Ashkan Bonakdar Shirazi

Chief Human Resources Officer at FANAP, and my boss since the beginning of 2025. Mohammad 🞶 introduced us to help save me from the military service I was otherwise doomed to face. Initially, I was tasked with creating a simple learning system using a Minecraft-like game to teach programming. I was then surprised to learn that they wanted to create a clone of School 42, and I was assigned to that project. It was a wonderful opportunity—I had always felt the need to fix education, and here I was given the chance, so I took it. Over time, our conversations and the departure of Mohammad Reza Vahedi led him to trust me with the full-scale development of 1285 🞶, which evolved into something entirely its own, distinct from 42.

What I admire about Ashkan is his vision for greatness. His choice to name the place 1285, rather than using a techno-centric name, fascinated me from the very beginning. Only someone with exceptional taste would name a revolutionary new space after the year of Iran’s intellectual revolution. He, too, has long admired Xerox PARC and Bell Labs, so we naturally bonded. When Mohammad 🞶 and Mohammad Reza Vahedi left the project, our shared passion for a system free from stress, tests, gamification, and the like took root, and 1285 🞶 became a place aimed at propelling civilization into the future.

What I am most grateful for while working under Ashkan is his support in allowing me to conduct any form of experiment or research I desired. He supported me even before @shahab and helped me excel. He shielded me from the anxieties that an employee would typically be expected to manage for an employer, never showing any sign of distress himself, and giving me the freedom to explore and dig deeper. That kind of support is truly rare. Every Da Vinci needs a Medici, every Ive needs a Jobs—and I could not be more satisfied with my working conditions or the generous support Ashkan so freely pours upon me.

Another notable thing about Ashkan is that he reminds me of my Dad 🞶. His office, his taste, the way he manages his emotions, the workplace atmosphere, how he interacts with people, his ideas, perspectives, analytical style—there is something they share. I later discovered that his father is a building regulations author, just like my father. Perhaps that explains a lot about these shared traits.