Press Release
Kyra's Hope Foundation Launches Collaboration to Accelerate Childhood Cancer Research Through Technology
September 3, 2026
The foundation's inaugural Kyra's Hope Research Grant supports development of the Rare Cancer Atlas, an open-source, AI-powered research platform at Fred Hutch Cancer Center
MERCER ISLAND, Wash., September 3, 2026, Kyra's Hope Foundation today announced a collaboration with Fred Hutch Cancer Center through the foundation's inaugural Kyra's Hope Research Grant, to support the development of a new research tool to accelerate insights into childhood cancers.
The project will combine technical experts provided by Kyra's Hope with cancer biology expertise in the Fred Hutch lab of Taran Gujral, PhD, to design, develop, and deploy an open-source, AI-powered platform called the Rare Cancer Atlas. Once launched, the platform is intended to provide researchers, clinicians, patient advocates, and rare disease organizations with a publicly accessible resource for studying childhood cancers.
Unlike traditional research grants that primarily provide financial support, the Kyra's Hope Research Grant complements research funding by embedding Kyra's Hope Fellows, experienced volunteer software engineers, AI specialists, data scientists, and other technology professionals, directly alongside research teams. This model is designed to provide specialized technical capabilities that increasingly play an essential role in modern biomedical research.
As part of the inaugural project, Kyra's Hope Foundation anticipates contributing approximately 500 hours of engineering and AI expertise by Kyra's Hope Fellows over the initial project cohort. Based on the foundation's methodology for valuing donated professional services, this represents an estimated $150,000 to $200,000 in contributed in-kind technology expertise. Actual volunteer hours and estimated value may vary based on project needs and volunteer participation.
"When we lost Kyra, we promised ourselves that no other family would walk this road without us in the fight. Kyra's Hope Foundation was designed to be a scalable movement, one that brings the technology industry's engineers, data scientists, and AI experts directly into research labs to work toward improving the lives of children with cancer. Taran Gujral at Fred Hutch is an important collaborator for us because he shares our ambition: advancing research infrastructure that can benefit the broader scientific community," said Gautam Kumar and Alka Kumari, co-founders of Kyra's Hope Foundation.
"Progress in treating rare cancers, including childhood cancers, has been impeded by limited data," said Gujral, a professor in the Human Biology Division of Fred Hutch. "With the Rare Cancer Atlas, we aim to create an AI-powered, user-friendly research platform that brings together fragmented rare cancer data, enabling researchers and clinicians and others to generate new insights and accelerate discoveries."
Kyra's Hope Foundation established the Kyra's Hope Research Grant in memory of Kyra Gupta, whose courageous three-year journey with metastatic Ewing sarcoma inspired the foundation's mission to support children facing cancer while accelerating research toward better treatments and cures. The foundation's approach combines philanthropy with embedded technical expertise, creating opportunities for Kyra's Hope Fellows to contribute their engineering, AI, and technology expertise directly to childhood cancer research.
This inaugural collaboration represents the first project supported through the Kyra's Hope Research Grant, with additional research collaborations anticipated in future grant cycles.
About Kyra's Hope Foundation: Kyra's Hope Foundation (EIN 41-2583689) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to bringing comfort, dignity, and hope to children facing cancer while accelerating childhood cancer and rare cancer research. Inspired by the life of Kyra Gupta, the foundation supports families in active treatment and advances research by combining philanthropic funding with embedded technology expertise.
Through the Kyra's Hope Research Grant, the foundation partners with leading research institutions to complement scientific research with Kyra's Hope Fellows, experienced volunteer engineers, AI specialists, data scientists, software developers, and other technology professionals who contribute their expertise directly to research projects. Together, the foundation's funding and technical support help research teams build data platforms, software infrastructure, artificial intelligence capabilities, and other technologies that accelerate scientific discovery.
For more information, visit https://research.kyrashope.org. Media contact: info@kyrashope.org
When we lost Kyra, we promised ourselves that no other family would walk this road without us in the fight. Kyra's Hope Foundation was designed to be a scalable movement, one that brings the technology industry's engineers, data scientists, and AI experts directly into research labs to work toward improving the lives of children with cancer. Taran Gujral at Fred Hutch is an important collaborator for us because he shares our ambition: advancing research infrastructure that can benefit the broader scientific community.
Progress in treating rare cancers, including childhood cancers, has been impeded by limited data. With the Rare Cancer Atlas, we aim to create an AI-powered, user-friendly research platform that brings together fragmented rare cancer data, enabling researchers and clinicians and others to generate new insights and accelerate discoveries.