> NeXT was like graduate school, bringing together a high concentration of some of the brightest and most innovative technical minds

This line really interests me. As someone graduating pretty soon - are there tech companies out there that that still have this culture? Everything seems marketing / product focused today. Besides going to graduate school, does anyone here feel like they are at a company like this?

I think within big tech companies (Google/Apple/MS/etc.) you can find teams that have this kind of culture. IMO any team that does serious system programming (Compilers/OS/Libraries/etc.) should have it.

Chatting with national lab folks gave me a feel like this. Especially LANL.

I suppose Bell Labs might feel the same. I have a prof who goes to work there on summers occasionally taking a couple undergrads with him. He is one of the best teachers.

Yes, research labs like CERN have that culture. Startups, particularly those sharing incubator space, are often friendly. (I'm at a startup now, and we play table football every lunchtime).

Some small DoD S&T/R&D contractors have similar culture, but they can be hard to find.