Brilliance — Ignited

Our lab is where problems, research, and solutions all come together. Whether you are incubating a new financial platform for workers in restricted access countries, training mission organizations to operate and own AI platforms, or investing in community projects here in Portland, Oregon, we tackle hard problems and build towards answers that meet your unique needs.

Our lab is where all of it comes together. We find hard problems, research what's possible, and build toward answers — whether that means incubating a new financial platform for workers in restricted-access countries, training a missions organization to own its own AI tools, or investing in a local community right here in Portland, Oregon. Every project starts with a problem worth solving and a team willing to chase it.

Bright ideas put to work across the full spectrum of God’s mission, we call that brilliance ignited.

Brilliance Labs is a nonprofit innovation lab founded by Ahshuwah Hawthorne in 2020 that builds at the intersection of faith, technology, and entrepreneurship. Its foundational philosophy is bright ideas put to work across the full spectrum of God’s mission, Brilliance Ignited. Our five-person team operates six initiatives serving missions agencies and faith-driven entrepreneurs worldwide. The lab incubates new financial platforms for restricted-access regions, trains mission organizations to adopt and own AI tools, operates grassroots grant programs, conducts academic research at the intersection of faith and innovation, and provides specialized consulting for digital currency adoption in cross-border kingdom work. We believe in finding hard problems worth solving and building toward answers through a combination of research, hands-on incubation, and direct community investment. Every project and initiative grows from a genuine problem in the mission world that we’re equipped to help solve. Our six core initiatives are: Thank God for Bitcoin - a media platform on Bitcoin theology and adoption, Frontier Finance Consulting - digital currency strategy for missions, Portland Grants & Community - microgrants and training for local Kingdom entrepreneurs, Bitcoin for Missions - international grants and training for missionaries, Bright Ideas Think Tank - faith and innovation research, and Ignite AI Consulting - AI adoption for mission-driven organizations.