Executive Interview Series: Dan Freed on Revolutionizing Brain Health Through Personalized Nootropics

For this edition of our Executive Interview Series, WITHIN’s founder, Joe Yakuel, sat down with Dan Freed, Co-Founder of Thesis — the world’s first personalized brain supplement brand — to discuss the flaws of one-size-fits-all wellness, how personalization is reshaping the industry, and the role of data in advancing cognitive health.

Joe Yakuel: Dan, you’ve built Thesis into a leading personalized nootropics company after your own transformational experience. What drew you to create a data-driven, personalized approach rather than the typical one-size-fits-all supplement model?

Dan Freed: The fundamental problem with most nootropics, and really most wellness products, is that they assume everyone’s brain chemistry is identical. That’s simply not true. When I was experimenting with nootropics in my twenties, I realized that what worked incredibly well for me might do nothing for my friends, or even have negative effects. The question isn’t “do nootropics work?”, it’s “which nootropics work for me?” We’ve tested more than 100 different ingredients on thousands of people, and the data consistently shows that personalization is everything. Our approach uses this massive dataset to predict which combinations of ingredients will be most effective for each individual based on their goals, lifestyle, and how they respond to our starter packs.

Joe Yakuel: Your personal journey from high school dropout to Yale graduate is remarkable. How specifically did nootropics change your cognitive function, and what convinced you this could work for others?

Dan Freed: Nootropics didn’t make me more intelligent, I was just as smart when I was failing in high school. What changed was the availability of neurotransmitters in my brain. For example, ingredients like L-theanine can increase GABA activity, promoting calm focus, while compounds like citicoline boost acetylcholine for better memory formation. Suddenly, I could sit down and study without forcing it. I’d read something once and actually understand it. The transformation gave me momentum in areas where I felt hopeless, allowing me to develop healthy habits like meditation and exercise. That compounding effect was life-changing. But here’s the key insight: it took me months of expensive experimentation to find what worked. Most people try one mushroom coffee or generic nootropic, don’t see results, and give up on the entire category. We’ve systematized that discovery process.

Joe Yakuel: With hundreds of thousands of customers and the largest nootropic dataset in existence, what patterns have you discovered about how different people respond to cognitive enhancement?

Dan Freed: The data reveals fascinating patterns about neurochemistry and lifestyle factors. For instance, people with certain genetic markers respond better to cholinergic compounds like Alpha-GPC or citicoline for memory enhancement, while others see better results from dopaminergic ingredients such as L-tyrosine or mucuna pruriens for motivation. We’ve also found that stress levels, sleep quality, and even exercise habits dramatically influence how someone responds to specific nootropic formulations. Our Clarity formula works incredibly well for people who need sustained focus for knowledge work, while our Motivation formula is perfect for people struggling with procrastination or creative blocks. The key is that we’re constantly learning from customer feedback and optimizing our recommendations.

Joe Yakuel: You recently launched Stasis as a complement to Thesis. How does this address the wellness needs of people taking pharmaceutical stimulants?

Dan Freed: We kept seeing customers who were on medications like Adderall but wanted to try Thesis, which isn’t designed to be taken alongside powerful stimulants. These people were experiencing jitters, crashes, and sleep issues. So we formulated Stasis specifically to be taken with stimulants, using ingredients like ashwagandha to regulate cortisol levels, magnesium glycinate for neurotransmitter balance, and powerful antioxidants such as astaxanthin that mitigate short-term side effects and protect against long-term oxidative stress damage. Research shows that stimulants can increase cortisol by up to 50% and generate harmful free radicals through dopamine oxidation. It’s about supporting people wherever they are in their wellness journey, whether they’re using pharmaceuticals or taking a completely natural approach.

Joe Yakuel: The cognitive enhancement market is growing rapidly, but many wellness-focused consumers are still skeptical. What’s your advice for someone considering nootropics for the first time?

Dan Freed: Start with realistic expectations and quality ingredients. Nootropics aren’t magic pills, they’re tools that work best when combined with healthy lifestyle habits. Look for companies that use clinical dosages and high-quality ingredients. For example, many products contain Lion’s Mane, but you need at least 500 milligrams of high-quality extract standardized to 30% polysaccharides to see benefits. Other effective dosages include 200-400mg of L-theanine for calm focus, 300-600mg of ashwagandha for stress management, or 250-500mg of citicoline for memory support. Most brands use cheap, under-dosed ingredients. Also, be prepared to experiment systematically rather than trying random products. That’s exactly why we created our starter pack system, it lets people discover what works for their unique brain chemistry in an affordable, structured way.

Joe Yakuel: Given the complexity of brain chemistry, how important is having credible scientific advisors? Who’s helping guide Thesis’s research and formulation process?

Dan Freed: Scientific credibility is absolutely critical in this space, and there’s too much pseudoscience and marketing hype around nootropics. We’re currently working with Dr. Ben Rein, a Stanford-trained neuroscientist who’s published over 20 papers on neurobiology and social interactions, and Dr. Perry Mandanis, a pediatric psychiatrist and ADHD specialist from Brown University who’s helped thousands navigate attention and focus challenges. We’ve also worked with celebrity scientists like Dr. Andrew Huberman, we were actually one of his first podcast sponsors, and have backing from investors like NBA star Kevin Love. Dr. Gabrielle Lyon, a functional medicine practitioner, serves as one of our scientific advisors. Having this caliber of scientific oversight ensures our formulations are grounded in real research, not just trendy ingredients.

Joe Yakuel: With your recent funding and scientific advisors from top universities, what’s next for personalized brain optimization?

Dan Freed: We’re just scratching the surface of what’s possible with personalized cognitive enhancement. The next phase involves deeper integration of genetic testing, continuous biomarker monitoring, and even more sophisticated AI-driven recommendations. We’re particularly interested in how genetic variations in COMT, MTHFR, and neurotransmitter receptor genes influence individual responses to different nootropic compounds. We’re also expanding into areas like women’s health and developing stronger community features so our customers can support each other’s wellness journeys. Our ultimate vision is to make optimized brain function accessible to everyone, not just the people who can afford months of expensive experimentation.