Psychedelics Group Raises $30 Million From Execs At GoDaddy, SpaceX And Others For MDMA Study

The nation’s leading psychedelics research organization announced on Thursday that it has raised $30 million in donations—including from several notable business leaders outside the drug policy realm—that will enable it to complete a study on using MDMA to treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

The Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) said it will use those funds to conduct a Phase 3 trial on the substance, which is commonly called ecstasy, in hopes of gaining approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The federal agency has already designated MDMA as a “breakthrough therapy” based on findings from the group’s earlier trials.

About 2,500 individual donors helped MAPS reach their fundraising goal within six months. Here are some of the notable contributors:

-Bob Parsons, founder of GoDaddy ($2 million)

-Blake Mycoskie, founder of TOMS Shoes ($1 million)

-John Gilmore, cofounder of Electronic Frontier Foundation ($1 million)

-David Bronner, CEO of Dr. Bronner’s ($800,000)

-Joby Pritzker, managing director of Tao Capital Partners, board member of Marijuana Policy Project and cousin of Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker ($3 million)

-Steve Jurvetson, board member of SpaceX and Tesla ($2.6 million)

-Tim Ferriss, tech investor, author and podcaster ($1 million)