Benjamin James Royer, PhD
Founder and Principal Consultant
Benjamin James Royer holds a PhD in Human Ecology from Cornell University and a Master of Public Administration from the Cornell Institute for Public Affairs (CIPA). His doctoral training examined the reciprocal relationships between individuals and their environments, a framework that now informs his approach to technology governance, disability rights, and organizational design.
Dr. Royer is the developer of the Cognitive-Capital Mediation (CCM) framework, which provides a theoretical foundation for understanding how AI tools mediate access to social, economic, and institutional capital for neurodivergent individuals. The framework draws on Robert Putnam’s social capital theory and is anchored by empirical case study research documented in the forthcoming work Signal and Noise.
He is also the architect of the Cognitive Prosthetic, an AI integration toolkit designed for behavioral health organizations. Originally developed for intensive outpatient program settings, the toolkit addresses the regulatory, safety, and ethical considerations specific to deploying AI as cognitive accommodation in clinical environments where neurodivergent patients are the primary population served.
Dr. Royer’s consulting practice is informed by a distinctive combination of credentials: doctoral-level research methodology, published scholarship in social capital theory and technology governance, extensive experience in consumer protection and regulatory advocacy, and direct lived experience as a neurodivergent individual who uses AI as cognitive accommodation for executive function challenges.
He is the founder of Neurodivergent Minds Inc., a Wisconsin nonprofit corporation focused on research, policy, and advocacy for neurodivergent communities, and the creator of the NerdyADHD.org community platform and the Civic AI Accountability Standard (CAASNow.org) policy framework.
Methodology
Foundations Technology operates at the intersection of three disciplines that rarely occupy the same room: disability rights law, AI governance, and clinical practice. Most consulting firms bring expertise in one of these areas. The organizations that need help most urgently need all three addressed simultaneously.
The methodology is research-first. Every engagement begins with the same question a doctoral researcher would ask: what does the evidence actually show? Before recommending a framework, auditing a platform, or training a staff, the existing landscape is mapped with the rigor of an academic assessment and the pragmatism of a consultant who understands that the deliverable has to work on Monday morning.
The Cognitive-Capital Mediation framework provides the theoretical backbone. Published scholarship grounds the consulting recommendations in peer-reviewed methodology rather than industry opinion. The Cognitive Prosthetic toolkit provides the implementation architecture. And the lived experience of building and using these tools as a neurodivergent individual ensures that the work is not theoretical abstraction but tested, practical infrastructure.
Four Pillars, One Mission
Foundations Technology is one component of a four-pillar ecosystem designed to serve neurodivergent communities from direct individual support through systemic policy change.
The Nerdy Brand Series
Direct community engagement through NerdyADHD.org and future condition-specific sites. Accessible, identity-affirming resources for neurodivergent individuals. Operated as a program of Neurodivergent Minds Inc.
Neurodivergent Minds Inc.
A Wisconsin nonprofit corporation focused on research, public policy, and fundraising. Publishes original scholarship, engages in legislative advocacy, and develops free compliance tools.
Foundations Technology
The commercial consulting practice. Expert guidance for organizations that need to get AI integration, ADA compliance, and digital accessibility right.
CAASNow.org
The Civic AI Accountability Standard policy platform. Houses the Algorithmic Civic Impact Review (ACIR), the Civic Technology Integrity Review (CTIR), the Royer Diagnostic Template, and model legislative language including the Civic AI Accountability Act of 2026.
Foundations Technology LLC is a commercial entity affiliated with Neurodivergent Minds Inc., a Wisconsin nonprofit corporation. The entities are legally and financially separate, with the same individual serving as founder of both. All interentity transactions are conducted at arm’s length and documented.