Create science-driven impact
Micro consulting for early career scientists
Hyperflexible virtual work with no minimum commitment.
JOIN AS AN ASSOCIATE
Together, we help industry & government get smarter about new technologies
Our Associates help R&D companies and government agencies stay ahead of change and at the forefront of innovation. We do this by bringing together multidisciplinary teams of scientists, with speed and at scale. Using our collective intelligence, we conduct research and analysis to monitor technologies, forecast trends, scan horizons, map ecosystems, and scout innovations. Projects are intellectually stimulating and financially rewarding.
900+ labs
4000+ scientists & engineers
500+ scaleup founders & CTOs
300+ technology domains
A meeting of many minds
Work your mind, earn fees, go far
When you join as an Associate, you’ll choose when to contribute your time and expertise to intellectually stimulating projects for R&D companies and government agencies around the world. With tasks spanning literature reviews, finding collaboration partners, communicating complex concepts, and mapping future trends, you’ll earn fees, receive training, learn about unfamiliar technologies, and gain valuable commercial experience.
Explore recent projects
Discover more
Early career scientists tell us they have worries about the future
- I want to make career progress, but my peers who have left academia are gaining more transferable skills
- I want to have enough income to cover the basics and live in comfort, but financial security is on my mind
- I'm deeply passionate about my subject area, but academia doesn’t deliver the impact I thought it would
- I’d like to continue on my current path, but securing a career in academia and future funding is daunting
- I’d like to more fully understand the job market, but I don’t know what else I could excel at or is available to me
How becoming an Associate can help
Real impact, as part of a thriving community
Balancing projects from Outsmart Insight alongside my science PhD has helped me to learn how transferable my skills are and develop them further. The varied projects make me think, write about and research big-picture developments. A refreshing contrast to the day-to-day research activities.
Portfolio
Aerospace & Defence
AI software architectures for future combat aircraft
Elite Sports
Gaining a performance edge for Team GB's Olympic athletes
.png?ixlib=gatsbyFP&auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&rect=7%2C0%2C1446%2C816&w=427&h=241&w=500)
Nonprofit & NGO
Next-gen autonomous robotics for deep sea exploration
Advanced Manufacturing
Forecasting the performance of future solid-state batteries
Energy & Sustainability
Metabolic reprogramming for sustainable fuel manufacture
Aerospace & Defence
Carbon nanotube gecko adhesives
Research Foundation
IoT for smart cities
.png?ixlib=gatsbyFP&auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&rect=7%2C0%2C1446%2C816&w=427&h=241&w=500)
Government & public bodies
Droplet microfluidics for making designer synthetic organisms
Research Foundation
Single-cell sequencing
We need your mind
Advances in all fields – from robotics and genomics to climate tech and space exploration – are leaving no aspect of our lives untouched. Global challenges need science, technology, and the collective ingenuity of all the big brains on our planet to solve them, which is why we need you.
