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John A. Sobrato

American businessman, developer

CaliforniaReal EstateGiving Pledge

AIProfile Summary

John A. Sobrato is an American businessman and developer in California’s real estate industry, with an estimated net worth of ~$6.3B Wikidata. He is a Giving Pledge signatory Wikidata, and the available data shows long-running involvement in philanthropy through the Sobrato Foundation and Sobrato Family Foundation ProPublica 990.

Business & SEC Activity

The data identifies him as a businessman and developer, but does not provide additional details on specific companies or deals Wikidata. His wealth is estimated at ~$6.3B Wikidata.

Philanthropy

In 2023, the Sobrato Foundation reported $18,229,572 in grants paid and $126,077,732 in total assets ProPublica 990. The Sobrato Family Foundation reported $68,299,809 in grants paid and $876,730,998 in total assets in 2023 ProPublica 990. Combined, the two foundations reported $86,529,381 in grants paid and $1,002,808,730 in total assets ProPublica 990.

Political Activity

Federal campaign contribution records show 10 donations totaling $16,100 from 1988 to 2025 FEC. The giving was mostly to Democrats, with $15,300 to DEM recipients and $800 to REP recipients FEC. The largest listed recipient was LICCARDO FOR CONGRESS at $13,600 FEC.

In the News

Recent coverage in April 2026 noted LifeMoves honoring John and Sue Sobrato for a longtime partnership NewsAPI. The articles were published by Mercury News and East Bay Times on the same date NewsAPI.

AI-generated summary from gdelt, fec, propublica_990, wikidata, giving_pledge 6/27/2026 (gpt-5.4-mini). All claims are derived from the source data shown below.

USU.S. Presence

otherU.S. economic presence

990Philanthropy

$1.0BFoundation Assets
$86.5MGrants Paid
2Foundations
Sobrato FoundationMountain View, CA
Philanthropy, voluntarism & grantmaking (IRS NTEE T190)
Assets: $126.1MRevenue: $2.8MGrants: $18.2MTax Year: 2023
Mission, purpose & full 990 filings → ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer
Sobrato Family FoundationMountain View, CA
Assets: $876.7MRevenue: $129.3MGrants: $68.3MTax Year: 2023
Mission, purpose & full 990 filings → ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer
Source: ProPublica (990) annual filing · latest on record (retrieved 3/9/2026) (proPublica_990)

FECPolitical Contributions

$16KTotal Contributed
10Contributions
1988–2025Date Range

By Party

DEM
$15K
REP
$800

Top Recipients

LICCARDO FOR CONGRESS$14K
FRIENDS OF SIMITIAN$1K
TOM CAMPBELL FOR CONGRESS COMMITTEE$800
ANNA ESHOO FOR CONGRESS$700
Source: FEC contribution filings · latest on record (retrieved 3/9/2026) (fec)

PBSScore Breakdown

A
72.6
Public Benefit Score

The PBS is a weighted average of 2 components. The formula is open and versioned — the weight percentages below show how much each component contributes to the final score.

Philanthropy65% weight
65%

Evidenced charitable giving — built on what they actually give each year, not parked assets. Dominated by generosity (annual giving relative to net worth — the share of your fortune you give), plus the absolute scale of that giving, plus a small nudge for signing the Giving Pledge (a commitment, not a realized action).

Data: ProPublica 990 charitable disbursements, net worth, The Giving Pledge registry

Transparency35% weight
88%

How much sourced, public accountability data exists — net worth, political contributions, SEC filings, foundation 990s, news coverage, and a verified profile. More public disclosure scores higher.

Data: FEC, SEC EDGAR, ProPublica 990s, GDELT / NewsAPI, Wikidata

Formula (v2): PBS = 65% x Philanthropy + 35% x Transparency

Scored on 6/23/2026 on a 0–100 scale. The score uses only the signals we have populated data for. Goal Impact, Controversy, and Community Approval are deferred until that data exists — Phase 1 goal adoption, controversy detection, and community votes respectively.

All data is sourced from public records. Each section links to its original source. View on Wikidata

John A. Sobrato — Public Benefit Score A (73) | Billionaire Army