Bezos tweeted a statement Thursday that the fund will issue annual leadership awards to organizations "doing compassionate, needle-moving work to provide shelter and hunger support to address the immediate needs of young families." There will also be full scholarships for Montessori-inspired preschools in "underserved" communities, he said.
Bezos, who also owns The Washington Post and space exploration company Blue Origin, became the world's wealthiest person this year, with an estimated net worth of $164 billion, according to Bloomberg.
Helping the homeless has also been a focus for Amazon (AMZN). Earlier this year, the company partnered with the Seattle nonprofit Mary's Place to build a permanent homeless shelter in its headquarters. It previously helped the nonprofit temporarily house 200 homeless people. Since March 2016, Amazon customers have also been able to order items from the Mary's Place's wishlist on the site, such as diapers and socks.
