Turn your startup idea into a reality
A 12-week pre-accelerator program tailored towards navigating early-startup practices, building an MVP, and growing traction. We invest $25k or $125k into the top graduates.
Cohort 10 — February 2025
To date, we’ve invested $25k or $125k into 100+ companies from Founder University.
What's included?
What you'll learn in the 12-weeks
Build an MVP or iterate on your product
Hone in your target customers and business model
Onboard early users and improve marketing and sales efforts
Sharpen your fundraising pitch
Participate in a passionate community of builders holding each other accountable & celebrating wins along the way
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Overview of the 12-week format
Weekly Live Session (Monday)
Attendance Required
60 minutes a week (Monday)
Weekly presentations from industry experts
Review activities and learnings
Founder Q&A with the LAUNCH team
Weekly Check-In (Thursday)
Attendance encouraged
60 minutes a week (Thursday)
Discuss learnings with the LAUNCH team & cohort members
Review activities and learnings
Network with other founders
Asynchronous Learning
Expect 5-10 hours of videos + reading each week
Additional hours spent on weekly activities that focus on building an MVP
Community
Collaborate with cohort members
Interaction with other founders in the portfolio
Knowledge sharing and live Q&A
Curriculum
What you'll learn each week
Foundational Knowledge
Being a Founder
Building an MVP
Business Model
Customer Profiles
Validation Research
Metrics & TAM
Iterating on MVP
User Feedback
Competitive Matrix
Perfecting Pitch
Accelerator Prep
Where founders
worked previously
See what Founder University alumni have to say
During the program we went from one PT and one FT Co-Founder to 2 FT Co-Founders, launched our site, identified new teammates, found a niche market to test and so much more. It was a great way to stay accountable and meet so many driven fellow founders.
The focus on customer conversations and traction are super useful! This program was the accountability partner I needed.
I’ve learned a lot about startups from some amazing books, videos, and podcasts, but I still felt like I was missing how to best prioritize the wide variety of tasks every founder needs to do. Founder University provided me with clear, actionable and proven steps to launch and grow well.
It's a great program, especially for foreign founders. I'm not from Silicon Valley or the US, so for me to be able to build a network in Silicon Valley with other founders was super valuable. I'd highly recommend it if you’re just starting out on your founder journey.
The most valuable part for me was how actionable every live session was. After the call I had actual steps and processes to follow rather than each one saying the same things, like in many other startup workshops I've attended.
Most valuable part was getting tactical advice to set up some of the key systems that are needed to grow a startup. Landing pages, search advertising, accounting/record keeping. I was able to immediately put these into practice.
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Tuition: $500*
*The $500 will be returned to you if you attend all the required live sessions.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does Founder University cost?
$500, after you are selected.
If you attended all live sessions, we will return the $500!
We simply want to ensure founders have skin in the game and are motivated to finish.
What are the investment terms?
Our Founder University standard investment is $25k for 2.5% or $125K for 7%. We invest in the top 10 percentile of companies per cohort.
Can I apply if I don't have an idea for a product?
Yes!
We will briefly touch on ways to come up with an idea, but you will need to make a decision quickly as this course is hands-on and moves very FAST!
Some founders are just starting to build, others have a product in market and early customers.
What happens if i need to skip a required session?
Attendance is tracked at the company level.
As long as 1 founder participates, the company gets credit for that session.
I have several customers and some recurring monthly revenue — should I apply?
Congratulations!
Yes, you can still apply!
Coursework is self-guided so you can skip sections and focus on areas most relevant to your business and stage.
Founders with traction report immense value from the program -- including the content, the community, and the accountability.
How many startups will be accepted?
Each cohort will have about 200 companies.
Acceptance notifications will be sent a couple weeks prior to the kickoff of each cohort.
If you are not accepted — please apply again for the next cohort!
Are there any prerequisites to attend Founder University?
No.
We prioritize teams of multiple builder founders. Builders may be developers, UI/UX designers, growth hackers.
When is the deadline to apply?
Deadline to apply is 2 weeks prior to the kick off of the next cohort.
Who from the company can participate in founder university?
All founders are welcome to participate! Once a company has been accepted and onboarded, you'll have the opportunity to add your cofounders.
Is Founder University in-person or remote?
The program is remote, all live sessions are on Zoom.
However, there is an in-person kickoff at the start of each cohort.