Ron Davis has led its scientific advisory board. The foundation remains an active nonprofit research organization, but the available reference material does not establish a complete chronology of every program, staff appointment, or institutional partnership.

1. 2018Pineapple Fund makes a major Bitcoin donation

   An anonymous donor associated with the Pineapple Fund gives OMF approximately $5 million in Bitcoin.

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2. 2012Open Medicine Foundation is founded

   Linda Tannenbaum establishes OMF as a nonprofit organization focused on biomedical research into ME/CFS and related chronic illnesses.

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3. 2006Linda Tannenbaum's daughter develops ME/CFS

   Tannenbaum's family experience with ME/CFS later became the impetus for establishing the Open Medicine Foundation.

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4. International collaborative research network develops

   OMF supports collaborative centers and research groups connected with institutions in North America, Australia, and Sweden.

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A patient-centered medical research foundation that accelerates collaborative, international investigation of ME/CFS and related poorly understood chronic illnesses.

• Collaborative Research CentersMedical research funding

  OMF funds and coordinates collaborative biomedical research centers investigating ME/CFS and related illnesses. Reported work has involved Stanford, Harvard, the University of Montreal, and research locations in Australia and Sweden. The centers bring together laboratory scientists, clinicians, and disease specialists to study immune, genetic, metabolic, mitochondrial, tissue, and blood-related mechanisms.

• StudyMEPatient registry

  StudyME is a patient registry maintained by OMF to help researchers identify potential participants for ME/CFS and related-disease studies. It functions as research infrastructure rather than a treatment product, supporting recruitment and connection between affected communities and scientific projects.

• Medical Education Resource CenterMedical education

  Maintained with the Bateman Horne Center, the Medical Education Resource Center provides educational material intended to help healthcare professionals understand the diagnosis and management of ME/CFS and other complex chronic illnesses.

• 2018Pineapple Fund Bitcoin fundraising support

  International

  OMF received a reported donation of approximately $5 million in Bitcoin from the anonymous Pineapple Fund. The contribution supported the foundation's broader research-funding mission in ME/CFS and related illnesses.

  Outcome. The donation became a major publicly reported funding milestone for the organization.

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• Adopt a collaborative, patient-funded research modelStrategy

  ME/CFS and related conditions have historically faced limited research funding and inconsistent medical recognition. OMF developed a model centered on donations from patients and families and collaboration among research institutions.

  What changed. The foundation funds multi-institution research centers, supports patient participation through StudyME, and communicates scientific and medical information to clinicians and affected communities.

  Aftermath. The model expanded OMF's research network across North America, Australia, and Sweden, although the reference material does not provide a complete assessment of scientific or clinical outcomes.

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• Broaden research relevance to related post-infectious illnessesStrategy

  OMF's research scope includes conditions that may share biological or clinical features with ME/CFS, including fibromyalgia, post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome, and long COVID.

  What changed. The foundation supports or funds investigations across these disease areas while retaining ME/CFS as a central focus.

  Aftermath. The broader scope positions OMF to participate in research discussions about complex chronic and post-infectious illness, but the available source does not document a separate formal rebranding or restructuring.

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• 2018Open Medicine Foundation receives major Bitcoin donation from Pineapple Fund

  The foundation received a reported donation of approximately $5 million in Bitcoin from the anonymous Pineapple Fund, providing substantial philanthropic support for research into ME/CFS and related illnesses.

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• Open Medicine Foundation expands collaborative research activity

  The foundation supports collaborative research centers and projects involving institutions in the United States, Canada, Australia, and Sweden, with work spanning immunology, genetics, metabolism, mitochondrial function, blood-cell biology, and diagnostic development.

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• StudyME registry supports recruitment for ME/CFS research

  OMF maintains a patient registry intended to help researchers locate and recruit people for studies involving ME/CFS and related complex chronic conditions.

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1. Open Medicine Foundation
2. Open Medicine Foundation official website