The Informal Continuation: AATIP and the Invisible College // The Global Compact Fusion & Plasma Weapons Investigation

3. The Informal Continuation: AATIP and the Invisible College

3.1 The Transition from Formal to Informal

When AAWSAP formally ended in 2012, the technology assessment did not stop. Instead, it transitioned from a funded, documented program to an unfunded, informal network. Luis Elizondo, who would later become the public face of this network through To The Stars Academy (TTSA), continued a smaller effort focused on military encounters with unknown aircraft.

The effort was, by Elizondo's own description, "unfunded, off the books, operating as a side project outside of the chain of command." He had no formal AATIP job responsibilities — he was "secretly tasked by SecDef" rather than assigned through normal channels. This informal structure is the defining characteristic of the continuation phase.

3.2 The "Confederated Approach"

Elizondo described the network as a "confederated approach" with "folks in the Navy, in DIA, in pockets here and there." The program "survived by keeping a low profile" with an "informal network of colleagues." This description is remarkably consistent with the historical concept of the "Invisible College" — an informal network of individuals who share information and coordinate activity without formal institutional structure.

Established: The "Invisible College" concept has a 380-year lineage: (1) the 1640s original — Robert Boyle, Christopher Wren, and natural philosophers who preceded the Royal Society, meeting informally during "a time when it was very dangerous to be interested in natural philosophy"; (2) J. Allen Hynek's 1967 Invisible College — a deliberately informal UFO research network with Jacques Vallée, which Hynek stated "should never become a formal UFO group. That would defeat its purpose completely"; (3) Elizondo's modern network — the "confederated approach" continuing from 2012 through 2017; (4) the Firmage network — one of the "pockets here and there" from 2016 through 2018.

3.3 "The Talk" — The Recruitment Process

Elizondo's book "Imminent" describes the recruitment process used to bring new members into the network:

Potential recruits are vetted for approximately six months
Vetting ensures technical capability and psychological grounding
The culmination is "The Talk" — the recruit is told that UFOs are real and that AATIP is studying them
The recruit is asked if they still want to sign on
The need for secrecy even within DoD is emphasized as paramount

This pattern is consistent with the recruitment of technical experts into the Firmage network. Extended vetting followed by being told about the technology and the project, with a verbal agreement to participate — no written contract, no formal employment, no paper trail. The recruitment relies on ideological motivation (patriotism, scientific curiosity) rather than financial compensation, consistent with the CIA's MICE framework (Money, Ideology, Coercion, Ego) where ideology is the primary recruitment lever for unpaid participants.

3.4 The Modern Network

The "Invisible College" for advanced propulsion and energy technology spans multiple government agencies and private sector entities:

Government nodes:

DIA: AAWSAP/AATIP — 38 DIRDs, $22M through BAASS
Navy (NAWCAD): Pais patents ($508K testing), "Spacetime Modification Weapon" research
NASA (JSC Eagleworks): Q-thruster, warp field interferometer, Casimir cavity
DARPA: Eagleworks funding for Casimir cavity / warp bubble research
Air Force (AFRL): FPT SBIR awards, Pais transfer, Vanguard programs
ODNI (DS&T): Dr. David A. Honey — statutory authority for private sector technology assessment
DOE (ARPA-E): LENR Workshop (October 2021)

Private sector nodes:

BAASS: AAWSAP contractor (Bigelow, Kelleher)
EarthTech International: Puthoff's company, DIRD author
TTSA: Public disclosure vehicle (Puthoff, Elizondo, Mellon)
InterNASA: Private cut-out for technology assessment (2016-2018)
FPT: SBIR transition vehicle (2017+)
BLP / Brillouin Energy: Energy commercialization

3.5 SRI International — The Institutional Hub

SRI International serves as the institutional hub connecting all major threads of the "Invisible College":

CIA Stargate Project (1970s-1990s): Hal Puthoff led SRI's remote viewing program for the CIA and DIA
AAWSAP DIRDs (2008-2010): Puthoff as DIRD author, connecting SRI to the DIA program
Firmage network: Puthoff imported the Russian gyroscope through his SRI/EarthTech connections
Brillouin LENR validation (2012-2017): Dr. Francis Tanzella and Michael McKubre at SRI validated Brillouin's LENR technology
70 person-years of LENR study: SRI has invested approximately 70 person-years in LENR research since 1989

SRI's role as the institutional hub is not coincidental. It is a private, non-profit research institution with deep intelligence community ties, the capability to conduct classified research, and a culture that accommodates both mainstream and frontier science. This makes it an ideal node for an informal network that needs institutional infrastructure without the visibility of a government laboratory.