An Entrepreneur’s Take on the Non-Profit

Launching a non-profit organization is just as much work as starting a for-profit business, says Numenta Founder Jeff Hawkins. Many of the issues and struggles of leadership are the same, including concerns about funding, building, mission statements, staffing, etc. Hawkins recalls that the Redwood Neuroscience Institute, focused on neocortical theory in the field of neuroscience, was so successful that they were forced to think of their next steps after just three years in operation. A friend showed him how to plot the institute’s theories into mathematical planning software, and Numenta, a for-profit entity, was born.