system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
eli5: what does a 'think tank' do?

How and why and what is a think tank...
gpt
Think tanks are companies that produce ideas. They employ, depending on their industry of focus some or all of the following: experts with industry experience, scientists, researchers, data analysts, consultants, marketers, writers, and PR people. Some exist to do genuine research and advance the intellectual state of their industry in good faith, for the greater good. Others are "legitimizers for hire", cherrypicking facts and data to back up an existing claim or agenda.