— Founders

Build the startup you always knew you could.

You get the playbook, the operators, and the capital — without giving up the thing that made you want to build in the first place. You run the company. We run alongside.

Apply to the cohort → How we work
01 — Two paths

Two ways in. Same operator support.

Path A

Join one of our originated projects

We have more validated ideas than we can pursue alone. Lead one as the founding operator. You inherit the validation work, the early customers, and the system — and you take the company from there.

See open projects →
Path B

Bring your own idea into the ecosystem

Have a thesis you can't shake? Bring it through FounderDojo, validate it ruthlessly with our framework, and graduate into the studio with capital and operator support behind you.

Apply to FounderDojo →
A founder reviewing a customer call.
founder · cohort review
02 — What you get

Real equity. Real operators. A playbook that actually worked.

  1. 01

    Founder-level ownership

    You're the founding CEO of a real company with meaningful equity — not a side project inside someone else's studio.

  2. 02

    Operators in your corner

    Partners with 20+ years of building. On your weekly calls, in your customer conversations, on the whiteboard with you — not a quarterly check-in from an advisor you barely know.

  3. 03

    A validation framework that works

    Insight-Driven Iteration moves you from idea to paying customer faster than you'd get there alone. Fewer dead ends. Faster learning.

  4. 04

    Capital that respects your time

    Customer revenue from day one, AI-compressed prototyping, and enough capital to extend runway — without the fundraising treadmill.

  5. 05

    A path to a real outcome

    We build companies that reach profitability and scale to $100M+ exits. Real businesses. Real returns. No unicorn-or-bust.

03 — Your first six months

From application to first paying customer.

Week 0

Apply

You submit a 5-minute application. We respond in 5 days.

Week 2

Interview

A working session with two operating partners. We discuss the idea, the market, and you.

Week 4

FounderDojo

You join the next cohort. Validation framework, customer interviews, prototype.

Week 24

First customer

Paying customer in hand, capital deployed, studio support fully engaged.

Ready to build?

Join the next FounderDojo cohort or apply to work with our studio team.

Talk first Apply →