Chan Zuckerberg Initiative commits $3bn to cure all diseases

Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Dr. Priscilla Chan have an undertaking called the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, and they're committing a minimum of $3 billion through it over the next ten years in a bid to either "cure, prevent or manage" all types of disease by the century's end. As such, the initiative says its second big focus is on science, and its President of Science will be The Rockefeller University neuroscientist Dr. Cori Bargmann. At the heart of this undertaking, the initiative says, is the goal of creating a strategy that will "unlock understanding of the human body down to the cellular level."

The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative lists its primary focus as advancing human potential and promoting equality. While the science focus comes second to that, it is still a major goal, and one that, hopefully, will result in a better future for everyone...one where diseases of all kinds are either eradicated or manageable.

The aforementioned science strategy will involve three main elements, according to the initiative, which are comprised of building the tech and tools necessary to scale up scientific research, increasing the amount of science funding from around the globe, and bringing together engineers and scientists to facilitate breakthroughs in medical science.

The Chan Zuckerberg Biohub will get $600 million in initial funding over the next decade, receiving it as the first investment from this $3bn pledge. With the Biohub — an indie research center — researchers will be able to collaborate and work together despite their various independent disciplines. The initiative expects to see engineers, chemists, biologists, computer scientists and more all participating.

A few big-name universities are partnering to help form it, including UC Berkeley, UC San Francisco, and Stanford University. Among the diseases targeted will be ones from the 'big four' — cancer, infectious diseases, neurological diseases, and heart disease.