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(Pioneer founder here.) Nat Friedman and I launched AI Grant last year (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14851806 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1485

(Pioneer founder here.) Nat Friedman and I launched AI Grant last year (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14851806 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14851806). The idea was to give out money to promising AI researchers around the world. To date, we've funded 50 researchers, from high school students in Hawaii to aspiring researchers in Africa. We’ve been inspired by the fellows we’ve funded all over the word. I’m following it with a new project called Pioneer. Pioneer funds ambitious people around the world working on interesting projects. Unlike YC, this is focused on small projects, not companies. A project could be anything -- open source work, research in physics or biology, or creating art. If one does start a company, Pioneer gets 3% of equity in it in return for the network, community and guidance it provides. But it's by no means a requirement or a goal. We're merely hoping the small fraction of companies help us fund this experiment in perpetuity. I think the largest gift we'll give our Pioneers isn't money. It'll be non-intuitive things like a network of friends (other Pioneers), a forcing function to get that thing done and mentorship from inspiring individuals. Unlike other grant programs, we’re trying to do most of the screening in software. Becoming a Pioneer requires winning the Pioneer Tournament -- a (hopefully) fun and interactive application process. More on that on the site. I'm passionate about this work because I'm the beneficiary of a similar system. I wrote about my story here, if you're curious: https://pioneer.app/blog/hello https://pioneer.app/blog/hello. I read HN daily. And I've lost a lot of sleep about how this comments section will react to Pioneer :) I'm hoping you'll find this at least a worthwhile experiment to run. Do let me know what ideas or feedback you have! P.S. This effort is unrelated to YC. If you have any complaints about it, shoot me, not them! P.P.S. Nat remains a close friend to Pioneer but his focus is on GitHub. AI Grant will continue to run as a non-profit. More details on that soon.

pluto9 8y ago
> I'm passionate about this work because I'm the benefactor of a similar system. Perhaps I misunderstand, but I think you mean "beneficiary".
hsikka 8y ago
Daniel, this is incredible! I was actually going to shoot you an email about when AI grant's next phase is going to be for my Modular Neural Networks project. I think one of the largest problems a lot of creative, insanely formidable people face are a barrier to entry to a network like this. That is one thing I've always admired about YC, Startup school. Pioneer's value in this would be insane. I'm looking forward to the results, and hopefully climbing up the leaderboard myself over the next few months ;)
telospolis 8y ago
"We expect a fraction of Pioneers to start companies. In exchange for the investment and benefits below, Pioneer will retain 3% of any company you found over the next eight years. Pioneer will also have the option of investing an additional $20,000 for 5% in any of those companies. These conditions apply if you already have an incorporated company." yeah, as an outsider looking for entry into startup - it just doesn't seem right! i get the fact that you guys have to fund the company some way! but it just seems too costly. i would be short selling myself.
- jgh 8y ago
  urg. yeah. Seems like some baggage that might hurt your ability to be part of a founding team too.
- danicgross 8y ago
  If you have the opportunity to join other programs, go for it! Our hope is that this model enables us to reach the billions of people that are outside the network of Silicon Valley. They might not even be sure if they have a "company". They just want support on whatever project they're pursuing. We're hoping that becoming a Pioneer vastly increases the odds that you turn your "shower-thought" into something real, even if it takes a few years to mature. We're going to be making bets on folks substantially before they have the indicia of success that investors screen for. Before anyone could even say "This person will someday found a company." The math for this to be sustainable requires that the equity slice be higher than someone would ask for if they knew 100% of their investments were in high-potential companies.
  - FLUX-YOU 8y ago
    This is a chicken-egg scenario: 1) I'd be less apprehensive about giving away 8% to any (!) company I found if I knew the network/guidance/community were proven. 2) You need track records of success before the network/guidance/community is seen as worth it. Right now, it's a gamble since you're new. So you need a population of people willing to take a lower amount of money with a gamble on community quality. Given that, it seems better off to wait.
vasilipupkin 8y ago
good idea, I would be more specific about the company/equity side of it. 3% is a lot of equity to give up right off the bat. YC has a specific program at least.
staunch 8y ago
I listened to your Kara Swisher interview recently and one part stood out above everything else. You admitted that if you had not been accepted by YC, you would likely not have had the success you've had. That kind of honest self-reflection is something sorely missing in Silicon Valley. Far too many people think their success was inevitable and completely self-made. Very few acknowledge the very rare kinds of help they received, and for a small turn in fortune, might not have received. It's a great thing that you've not forgotten how different your life could have been without opportunity. And it's a beautiful thing that you're using your success to extend that opportunity to others. I'm sure your resources are limited now but hopefully over time you will expand the grant (or investment) to help more people and with more money. Congrats and good luck!
- danicgross 8y ago
  Thank you! I wrote some more about that here: https://pioneer.app/blog/hello https://pioneer.app/blog/hello. Everyone needs their first stepping stone, and I'm hopeful with Pioneer that we can provide that in a much more scalable way.
petermcneeley 8y ago
"we’re trying to do most of the screening in software. Becoming a Pioneer requires winning the Pioneer Tournament" Is this a code challenge? Where do I find it?
- rndmwlk 8y ago
  https://pioneer.app/ https://pioneer.app/ Looks like it's more of a popularity contest than anything else.
  - gt_ 8y ago
    Right. The application process appears to openly prioritize marketing skills, which puts it in serious conflict with the stated goal.
    - wolfgke 8y ago
      > Right. The application process appears to openly prioritize marketing skills, which puts it in serious conflict with the stated goal. Exactly. To quote [1]: "The world is full of extraordinarily creative people that are struggling to fit in.". If the candidate is struggling to fit in, he/she is probably not "the popular kid" or a highly successful self-marketer. Another quote from [1]: "Our goal is to build a decentralized network of young, creative and exceptionally motivated outsiders who don’t fit in to the traditional system.". I personally would claim that such self-marketing is exactly what the "traditional system" is (among other things) strongly about. So making it a popularity contest is opposed to the self-stated/self-imposed goals. [1] https://pioneer.app/ https://pioneer.app/
codingdave 8y ago
As someone who is an artist on the side, the fact that this can fund art projects sounds terrific. But I'm wondering what could be expected when an artist goes to SF? The mentoring and networking aspects of such things seem less applicable to an art project vs. a company, so could you tell us what you had in mind for such scenarios?
deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
dantheman 8y ago
I think what you're doing is great! Keep it up!
florabuzzword 8y ago
Looking at your application process, I cannot help but notice how poorly Einstein himself would have performed in such an arena. But, maybe I’m missing something. You mention an aim to support high-achieving outcasts, but the application process appears to be, as another comment mentioned, a popularity contest. What is the thinking behind that?
ankeshanand 8y ago
Neat idea, but isn't the $5k amount for 3 months kinda low?
jmoseyko 8y ago
What a wonderful opportunity! Inspiring!
callmeed 8y ago
One piece of feedback that stood out to me on the home page: in the headline you say you're building a community of "young" people. You can probably imagine that–for some–that statement doesn't really jive with being "open for all", etc.
nojvek 8y ago
Although most comments here are kind of negative, I just want to say initiatives like this are amazing. Not sure what kind of ideas you’ll fund but there are lots of really smart people who love to tinker and solve problems. Being able to give them some runaway fuel so they can focus on problem solving rather than staying alive by taking a job they don’t love can go a long way. When YC started, no one knew what it would become. It had good intentions, some money and a pool of wiling young folks to bust their asses. And I think that concoction is amazing. Mentoring + network + funding + talent. I really wish you the best.
sp332 8y ago
If I could make a recommendation, it wouldn't hurt to specifically call out some marginalized groups that often get left out of the Silicon Valley VC mix. Not to call out VCs or anything, but after a while people start to get the idea that even groups that seem generally inviting tend to have hidden biases. And yeah it could be an infinitely long list, but look at it as just being reassuring to those people who might not take the risk. Off the top of my head: people in so-called "flyover states", LGBT+, disabled people, anyone working on research or art that's remotely sex-related.

pluto9 8y ago

> I'm passionate about this work because I'm the benefactor of a similar system. Perhaps I misunderstand, but I think you mean "beneficiary".

hsikka 8y ago

Daniel, this is incredible! I was actually going to shoot you an email about when AI grant's next phase is going to be for my Modular Neural Networks project. I think one of the largest problems a lot of creative, insanely formidable people face are a barrier to entry to a network like this. That is one thing I've always admired about YC, Startup school. Pioneer's value in this would be insane. I'm looking forward to the results, and hopefully climbing up the leaderboard myself over the next few months ;)

telospolis 8y ago

"We expect a fraction of Pioneers to start companies. In exchange for the investment and benefits below, Pioneer will retain 3% of any company you found over the next eight years. Pioneer will also have the option of investing an additional $20,000 for 5% in any of those companies. These conditions apply if you already have an incorporated company." yeah, as an outsider looking for entry into startup - it just doesn't seem right! i get the fact that you guys have to fund the company some way! but it just seems too costly. i would be short selling myself.

jgh 8y ago
urg. yeah. Seems like some baggage that might hurt your ability to be part of a founding team too.
danicgross 8y ago
If you have the opportunity to join other programs, go for it! Our hope is that this model enables us to reach the billions of people that are outside the network of Silicon Valley. They might not even be sure if they have a "company". They just want support on whatever project they're pursuing. We're hoping that becoming a Pioneer vastly increases the odds that you turn your "shower-thought" into something real, even if it takes a few years to mature. We're going to be making bets on folks substantially before they have the indicia of success that investors screen for. Before anyone could even say "This person will someday found a company." The math for this to be sustainable requires that the equity slice be higher than someone would ask for if they knew 100% of their investments were in high-potential companies.
- FLUX-YOU 8y ago
  This is a chicken-egg scenario: 1) I'd be less apprehensive about giving away 8% to any (!) company I found if I knew the network/guidance/community were proven. 2) You need track records of success before the network/guidance/community is seen as worth it. Right now, it's a gamble since you're new. So you need a population of people willing to take a lower amount of money with a gamble on community quality. Given that, it seems better off to wait.

vasilipupkin 8y ago

good idea, I would be more specific about the company/equity side of it. 3% is a lot of equity to give up right off the bat. YC has a specific program at least.

staunch 8y ago

I listened to your Kara Swisher interview recently and one part stood out above everything else. You admitted that if you had not been accepted by YC, you would likely not have had the success you've had. That kind of honest self-reflection is something sorely missing in Silicon Valley. Far too many people think their success was inevitable and completely self-made. Very few acknowledge the very rare kinds of help they received, and for a small turn in fortune, might not have received. It's a great thing that you've not forgotten how different your life could have been without opportunity. And it's a beautiful thing that you're using your success to extend that opportunity to others. I'm sure your resources are limited now but hopefully over time you will expand the grant (or investment) to help more people and with more money. Congrats and good luck!

danicgross 8y ago
Thank you! I wrote some more about that here: https://pioneer.app/blog/hello https://pioneer.app/blog/hello. Everyone needs their first stepping stone, and I'm hopeful with Pioneer that we can provide that in a much more scalable way.

petermcneeley 8y ago

"we’re trying to do most of the screening in software. Becoming a Pioneer requires winning the Pioneer Tournament" Is this a code challenge? Where do I find it?

rndmwlk 8y ago
https://pioneer.app/ https://pioneer.app/ Looks like it's more of a popularity contest than anything else.
- gt_ 8y ago
  Right. The application process appears to openly prioritize marketing skills, which puts it in serious conflict with the stated goal.
  - wolfgke 8y ago
    > Right. The application process appears to openly prioritize marketing skills, which puts it in serious conflict with the stated goal. Exactly. To quote [1]: "The world is full of extraordinarily creative people that are struggling to fit in.". If the candidate is struggling to fit in, he/she is probably not "the popular kid" or a highly successful self-marketer. Another quote from [1]: "Our goal is to build a decentralized network of young, creative and exceptionally motivated outsiders who don’t fit in to the traditional system.". I personally would claim that such self-marketing is exactly what the "traditional system" is (among other things) strongly about. So making it a popularity contest is opposed to the self-stated/self-imposed goals. [1] https://pioneer.app/ https://pioneer.app/

codingdave 8y ago

As someone who is an artist on the side, the fact that this can fund art projects sounds terrific. But I'm wondering what could be expected when an artist goes to SF? The mentoring and networking aspects of such things seem less applicable to an art project vs. a company, so could you tell us what you had in mind for such scenarios?

deleted 8y ago

[deleted]

dantheman 8y ago

I think what you're doing is great! Keep it up!

florabuzzword 8y ago

Looking at your application process, I cannot help but notice how poorly Einstein himself would have performed in such an arena. But, maybe I’m missing something. You mention an aim to support high-achieving outcasts, but the application process appears to be, as another comment mentioned, a popularity contest. What is the thinking behind that?

ankeshanand 8y ago

Neat idea, but isn't the $5k amount for 3 months kinda low?

jmoseyko 8y ago

What a wonderful opportunity! Inspiring!

callmeed 8y ago

One piece of feedback that stood out to me on the home page: in the headline you say you're building a community of "young" people. You can probably imagine that–for some–that statement doesn't really jive with being "open for all", etc.

nojvek 8y ago

Although most comments here are kind of negative, I just want to say initiatives like this are amazing. Not sure what kind of ideas you’ll fund but there are lots of really smart people who love to tinker and solve problems. Being able to give them some runaway fuel so they can focus on problem solving rather than staying alive by taking a job they don’t love can go a long way. When YC started, no one knew what it would become. It had good intentions, some money and a pool of wiling young folks to bust their asses. And I think that concoction is amazing. Mentoring + network + funding + talent. I really wish you the best.

sp332 8y ago

If I could make a recommendation, it wouldn't hurt to specifically call out some marginalized groups that often get left out of the Silicon Valley VC mix. Not to call out VCs or anything, but after a while people start to get the idea that even groups that seem generally inviting tend to have hidden biases. And yeah it could be an infinitely long list, but look at it as just being reassuring to those people who might not take the risk. Off the top of my head: people in so-called "flyover states", LGBT+, disabled people, anyone working on research or art that's remotely sex-related.