We believe New York City’s greatest resource is its people, and that the New Yorkers closest to the city’s challenges are best positioned to solve them. That’s why each year we award The David Prize to five New Yorkers, each receiving $200,000, no strings attached.
Since 2019, we have received over 18,000 big ideas for NYC, awarding the Prize to 35 winners and 86 finalists through a multi-step, year-long process.
Our 2026 Open Call runs until November 30. If you live in any of the five boroughs and have the vision and conviction to change NYC for good, apply to win.
In addition to the Prize, we host every-so-often gatherings connecting New Yorkers who shape our city’s future, publish a monthly newsletter and a biannual newspaper. For our fifth anniversary, we created No Guts, No Glory, a book and website telling personal stories of several Prize winners, one from each year since the Prize began. We also partner with New Yorkers we meet along the way to get new initiatives off the ground, like the W4 Newsstand and See NYC.
The David Prize is an initiative of The Walentas Foundation, named in honor of its namesake, David Walentas.
