Convergent Research

Convergent Research is a non-profit incubator for philanthropic ventures, founded in 2021 and backed by prominent figures such as Eric Schmidt, Wendy Schmidt, and Ken Griffin, as part of the Schmidt Futures Network. The organization's primary activity is to identify high-impact scientific or technological research and development fields and subsequently launch companies, termed Focused Research Organizations (FROs), to address these areas. As of 2023, Convergent Research has established seven FROs.

The business model of Convergent Research is centered on bridging a structural gap in the current research and development ecosystem. It achieves this by bringing together scientific founders and funders to design, launch, and operate these FROs. The organization actively cultivates a collaborative environment by attracting top talent from academia, industry, and the startup world to work on large-scale, tightly coordinated, non-profit projects. One such example is E11 Bio, an FRO dedicated to developing tools for understanding the intricate wiring of the brain.

Convergent Research operates in the philanthropic and scientific research market, with a focus on non-profit science projects. Its clients can be considered the scientific community and society at large, as the organization aims to accelerate scientific and technological progress in critical areas. The organization also provides grants in fields like neuroscience, further solidifying its role as a facilitator of high-impact research. To aid in its mission, Convergent Research has developed the "Gap Map," a web portal designed to explore and identify gaps in the research and development landscape that are holding back progress.

Keywords: philanthropic ventures, Focused Research Organizations, scientific research, R&D, non-profit incubator, Schmidt Futures Network, E11 Bio, Gap Map, neuroscience, deep tech