Knowledge Futures

Who We Are

Knowledge Futures is an independent nonprofit organization powered by academic, industry, and advocacy groups. Together we build and support products and protocols to make knowledge open and accessible to all.

Founded in 2018 as a partnership between the MIT Press and the MIT Media Lab, Knowledge Futures was created to build sustainable tools and technologies for libraries, presses, museums, activist organizations, researchers, and others whose knowledge work seeks to serve collective understanding and the public. What began as a handful of grad students working on publishing tools grew to an organization focused on addressing the systemic challenges faced by public-oriented groups beholden to infrastructure that is designed with misaligned incentives and unjust power dynamics.

Our Mission

We're committed to creating infrastructure that empowers communities to own and control their knowledge systems. Our work challenges the status quo of academic publishing and knowledge sharing by developing open-source alternatives that prioritize accessibility, equity, and sustainability over profit.

Working at Knowledge Futures

Knowledge Futures is guided by a set of values that drive and focus the work we do. From hiring, to product development, to day-to-day interpersonal relationships, these values serve as the ground truth for how we work.

Our Core Values

Accessibility: We believe that just because knowledge is available doesn't mean it's truly accessible. We put ourselves in others' positions to understand the barriers that prevent knowledge from being truly accessible to diverse groups around the world.

Conscientiousness: We value honesty and good-faith efforts to fulfill our duties and obligations as highly as success in its own right.

Curiosity: We approach challenges with an honest, experimental, problem-solving mindset. We bring an intellectual curiosity that explores problem spaces with openness and intrigue in ways that lead to important new ideas.

Egalitarianism: We acknowledge that all people deserve equality and fairness regardless of the individual circumstances of their life. We recognize that teams, especially distributed ones, are made of people who bring different perspectives, opportunities, and cultures that add to the strength of the team.

Systemic Outlook: We prioritize solutions that tackle problems in systemic ways rather than iterating solely at the margins. We think systematically when we approach problems, rather than solely thinking locally.

Sustainability: We value solutions that are sustainable and durable for the long-term, even if they're more difficult, over ones that are more expedient but less sustainable.

Employee Benefits

• 4-Day Workweek - We practice what we preach about work-life balance
• Unlimited PTO - Take the time you need to recharge and maintain well-being
• Computer of Choice - Work with the tools that help you do your best work
• Remote Office Set-up - Support for creating a productive home workspace
• Fully Remote - Work from anywhere that suits your lifestyle

Why Join Us

At Knowledge Futures, you'll be part of a small, mission-driven team tackling some of the most pressing challenges in academic publishing and knowledge sharing. With our 4-day workweek and commitment to sustainable work practices, we recognize that meaningful impact requires both dedication and balance. If you're passionate about open knowledge, social impact, and building technology that serves the public good, we'd love to hear from you.