Sanctuary Computer is a technology studio based in New York's Chinatown (and remotely, all around the world). Since 2015 we've built web platforms, native apps and connected devices for clients like Google, Stripe, Figma, Mozilla and The Nobel Prize, and we're the software team behind The Light Phone and Mill. We approach building things more like a restaurant than a traditional agency, with an emphasis on hospitality and close collaboration between the client and the craftsperson.
Sanctuary Computer is part of garden3d, a worker-owned creative collective, alongside our sister design studio XXIX and the community spaces of Index.
We are a worker owned creative collective, innovating on everything from brands and IRL communities to IoT devices and cross platform apps. We share profit, open source everything, spin out new businesses, and invest in exciting ideas through financial and/or in-kind contributions.
Our client roster includes Google, Stripe, Figma, Hinge, Black Socialists in America, ACLU, Pratt, Parsons, Mozilla, The Nobel Prize, MIT, Gnosis, Etsy & Gagosian.
We’re the software team behind innovative products like The Light Phone & Mill, and we operate a global, decentralized community space collective called Index Space.
We think of our garden3d as collective for creative people, prioritizing a happy, talented, and diverse studio culture. We work on projects that bring value to our world, and we balance deep care for the work we do with a genuine curiosity about life outside of our jobs.
Check out some of our writing →
https://feed.garden3d.net/p/our-new-deal
https://garden3d.substack.com/p/the-theory-of-heads
https://garden3d.substack.com/p/off-brain
https://garden3d.substack.com/p/survival-theater
https://garden3d.substack.com/p/the-mets-are-the-last-thing-i-believe
https://garden3d.substack.com/p/expansive-brands
https://garden3d.substack.com/p/how-we-gave-away-63k-since-2021
https://garden3d.substack.com/p/managing-is-a-makers-skill
https://garden3d.substack.com/p/a-space-that-holds
https://garden3d.substack.com/p/were-not-a-traditional-agency
SANCTU COMPU - The Safest Place on Earth.
Sanctuary Computer — Development
At Sanctuary Computer we’re building a different type of technology shop – one that prioritizes close collaboration between the client and the craftsperson.
Our projects range from design-forward websites, to robust web apps, to native mobile development.
● XXIX | A people-first design and technology studio
XXIX — ****Design
When we started XXIX in 2013, we set out to create a different kind of design studio and we’ve thrived because we continually ask what a creative practice can be.
We’re building a radically different kind of organization that values autonomy, growth, transparency, and shared responsibility.
Index Space — Community
A network of physical spaces all around the world, Index provides space for the exchange of knowledge and tools.
We nurture trust within the creative community through generosity and abundance of ideas and care.
garden3d TK — Media
At garden3d, we’re in the early stages of building an experimental media company exploring emerging themes related to the evolving landscape of technology, design and culture.
We aim to monetize this outlet, publish books, produce screenplays, and release music.
Plus, our partner organizations →
Mill: The odorless, effortless food recycler
The 2024 garden3d retreat to Yosemite!
Sanctuary Computer's Government Solutions Account Lead has one mandate: win public-sector work we're proud of, and see it through. Cities, states, public universities and agencies are rebuilding the digital services their residents depend on - senior services apps, transit tools, university platforms, economic development sites - and those projects often carry first-year budgets of $500K - $800K. We see more of these opportunities every month. Working in close partnership with our founder & president Hugh Francis, this person builds our government practice from the ground up.
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You can be based anywhere in the United States. A lot of our people are in New York and there's some gravity here, and New York City and State are natural first markets, but we're pursuing public-sector work nationwide. If you're the right person, we want to hear from you.
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This role works with our Head of Technology, studio leads, developers, designers, our operations team, procurement officers and public-sector clients.
This person can read a 90-page RFP on Monday, walk a city CIO through a React Native architecture on Wednesday, and file a compliant bid on Friday.
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This role sits squarely within Sanctuary Computer. The government work we pursue is technology work first: web platforms, mobile apps, headless CMS builds, integrations and accessibility, with our sister studio XXIX bringing design and brand when a project calls for it. So this is a technical sales role. This person has to be able to sell React, React Native, a modern CMS and everything that comes with public-sector software (accessibility, security, privacy, AI governance) to a buyer who has been burned by vendors before.
This is an entrepreneurial seat. We have the team, a track record with clients like Google, Stripe, Brooklyn Museum and The Nobel Prize, our SAM.gov registration, and a steady stream of RFPs that fit us well. What we don't have yet is the public-sector past performance many RFPs require, or someone whose whole job is to win this work. The ideal candidate looks at that gap and sees a civic technology practice they can build into one of the best in the country, and get paid well for it.