The Emergence of Venture Science & The Origination of Annaven LLC.
In this announcement we introduce ourselves and the emerging field of venture science.
Venture science is an exciting field which combines the systemic approach of science with business. This field is emerging as we speak and the first PhD program for it became available in 20231.
As a cross-disciplinary study which involves computer science and data science, venture science helps us better understand how ventures are built, funded, scaled, and sustained2.
It is worth noting that ventures are any form of business, project, startup, or innovation, which makes this field relevant to a large audience. Regardless of your background you stand a lot to gain from learning about it, applying its knowledge, and sharing your own findings.
Annaven is a purpose-driven organization that is both an early adopter and a contributor to this field. Read on and you’ll learn more about our purpose, mission, and vision.
Our purpose is to empower people to live happier, healthier, and more fulfilled lives.
We respect the planet and find purpose in maximizing positive outcomes for our shared home. To the extent that profits can help us achieve this aim, we prioritize profits responsibly.
Our Commitment:
At Annaven, we are caring, curious, and courageous. To care requires consistency and commitment.
We are committed to operating in accordance with five ethical vows; namely
non-harm (not engaging in businesses that harm beings or the planet)
truthfulness
non-stealing (fair trade)
self-control (sustainable operations not mired by debt or greed)
non-attachment
We integrate the following to the greatest extent possible:
right faith (rational perception of reality)
right knowledge
right conduct (avoiding harmful trades and sharing surplus wealth through philanthropy)
Our organization's core philosophical views are:
non-absolutism (intellectual humility and seeing from multiple perspectives)
karma theory (our business's actions attract outcomes that bind the material world)
liberation*
*Liberation in this context is the acceptance that eventually an organization will no longer exist. No matter how successful it is, there will be a time when it will be absorbed back into the entropy of the universe.
Liberation will be attained when our business is no longer needed (because the empowerment and planetary cohesion has reached full saturation) or when we, the majority stakeholders, unilaterally end operations. Until then and as long as our stakeholders are capable, this organization will live on to fulfill its purpose.
Our Business Mission:
Empower people to live their best lives (in accordance with our purpose).
Our Research Mission:
Redefine the paradigm of business value (by inspiring 10,000+ founders to operate from a pure and heartfelt purpose).
Our Vision:
Establish the world’s leading venture science organization which exists in perpetuity until its purpose is met.
Reflecting on the Gift of Earth:
Phil Morle, from Main Sequence Ventures, made an interesting point on what it means to combine ventures with science which is worth mentioning here.
Imagine yourself on the moon. In the quiet of space, look back at this
fragile sphere and start making a list in of all the things needed for
this remarkable place, and the creatures that live on it, to thrive for
millennia to come.
(Source: Using ‘Venture Science’ for faster, deeper R&D, 2021)
Phil goes on to list goals like doubling the food supply, offering healthcare to everyone, and putting an end to plastic waste. In his article, he concludes that while these problems may seem insurmountable, our tenacity to tackle them is a form of capital known as emotional labor3 (which scales faster than money can).
There is no aim more noble than protecting the planet that makes everything possible for us.
Investing this emotional labor, in spite of the challenges and stress involved, is of utmost important given that all the science and money in the world will be good for nothing if there is no world left.
Annaven and our partners are not here to argue about climate change. Regardless of how debatable the science might be, there is no debate regarding the inundation of trash and toxins which humanity has achieved in a record period of time.
As scientists, we want the best for the world (while being constrained by capital) and as capitalists we want infinite growth from finite resources. It’s a paradox with no clean alternative.
If we were to imagine a future in which science makes it possible to put every human in virtual reality (with limited physical engagement to avoid pollution), and capital makes it tantalizing enough to execute that plan (because there are no alternatives left or because the expected profit outweighs the cons), we would be imagining an uncomfortable but feasible resolution to the quagmire of modernity.
The golden thread in venture science is having the courage to marry the reality of limited resources with the infinite ambitions of capital; and doing so in a way that dignifies consciousness.
We reject solutions that degrade the dignity and agency of life, no matter how temporary or logical they may seem at first glance.
In Conclusion:
Our north star is what we’ve outlined here and we operate by a ‘quadruple bottom line’ that includes:
Purpose (also interpreted as prana; meaning life)
People
Planet
Profit (to the extent it completes the picture above).
The ordering is important. We as individuals need purpose to live a life worth living, we need to honor each other in the process (by avoid infighting and wasting resources), so that we may benefit from the planet’s offerings (profit) and give back (nurturing that which gives freely to us and our future generations).
Invitation to Connect:
If the field of venture science or what we’re starting interests you, we invite you to connect with us. The best way is to sign up Substack and comment below (or message us directly through the platform).
If you haven’t subscribed, we also invite you to subscribe through the button below:
Footnotes:
More of the definition is available at venturesciencedefinition.org
While the existing definitions of venture science tend to skew towards solutions which utilize deep science (stem cell therapies, carbon capture, and other profound technology), we envision the field’s growth to encompass operations research as well.
There are a myriad of businesses that have achieved success through the optimization of supply chains, not necessarily through new science, which necessitate additional study. Operations research is the first obvious candidate and we anticipate other forms of science to carve their place within the field.
Seth Godin’s emotional labor article explains more about this.