I’m Daveed, founder of the Meta-Layer Initiative.

We’re building a people-centered layer above the web so communities can collaborate with trust, context, and accountability—without being trapped inside one platform.

We urgently need $1,000 by midweek to keep two women developers working and to cover essential AI tooling.

Here’s exactly where the first $1,000 goes:

$500 — Shambhavi (intern support; deadline Dec 17)

$400 — Michelle (support so she can continue working)

$100 — AI tools (OpenAI + Cursor, required for development)

Any additional funds go directly to continuing the meta-layer prototype.

Why this bridge funding matters

We recently lost expected institutional support, creating a significant funding gap. Work like this—meant to benefit communities rather than platforms—is difficult to finance through traditional channels.

This fundraiser is a small bridge to keep real people building.

What we’re building right now

ACTive — a civic trust pilot helping young people discern fact from fiction online (led by Michelle)

Canopi — a browser extension where communities can meet, interact, and collaborate above the webpage (built by Daveed + Shambhavi)

Shambhavi is an intern originally from India and currently studying at the University of Buffalo. Michelle is a developer based in Kenya working on the ACTive pilot.

Original funding target: $2,000

This fundraiser was originally created to cover a slightly larger bridge:

$1,000 — Shambhavi (intern support; enrollment required by Dec 17)

$500 — Michelle (development work supporting ACTive)

$500 — Initiative essentials (admin + tools such as Cursor, ChatGPT, Eleven Labs, Vultr)

As needs have evolved, the immediate priority is the first $1,000 outlined at the top of this page.

Accountability

We will post short public updates showing:

how these funds were used

what shipped in the prototype

what the contributors were able to continue building

If you can contribute, thank you. If you can’t, sharing this page with one person who supports builders genuinely helps.

For more information, visit the Meta-Layer Initiative.