Experiment (website)

Experiment, formerly called Microryza, is a US website for crowdfunding science-based research projects. Researchers can post their research projects to solicit pledges. Experiment works on the all-or-nothing funding model. The backers are only charged if the research projects reach their funding target during a set time frame. In February 2014, the site changed its name from Microryza to Experiment.com.

Experiment
Type of site
Crowdfunding
Available inEnglish
Headquarters
San Francisco
,
United States
URLexperiment.com
CommercialYes
Launched12 April 2012

It was founded in 2012 by Denny Luan and Cindy Wu, former University of Washington researchers. The former name Microryza is inspired by Mycorrhizae and symbiotic fungi that lives in the roots of plants.

Unlike the popular crowdfunding site Kickstarter, backers of Experiment projects do not get tangible rewards for backing. Researchers share the scientific process directly with the backers and become a part of the project.[1][2][3][4]

Experiment charges an 8% fee (5% for Microryza and 3% for payment processing) only if the campaign is successful. If the campaign does not reach the funding goal, no one is charged.[5]

As of Aug 26, 2014, they passed $1M raised on their platform.

As of Aug 7, 2015, more than 5,000 projects were launched and 336 of them were funded.[6]

See also
  • Comparison of crowd funding services

References
  1. "Frustrated researchers unveil Microryza, a crowdfunding site for geeky science projects". GeekWire. April 13, 2012.
  2. Ch, Pradeep; PDT, rasekaran on 04/12/2012 16:39. "Microryza: Crowd Funding for Scientific Research". Ubergizmo.
  3. "Microryza brings crowd-funding to scientific research". New Atlas. April 13, 2012.
  4. Chapman, Lizette (February 5, 2014). "Experiment.com Gains Big Venture Backers To Bring Crowdfunding To Science Research".
  5. "Crowdfunding for Science | Frequently Asked Questions". Experiment - Moving Science Forward.
  6. Woman raised $1.2 million with a spirited 3-minute speech, The New York Times, Aug 7, 2015


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.