About M31 Capital
M31 Capital is a research-driven investment firm that identifies paradigm shifts before consensus forms. We operate at the intersection of money, technology, and power—tracking the signals that indicate when conventional wisdom is about to break.
Think of us as the RAND Corporation for venture investing: rigorous, independent, unafraid to examine questions that carry reputational risk elsewhere. Our research briefs have covered everything from the cryptographic implications of quantum computing to the phenomenology of scientific breakthrough. We take heterodox ideas seriously without abandoning analytical discipline.
We are not a traditional venture fund that produces research as marketing. We are a research organization that invests based on what we find.
The Role
We’re looking for a Head of Research to work directly with the CEO in developing and publishing M31’s core intellectual output. This is not a support role. You will be the primary architect of our research agenda—identifying the questions worth asking, conducting the investigations, and producing publication-ready briefs that inform both our investment decisions and our public positioning.
The right candidate thinks like an investigative journalist but operates with the rigor of a research analyst. You’re someone who can spend three months tracking down experts in post-quantum cryptography, synthesize what you’ve learned into a coherent threat assessment, and present it to a room of skeptical allocators—all while exploring whether ancient contemplative traditions might have something useful to say about the nature of insight.
You’ll work across our coverage areas: humanoid robotics, quantum computing, digital assets, defense technology, psychedelics, consciousness research, longevity, nuclear energy, space infrastructure, and others as they emerge. The common thread is paradigm shifts—moments when the world is about to change in ways that most observers are not yet seeing.
Responsibilities
- Develop and execute the research agenda in collaboration with the CEO, identifying high-conviction topics that align with M31’s investment thesis and intellectual positioning
- Conduct deep investigative research including primary source interviews with founders, scientists, policymakers, and domain experts; attendance at conferences and closed-door briefings; and synthesis of academic literature, patent filings, and other technical sources
- Produce publication-ready research briefs in M31’s distinctive format—dense, information-rich, professionally designed documents suitable for institutional distribution
- Lead and moderate panel discussions on research topics, both for internal strategy sessions and external events
- Build and maintain an expert network of subject matter experts, academics, operators, and unconventional thinkers across M31’s coverage areas
- Identify emerging paradigm shifts before they reach mainstream attention, using M31’s signal framework to assess timing and conviction level
What We’re Looking For
The Profile
- An investigative journalist who wandered into finance—or a research analyst who never lost their curiosity about the weird stuff.
- You read science fiction for fun and find yourself annoyed when the author gets the physics wrong.
- You’ve probably gone down a rabbit hole on at least one topic that your friends consider strange.
Requirements
- Crypto-fluent. You understand Bitcoin’s UTXO model, can explain why quantum computing threatens ECDSA but not SHA-256, and have opinions about post-quantum signature schemes. This is table stakes, not a specialization.
- Professional and polished. You can present to institutional investors, moderate a panel with a Nobel laureate, and produce documents that look like they belong in a boardroom. The work is unconventional; the execution is not.
- Intellectually fearless. You’re willing to seriously engage with questions that carry reputational risk—UAPs, psychedelic medicine, consciousness research, the phenomenology of scientific insight—without either dismissing them reflexively or abandoning analytical rigor.
- Data-driven but narrative-literate. You understand that numbers without context are meaningless and stories without evidence are fiction. The best research does both.
- Relentlessly curious. You read widely, ask questions constantly, and find yourself unable to encounter an interesting problem without wanting to understand it deeply.
Questions That Excite You Sound Like
- What if breakthrough scientific insights genuinely arrive from somewhere—and the phenomenology that Tesla, Ramanujan, and Einstein described is accurate reporting rather than metaphor?
- When will quantum computers become cryptographically relevant, and what happens to the ~1.8M BTC in P2PK addresses—including Satoshi’s coins—that cannot be migrated to quantum-resistant formats?
- Why do paradigm-shifting breakthroughs cluster around ascending civilizations, and what does that suggest about where the next ones will emerge?
- Is humanoid robotics a genuine paradigm shift or an overengineered solution—and how do you distinguish live players from dead players in a space where the most impressive demos often come from companies that can’t commercialize?
- What would it mean for innovation strategy if consciousness is fundamental rather than emergent—and why do the world’s contemplative traditions converge on similar conclusions about the nature of insight?
What We’re Not Looking For
- “AI 101” reports. We don’t need another overview of transformer architecture or a summary of what GPT can do. If your writing samples read like they could have been produced by a generalist consultant who spent a weekend on the topic, this isn’t the role.
- Consensus-tracking. We’re not interested in reporting what everyone already believes. The value is in identifying what’s true before it becomes obvious.
- Surface-level contrarianism. Being heterodox for its own sake is as useless as being conventional. We want rigorous analysis of unconventional questions, not hot takes.
- People who need to be told what to research. This role requires intellectual initiative. If you’re waiting for someone to hand you a brief, you’ll be waiting a long time.