Craigslist’s Founder Defends The Giving Pledge Amid Backlash Craig Newmark tells Forbes he thought it would be “funny” to publish an op-ed telling billionaires to “pony up some dough.” Craig Newmark tells Forbes he thought it would be “funny” to publish an op-ed telling billionaires to “pony up some dough.”, the initiative that publicly commits billionaires to give a majority of their wealth to charity. The project has lost momentum since it was founded in 2010 by Warren Buffett, Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates. The pace of new signatories has slowed to a trickle. Coinbase cofounder Brian Armstrong unprecedentedly withdrew his pledge, and Oracle cofounder Larry Ellison announced he was “amending” his to include for-profit work. Most recently, Palantir cofounder Peter Thiel made waves earlier this month when he that he’s been counseling billionaires not to participate and even encouraging people to remove their names.Newmark pushed back against criticism that the project funnels money to “woke” causes. “It’s bizarre to me that the pledge has now come under attack by some tech billionaires who say we’re giving our money away foolishly, or complain that the money is going to left-wing nonprofits,” he wrote. “The truth is that pledge signers can give their money to whichever charitable causes they want.” Left-leaning philanthropy has broadly been under fire during President Donald Trump’s second term. Many high-profile donors are retreating from causes related to diversity, equity and inclusion as the DEI movement falls out of favor with the political and corporate establishment; meanwhile, the Trump administration is threatening to crack down on progressive nonprofits it says are inciting a rise in left-wing extremism. But notably, plenty of Giving Pledge signatories are Trump backers, including Harold Hamm and Ken Langone. Newmark said in 2022 that he would donate the vast majority of his wealth to charity and has already given over $450 million. He joined the Giving Pledge in December.by email on Monday about his decision to speak out in favor of the pledge. With characteristic drollness, he said he had three reasons: “1. Kinda funny. 2. I’m acting to support bedrock principles that I learned from Sunday School and to defend our country. I don’t apologize for either. Maybe I can inspire a few big guys to pony up some dough.” And finally: “3. Funny.”last July, Newmark said the “mistake” high-net-worth philanthropists often make is “holding onto their funds too long, when the country needs help, like, yesterday.” When asked then why he hadn’t signed the pledge—something he hadn’t yet expressed any intention of doing—Newmark said he wasn’t sure it would be appropriate. He insisted that he’s never been a billionaire . He seemed to define that label in terms of his cash and liquid assets;pegged his net worth at $1.3 billion in 2020 based on his estimated 42% stake in Craigslist. Newmark also said he wasn’t sure his participation would mean much, since he had already committed to donating nearly all of his fortune and had given much of it away. “If I were to sign it on a symbolic basis, would that help encourage other people with too much money to give away a lot of it?” Newmark asked. “Seriously, that’s my question.” By the end of the interview, he seemed more enthusiastic about the prospect. “How about this—the ‘Forbes Craig Challenge.’ I’ll be very happy to sign the Giving Pledge, but Warren has to get a hold of me,” he joked. “Symbolic gestures matter, and this is kind of funny. Warren, call me!” Five months later, Newmark announced that he had signed the pledge. His name was one of 14 new additions to the list in 2025. In comparison, 57 people signed in its first year. It’s certainly too early to sound the pledge’s death knell. Though it’s being berated in some elite circles—and though at least a couple of participants have walked back their pledges—260 signatories remain. Newmark insists he hasn’t sensed a general disenchantment among those involved. “I’ve seen no evidence of regret from signers,” he says. “Politics seems to be driving the few critics out there. I do my best to ignore that.”