OSE Fellowship Model

Intro

The Thiel Fellowship is an inspiring idea, albeit in the broad sense. it affords further concentration of power, as opposed to its fundamental distribution. A Distributive version would be accessible, based on a requirement to share knowhow openly. Further, it must be low cost. But is not 'an exclusive Fellowship for the Common Man' as OSE proposes a fundamental contradiction in terms? Let's design this contradiction out.

Cost must be low, such as free or $10k for entrance. Can it be free? No, some form of 'paying attention' must be displayed. Further, a $10k investment demonstrates an ability to raise this reasonable amount of funds. Indeed, it can be a reimbursed - we just need to show an ideally non-punitive (not interest-based) way to get in.

Options:

• OSE helps find funders
• Family and friends
• KIVA loan
• Zero interest loans
• Veterans apprenticeships, etc
• Go to your local chamber of commerce, promise is after 4 years, after successful completion, you get to bring an operation back to town as an OSE Senior Fellow - working on replicating a facility. Successful graduation means that we collaborate on a new franchise, with the franchise fee enforced as collaborative development. Thus, there is no franchise fee pending such development. Careful metrics are established, such as collaborative development could be:
  • Participation in building a new open sector enterprise
  • A public project, such as a swarm build in a given community
  • Collaborating in a product release of a new contribution to the product ecosystem

Positioning

The OSE Fellowship is a four-year, $100,000 work-study grant for young people who want to learn how to learn, collaborate openly, build new things, and innovate on pressing world issues.

If there is a tuition ($10k) - how to motivate?

At the least, a tool deposit and application fee should be required - so that people are responsible for equipment, and people are paying attention. Tool replacement involves 3 air guns, 2 drills, multitool, router, hand tools, level, etc. About $3-5k used in the first year. Detailed Swarm Build Tool Schedule is based on the tools collated at Fab Tool Icons

To show your commitment, you have to buy in with a refundable deposit - that you work your way out of while getting an education.

Numbers

24 students require $2.4M generated over 4 years to meet the $100k grant per student. This is $600k per year in stipend, or average of $25k per year.

Say a loan of $10k. Living costs are $1000/month-$500/housing and $400 in food. $12k/year.

Work time - Basic Apprenticeship Resource Model gives $500 stipend per student in pay, plus $700 from $50k net on the sale - for a sustainable $1200 budget per student with no money left over for operations. Foundation runway covers operations, and program is self-sustaining.

That is 10 hours/week. 3 month cycle including sale is reasonable - so that the first 6 month hump must be overcome. Once overcome - learning curve of students and time to sale are addressed.

With 2 days of work with 8 hours each - we are at $1920 generation per student per month- about 2 months per house.

Basic model allows roughly $100k generation, every 2 months - at 2 work days per week baseline. There is a clear win here - $2k/month value gen per student. We can afford to pay $1k/month for clear runway. Clear 50/50 revenue share with work-study.

This means 6 builds the first year, based on an inefficient 3000 hour per house. This can be cash flowed, with basic operations secured. But not growing.

After 12 months, we get to 2 days, 1500 hours per house. 8 days work per month - 1600 hrs - one house done per month. At $25/hr, costs $40k in stipends or $1700/person. Definitely enough to live on. $50k rough operations budget per month net - $600k per year net on the apprenticeship model.

This sounds stable, but is not exponential. Lots of time is spent learning - so achieves quadruple bottom line - of education, workers, society, and open sector. But needs fifth and sixth wheel - environment, and global impact. Environment means solar energy powered modernity from dirt and twigs to a new civilization, and global impact means scalability. We can diversify into integrated academicians doing less work (and less pay) and integrated builders more work (more pay). Here we build infrastructure:

1. Offer housing on site - saves costs, generates revenue
2. Building out RLF capacity to new areas
3. Establishing full integrated landscaping for living, working, agriculture, recreation - and inspiration
4. Automation for open sector development

Here we scale from 1 team of 24, to 10 teams in the next recruiting round at 1 year of time.

Terms

• $100k over 4 years means full time at minimum wage ($12.50), so you can get $50k and 50/50 education at minimum wage. Year 1. 50/50 work-study means stipend of 12.5k first year.
• For basic skilled rate of $25/hr - you get 50/50 education opportunity. Year 2. 50/50 work-study means $25k in the second year.
• At year 3 - $37.50/hr is top of industry (1000 hour build time) - 50/50 means $37.5k.
• At year 4 - $37.5/hr (but ideally to 750 hrs build time goal at $50/hr) - we have 700 hour work (2/3 learnign, 1/3 work=study)

This is not so easy. But the quicker one gets to 1000 hour build time - the better.

2 days per week work is completely manageable. Once $31.25/hr is attained, this means 2 days of work per week. Completely manageable while allowing 3:1 learning:'work'.

Thus, the assumption is that in 2 years, one will be completely functional ($31.25 level) - 1200 hours - reasonable - allowing for 2 days of work per week for the $100k. This is achievable if we have a high rate of builds (repetition) - 6 builds first year. This does mean that year 3-4 one either gets more efficient, or works more, for the $100k. I would expect outliers to perform at this rate initially, meaning at most 2 days of work per week. Most people will average 3 days of work per week on average. Test these predictions, and see what we find out.

Links

• Basic Apprenticeship Resource Model
• OSE Fellowship