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A must-read for anyone interested in the future of industrial research labs.

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· May 5, 2021

After digging into why DARPA works, I asked the follow-up question: How could you follow DARPA's narrow path in a world very different from the one that created it? My answer: benjaminreinhardt.com/parpa

Adam Wiggins

@_adamwiggins_

May 6, 2021

One idea from Ben's essay here's that's already part of funding for

@inkandswitch

@andy_matuschak

@martinkl

and others: “Friendly investment” – money from nonprofessional investors that is a superposition of philanthropy and investment.

Max Williams

@maxthelion

May 6, 2021

Perhaps patronage is a fitting model?

Adam Wiggins

@_adamwiggins_

May 6, 2021

True! Perhaps my notion of patronage has been colored by Patreon. But I imagine a difference is that friendly investment is something that shares in the financial upside if it does prove commercially viable.

Replying to

Right! Perhaps a public-benefit corporation model, in which investors understand that they're probably just making a donation, but if the company ends up capturing a lot of value, they can get a return. (via

@kanjun

)

3:56 PM · May 6, 2021TweetDeck

Replying to

This is the case in most of my investments!! 😁 Interestingly, the craziest and donation-feeling have ended up being the most profitable...

Kanjun

@kanjun

May 6, 2021

Interesting - what kind of corporate structure have you seen for those donation-like investments?

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Replying to

Does the Public benefit corporation significantly affect dynamics in some way?

Kanjun

@kanjun

May 6, 2021

The largest impact seems to be that the company has a mission, and shareholders can't sue you for acting in the mission's best interest vs. maximizing shareholder profits. I think people might be able to sue you for not acting toward the mission also, though? I'm not sure.