What exactly does “designing faster minds” mean in practice?

“Faster” doesn’t mean reckless. It means more responsive, more relevant, and more resilient across complexity. Designing faster minds means crafting the frameworks—technical, narrative, ethical—that help both humans and machines: 

• Process ambiguity with precision 

• Act with intention under pressure Integrate knowledge across domains 

• Resist shallow shortcuts in favor of meaningful insight 

It’s not just about technology. It’s about cognition, culture, and how systems evolve together.

Are you trying to replace traditional institutions like think tanks, universities, or research labs?

No—but we do complement and challenge them. THINK-TANKED was created to fill a structural void: an agile, interdisciplinary, non-hierarchical space where intelligence is not just studied, but shaped. We work with institutions—but also around and beyond them, especially where bureaucracy slows the speed of relevance or separates thought from action.

Why focus so much on interdisciplinary structure? Doesn’t that get messy?

Yes—and that’s the point. We believe the most urgent problems and promising ideas today don’t belong neatly to one discipline. Complexity is messy, but meaning is emergent. We build systems that are designed to navigate that mess—through modular collaboration, symbolic coherence, and strategic synthesis. Interdisciplinarity isn’t a buzzword. It’s a design constraint.

What if I only understand a small part of what’s happening here?

Then that part becomes your lens. Start with the one thing that resonated: 

• A sentence 

• A sketch 

• A principle 

• A pause 

Follow that signal—not because it’s complete, but because it’s true enough to keep going. You’re not required to zoom out. You’re allowed to zoom in. Plus, our goal and skill as an organization is to develop a community where we are able to distill complex questions into effective and explainable answers. 

What counts as a “contribution”? What if I’m not a researcher or technical expert?

Contribution is defined by intention and alignment, not titles or degrees. You might: Annotate a white paper with lived insight Remix a logic model into a visual system Translate a framework into another language or medium Share a story that refines a moral dilemma Propose a cross-sector use case Identify blind spots, biases, or missed implications Contribution here is not “content.” It’s co-architecture. It’s how we version our minds.

Do you only work with people based in the U.S. or the Bay Area?

No. While we’re based in California, THINK-TANKED is designed to operate globally, asynchronously, and interculturally. Many of our projects are remote, modular, and co-created across time zones and backgrounds. We’re actively seeking collaborators outside conventional ecosystems as well.

Can I earn verified community service hours for my contribution to THINK-TANKED?

Yes. THINK-TANKED is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and we are glad to verify community service hours for students and contributors working on: 

• Research contributions 

• Framework development 

• Narrative design or documentation 

• Peer mentoring or onboarding assistance 

• Systems mapping, fieldwork, or story collection 

• Cultural translation or regional contextualization 

You can request to receive a signed letter (digital or print) outlining your hours, role, and impact—documented in language compatible with school, scholarship, or volunteer recognition systems. Moreover, a sustained contributor can request a personalized letter of recommendation, reflecting on the value and uniqueness of their contribution. 

Can I bring others with me?

Yes. THINK-TANKED is most alive when engaged in clusters: 

• Friends reading Neurelix together 

• Classrooms building frameworks side-by-side 

• Interdisciplinary teams remixing a story protocol 

• Mentors guiding students through contribution sprints 

Bring one person. Or ten. Or a community. Just make sure they’re ready to build with both mind and meaning.

Is THINK-TANKED anti-government or anti-corporate?

Neither. We respect institutional missions. But we don’t reduce our work to any one sector’s logic. We collaborate with public entities, startups, universities, other nonprofits, and more—not to validate them, but to co-evolve frameworks that work within and beyond existing systems. 

How do you protect the integrity of contributions and ideas?

We operate with a version-control ethic for everything: ideas, protocols, symbols, even our values. All significant contributions are: tracked and time-stamped, credited (or anonymized upon request), reviewed for coherence and bias, and folded into living archives for public transparency. We don’t just ask for trust—we engineer for it.

Can THINK-TANKED work with schools or youth organizations?

Yes. We believe young people deserve better structures for thought—before they’re told what counts as “real intelligence.” We’ve piloted narrative scaffolds, ethical design labs, and remixable cognitive templates for student use. Reach out if your institution wants to collaborate.

What if I don’t know where to start?

Start with what you care about. Then explore: 

• Our initiatives (e.g. Neurelix, Feedforward, Code of Us) 

• Our podcast, Thinking Fees Apply 

• Our narrative framework (DIRECTION, ALIGNMENT, VELOCITY, INTEGRITY, DEDICATION) 

• Our invitation: "If any part of this feels like it was written for you—it was." 

Then email us. You don’t need to be perfect. Just present.

What’s your growth model? Will THINK-TANKED scale?

We grow by deepening, not just widening. THINK-TANKED isn’t chasing virality or headcount. We prioritize: 

• Thoughtful onboarding over mass recruitment 

• Quality-of-contribution over quantity-of-engagement 

• Infrastructure that endures over ideas that flash 

Scaling for us means refining core mechanics—then remixing them across new formats, communities, and contexts.

What happens to ideas that don't make it?

Not everything we build survives—and that’s by design. THINK-TANKED maintains a living archive of deprecated concepts, partial prototypes, and “intelligent failures” that didn’t fit the moment but may serve another one. We treat unfinished work as potential scaffolding, not shame. Some fragments feed future structures. Some remain lessons. Nothing is lost unless it's forgotten.

Can I cite THINK-TANKED in academic work?

Yes. All public frameworks, publications, diagrams, and narrative assets can be cited under standard scholarly or media referencing formats. We welcome formal citation, remix credit, and footnoted engagement. Need help referencing a Feedforward remix or myth element? Email us.

Is THINK-TANKED building its own tools or platforms?

Yes. We’re actively prototyping internal systems for: 

• Symbolic decision modeling 

• Narrative version-control 

• Remix tracking and lineage mapping 

• Contribution scaffolds for asynchronous collaboration 

• Ethical input classification for systems development 

Some tools will be open-sourced. Others will be used to stabilize our ecosystem before external release.

What if I’m not smart enough for this?

You’re asking the wrong question. THINK-TANKED isn’t about IQ—it’s about contributional relevance. Can you notice what others miss? Can you make meaning under pressure? Can you see how a metaphor becomes a mechanism? That’s the kind of intelligence we track. If you’re wondering whether you belong, you’re already halfway in. Most of the dangerous people never ask that question.

Does the founder have a STEM background?

No, he does not. The founder's foundation is in law, policy, and systems thinking—not STEM—he sees that as a strength required amongst many other talented individuals. While certain experts approach technology as a set of tools to be built, the founders focuses more on how these tools are forces to be guided within legal, cultural, and ethical frameworks. This vantage point allows him to add value to STEM practitioners respective and unique talents, while connecting breakthroughs and beyond to the structures that determine their impact. THINK-TANKED reflects that philosophy: it’s not just a forum for certain backgrounds of technical excellence to shine, but a catalyst for cross-sector integration. Under his leadership, disciplines don’t work in isolation—they cross-pollinate, ensuring innovation is built for long-term benefit at any scale. 

Do you have a vibe?

Yes—intentional ambiguity with structured warmth. We mix: 

• High-precision thinking 

• Low-ego collaboration 

• Poetic interface 

• Ethical friction 

• Quiet conviction 

You’ll know it when you feel it. If it feels like a room where symbols matter, silence has weight, and nobody’s rushing to impress you—that’s us.

What’s the time commitment? Will this consume me?

No. THINK-TANKED was designed for sustainable engagement. Most contributions are: 

• Modular (project-based, not permanent) 

• Time-agnostic (asynchronous, not urgent) 

• Value-aligned (you give where you’re most alive) 

We believe impact shouldn't always require burnout. Your pacing is part of the architecture.

What happens when someone invents a better way to do something inside THINK-TANKED?

We consider that person a structural ancestor. When a contributor develops a tool, framework, workflow, or anything else that allows others to do something more clearly, ethically, or effectively—we document it, name it (with consent), and use it to version the ecosystem forward. Sometimes, the most powerful impact isn’t in a finished output—it’s in the method someone leaves behind. We don’t just remember them. We build them in.

Do contributors ever create personas to work in THINK-TANKED anonymously?

Yes. We offer optional symbolic pseudonymity, where contributors: 

• Use unique names (e.g., “The Cartographer,” “Signal Loop 3”) 

• Create logic avatars for Feedforward use 

• Maintain continuity through semi-anonymous contribution 

• Are versioned like archetypes, not individuals 

Why? Because sometimes ego limits expression. And history remembers what bureaucracy forgets.

Can I build something inside THINK-TANKED that also exists outside it?

Yes, if you declare and delineate. Many contributors operate with hybrid intent—testing in THINK-TANKED, deploying elsewhere. We ask only that you: 

• Clarify intentions and boundaries 

• Document remix lineage (who helped, what shaped it) 

• Offer a feedback loop so the outside evolution informs the core system 

Cross-pollination isn’t corruption—it’s a sign of system health.

What if someone uses THINK-TANKED tools to build something we wouldn’t endorse?

We don’t control all aspects of usage external to our work—we condition it. Every tool is designed with: 

• Embedded ethical constraint spaces 

• Remix licensing that flags misuse patterns 

• A “Reverse Calibration Clause” that outlines potential distortions 

We can’t predict all futures. But we can try to encode structural integrity that resists collapse or co-optation.

What happens if funding runs low?

We downshift with dignity. Our core team is trained in ethical de-scaling, and we maintain: 

• A triaged infrastructure plan 

• A philosophy of modular durability (cutting features without collapsing the whole) 

• Emergency contributor protection protocols 

In short: We don’t panic. We refactor with integrity. But every donation reduces the fragility window.

Is my donation tax-deductible?

Yes. THINK-TANKED is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization registered in the United States. All donations are fully tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law. After donating, upon request, you’ll receive a confirmation and receipt for your records. If you ever need an annual summary or custom letter, just ask—we respond like it matters, because it does.

Can I donate in someone else’s name?

Yes. Many supporters contribute: 

• In memory of someone whose insight outlived their lifetime 

• In honor of a mentor, teacher, or child 

• On behalf of a team or community whose values align with ours 

We offer symbolic acknowledgments, narrative dedications, and custom thank-you artifacts—not just receipts, but resonant recognition.

Can I donate space, tools, or platforms instead of money?

Absolutely. We honor non-monetary forms of capital like: 

• Access to underrepresented communities 

• Software tools or studio space 

• Amplification platforms 

• Research materials or archival access 

• Skilled hours in legal, visual, data, or organizational work 

If you have something to give, we’ll find a way to receive it with precision and care.

How can I help raise funds without being a fundraiser?

Start by being a signal carrier: 

• Share what moved you and why 

• Introduce us to someone who thinks like a builder, not just a donor 

• Remind others that funding values isn’t charity—it’s strategy 

• Help people see that infrastructure isn’t overhead—it’s the terrain of trust 

You don’t need to ask. You just need to translate alignment into awareness.

What’s THINK-TANKED long-term?

Not an institution. Not a brand. We’re becoming a substrate of structured intelligence—a pattern language that: 

• Remains interpretable across decades 

• Supports new forms of moral, cognitive, and civic agency 

• Teaches people how to think with coherence across collapse 

If a future builder can inherit our patterns and say: "This helped me build something honest, under pressure," —we’ve succeeded.