2026-01-17 01:47:PM <br/> Tags: #people #AmericanJewry #Donor #Harvard #Finance ![[image-218.png|250x375]] # Jonathon Jacobson (~1962-) - Jonathan Jacobson is an American Jewish hedge fund manager and financier. - Jacobson is a major donor to Jewish causes through his One8 Foundation. #### Biography and Career - Jacobson earned a bachelor's degree in economics from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania before getting an M.B.A from Harvard Business School.[^1] - Early on, Jacobson worked as an options trader at Merrill Lynch and [[Lehman Brothers]]. - In 1990, Jacobson joined the Harvard Management Company which manages Harvard's endowment money. - In 1998, Jacobson co-founded a hedge fund called Highfields Capital Management with his Jewish business partner Richard Grubman. - Highfields was based in Boston. - About one third of Highfields' initial capital of $1.5 billion came from Harvard's endowment. - By 2010, Highfields had ~$10 billion in assets under management (AUM). - Highfields Capital Management shut down in 2018 after a period of poor returns following decades of excellent returns.[^2] - Highfields' outside investor money (around $10 out of $12 billion) was returned to investors and the remaining capital served as the basis for Jacobson's family investment firm. --- - HighSage invests in a limited number of "competitively advantaged companies."[^9] - Among these companies is IAC, Inc., a media and internet holding company. - IAC is headed by Barry Diller, the Jewish co-founder of [[Fox News]] with [[Rupert Murdoch]]. - A quote from a 2025 interview with the American Jewish Historical Society: "Mr. Diller feels that his Jewish identity is mostly tribal, as opposed to religious or spiritual. He finds that he has an innate connection, or affinity, with other Jewish people."[^6] *Proving this statement is a core function of this project. It becomes very easy when they print it themselves.* - Among HighSage's "limited" investment portfolio are a number of Israeli tech companies. - Optibus - AI powered public transit company. - Snyk - Israeli cybersecurity company. - Oddity Tech - AI Cosmetics advertising company based in NY, but strongly connected to Tel Aviv. [^16] - Oddity is the parent company of Il Makiage. - In 2019, Il Makiage acquired Israeli tech start-up NeoWize founded by Israeli intelligence veterans-specifically of [[Unit 8200]], the elite Israeli cyberwarfare and cyber-espionage unit.[^14][^15] - Lendbuzz - Israeli fintech company that provides car loans to people with uncertain credit.[^17] #### Jacobson and Organized Jewry - Jacobson is a former chair of the International Board of Trustees of Israel’s [[Institute for National Security Studies]].[^12] - The INSS is known as Israel's top national security think tank.[^11] - Jacobson formerly served on the investment committee of the [[Weizmann Institute]]'s Global Endowment Management Trust.[^12] *The Weizmann Institute is a top Israeli university.* - Jacobson is among the largest recent donors to [[AIPAC]], the centerpiece of the American Jewish lobby. [^3][^4][^5] - Jacobson donated $1 million to AIPAC's super PAC - United Democracy Project - in 2022 under Highfields Capital Management.[^4] - In 2024 he contributed $4.575 million under HighSage Ventures. *Jacobson was the top donor to AIPAC's super PAC in 2024.*[^5] - After [[October 7th]] and the ensuring opposition to the [[Gaza War]] on American college campuses by largely left wing pro-Palestine demonstrators, Jacobson joined the choir of wealthy Jewish figures who pulled their financial support from select universities in order to execute a nationwide regime change of university leadership in favor of Israel.[^7] - Rowan pulled his funding from UPenn, instead sending a one dollar protest donation and an open letter explaining his position.[^7] - The idea for Jewish donors to send $1 protest donations came from [[Marc Rowan]] of [[Apollo Global Management]].[^8][^7] *In his open letter, Jacobson refers to Rowan multiple times.* - In 2006, Jacobson launched the One8 Foundation - Jacobson's personal philanthropic vehicle which focuses on "education and building vibrant Jewish communities while supporting Israel and reducing antisemitism."[^10] - Notable grants issued by the One8 Foundation according to their 2024 form 990 tax filings:[^13] | Grant Recipient | Amount | Organization Summary | | ------------------------------------------------------------- | ---------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | [[A Wider Bridge]] | $250,000 | LGBT Jews fighting antisemitism | | America-Israel Friendship League | $45,000 | Brings Americans to Israel and vice versa, enforces U.S.-Israel alliance | | American Israel Education Foundation | $3,000,000 | Education arm of [[AIPAC]] | | [[American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC)]] | $10,000 | Large Jewish fundraising organization | | [[ADL]] | $350,000 | Aggressive antisemitism hunting and eradication organization | | Athletes for Israel | $50,000 | Antisemitism fighting organization that brings collegiate and professional athletes on curated trips to Israel | | [[Bend the Arc]] | $75,000 | Left wing Jewish organization that pushes far left progressive domestic politics in the United States | | [[Birthright Israel]] | $100,000 | Free trips to Israel for young Jews | | [[Facing History and Ourselves]] | $100,000 | Left wing anti-white education nonprofit founded by a Jewish woman | | [[Foundation for Defense of Democracies]] | $334,000 | Hawkish American think tank | | [[Harold Grinspoon Foundation]] | $200,000 | Foundation of Jewish philanthropist [[Harold Grinspoon]] | | [[Hillel International]] | $1,320,000 | Largest Jewish campus organization | | Honeymoon Israel | $2,200,000 | Israeli propaganda trips and education for couples | | Israel Institute | $50,000 | Nonprofit that pushes pro-Israel curriculum in American and global universities | | [[Israel on Campus Coalition (ICC)]] | $300,000 | Pro-Israel American watchdog group on college campuses that works with the Israeli government | | [[Israeli-American Council]] | $50,000 | Pro-Israel advocacy and lobbying organization for Israeli citizens in the United States. *Not registered as a foreign agent by the way.* | | [[Jewish Agency]] - North American Council | $500,000 | Israeli national institution | | [[Moishe House]] | $686,000 | Network of houses around the globe available to young Jews with heavily subsidized rent | | [[NAACP]] | $10,000 | Pro-black and minority organization | | National Black Empowerment Council | $300,000 | Pro-black organization with a pro-Israel twist | | Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts | $26,800 | Planned Parenthood services and advocacy in Massachusetts i.e., execution of the unborn. | | Rian Immigrant Center | $75,000 | Facilitates non-white mass legal and illegal immigration "from over 120 countries" into the United States | | Steppingstone Foundation | $150,000 | Facilitates non-white entry to higher education through the term "underserved youth" *Scroll through the [Steppingstone website](https://www.steppingstone.org/) to see for yourself.* | | [[Jewish Institute for National Security of America (JINSA)]] | $300,000 | Pro-Israel [[Neoconservatism\|Neoconservative]] Jewish think tank | | [[Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA)]] | $2,675,000 | JFNA is a federated fundraising network with chapters in most major cities in North America | | Various [[JCC Association of North America]] | | Jewish community centers | | [[UJA-Federation of New York]] | $30,000 | Largest and most influential of the [[Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA)]] | | [[United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM)]] | $100,000 | Holocaust museum and political tool of holocaust enforement | | [[Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP)]] | $50,000 | Pro-Israel think tank | | [[Union for Reform Judaism (URJ)]] | $50,000 | *This grant is from 2022* | #### References [^1]: “Highfields Capital Management,” _Wikipedia_, [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highfields_Capital_Management](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highfields_Capital_Management). [^2]: Svea Herbst-Bayliss, “Hedge Fund Highfields to Shut Down, Founder Says in Client Letter,” _Reuters_, October 3, 2018, [https://www.reuters.com/article/markets/hedge-fund-highfields-to-shut-down-founder-says-in-client-letter-idUSL2N1WJ1V0/](https://www.reuters.com/article/markets/hedge-fund-highfields-to-shut-down-founder-says-in-client-letter-idUSL2N1WJ1V0/). [^3]: Track AIPAC, _AIPAC’s Top Donors_, [https://www.trackaipac.com/donors](https://www.trackaipac.com/donors). [^4]: OpenSecrets, _Outside Spending Detail 2022: Committee C00799031 Donors_, [https://www.opensecrets.org/outside-spending/detail/2022?cmte=C00799031&tab=donors](https://www.opensecrets.org/outside-spending/detail/2022?cmte=C00799031&tab=donors). [^5]: OpenSecrets, _Outside Spending Detail 2024: Committee C00799031 Donors_, [https://www.opensecrets.org/outside-spending/detail/2024?cmte=C00799031&tab=donors](https://www.opensecrets.org/outside-spending/detail/2024?cmte=C00799031&tab=donors). [^6]: Rebeca Miller, “Program Recap: At Lunch with Barry Diller,” _American Jewish Historical Society_, September 19, 2025, [https://ajhs.org/program-recap-at-lunch-with-barry-diller/](https://ajhs.org/program-recap-at-lunch-with-barry-diller/). [^7]: Heather Perlberg, Janet Lorin, and Bloomberg, “Another Big Donor Cuts Ties with an Ivy League School for Its ‘Misguided Moral Compass’ Involving Israel and Hamas,” _Fortune_, October 17, 2023, [https://web.archive.org/web/20240511075729/https://fortune.com/2023/10/17/upenn-harvard-donors-israel-hamas/](https://web.archive.org/web/20240511075729/https://fortune.com/2023/10/17/upenn-harvard-donors-israel-hamas/). [^8]: FutureOfCapitalism.com, _Jonathon Jacobson’s Letter_, October 19, 2023, [https://www.futureofcapitalism.com/2023/10/jonathon-jacobson-letter](https://www.futureofcapitalism.com/2023/10/jonathon-jacobson-letter). [^9]: HighSage Ventures, _HighSage Ventures_, [https://highsage.com/](https://highsage.com/). [^10]: Michelle deBoer-Jones, “Here’s Where Jonathan Jacobson of Highfields Capital Invests His Foundation’s Millions,” _Hedge Fund Alpha_, February 4, 2025, [http://hedgefundalpha.com/foundations/heres-where-jonathan-jacobson-of-highfields-capital-invests-his-foundations-millions/](http://hedgefundalpha.com/foundations/heres-where-jonathan-jacobson-of-highfields-capital-invests-his-foundations-millions/). [^11]: “Institute for National Security Studies (Israel),” _Wikipedia_, [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Institute_for_National_Security_Studies_%28Israel%29](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Institute_for_National_Security_Studies_%28Israel%29). [^12]: _Highfields Team_, Highfields Capital Management, [https://www.highfieldscapital.com/team](https://www.highfieldscapital.com/team). [^13]: ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, _One8 Foundation — Full Filing (202533089349100108)_, [https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/46836735/202533089349100108/full](https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/46836735/202533089349100108/full). [^14]: _Beauty Brand Il Makiage Acquires Israeli Tech Start-Up NeoWize_, Cosmetics Business, November 25, 2019, [https://cosmeticsbusiness.com/beauty-brand-il-makiage-acquires-israeli-tech-start-up-neowize--160313](https://cosmeticsbusiness.com/beauty-brand-il-makiage-acquires-israeli-tech-start-up-neowize--160313). [^15]: Donna Rachel Edmunds, “Israeli Start-Up NeoWize Acquired by Cosmetics Retailer Il Makiage,” _The Jerusalem Post_, November 28, 2019, [https://www.jpost.com/jpost-tech/israeli-start-up-neowize-acquired-by-cosmetics-retailer-il-makiage-608976](https://www.jpost.com/jpost-tech/israeli-start-up-neowize-acquired-by-cosmetics-retailer-il-makiage-608976). [^16]: Oddity, _ODDITY: Transforming Global Beauty and Wellness with Technology_, [https://oddity.com/](https://oddity.com/). [^17]: Lendbuzz, _Lendbuzz Homepage_ [https://www.lendbuzz.com/](https://www.lendbuzz.com/).