Master the Art of Startup Fundraising
The Startup Funding Bootcamp is an intensive 8-week program to help first-time fundraisers build a fundraising strategy for today's market, and get personalized feedback from investors.
Bootcamp Dates
Bootcamp Cost
Bootcamp Format
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8 weekly online sessions with expert mentors and investors to provide guidance, pitch feedback, and answers to your specific questions
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Intensive, step-by-step process to learn the latest best practices - and keep you accountable!
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Learning platform with AI tools, templates, and frameworks to help you move faster
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Networking and pitch events to help you meet potential co-founders, advisors and collaborators
Who is this for?
Most founders start the fundraising process too early, which can be fatal. That's why we created this bootcamp specifically for:
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First-time fundraisers and aspiring entrepreneurs
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Entrepreneurs about to embark on the fundraising process
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Anyone interested in learning the latest best practices for startup fundraising
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Anyone interested in teaming up with other aspiring entrepreneurs
Build a Strategy for Today's Funding Market
In just 2 months, you'll follow a proven process to:
- Learn how startup funding works and form a fundraising strategy
- Pitch and connect with potential co-founders, advisors and partners
- Build a clear pitch deck with feedback from investors
- Get direct answers to your toughest fundraising questions from both investors AND founders
- Avoid costly fundraising mistakes that can doom your process before it even begins
- Leverage the power of AI to move faster, and smarter
Bootcamp Instructors
Participants will learn and get feedback from over 20 experienced entrepreneurs and investors from the Founder Institute network, with more TBA.
Graeme Ogilvie
Graeme is an experienced financial services leader with a strong track record in global operations, risk management, and client success. He has led large teams worldwide and delivered transformational projects across multiple sectors. Graeme is also a skilled coach and guest lecturer.
Michael Linn
Michael is the Founder and CEO of Creds, a London-based platform revolutionizing music licensing by simplifying and automating processes for artists and labels. Currently raising pre-seed funding with SEIS/EIS tax benefits, Creds targets a £25bn market and aims to capture part of the £500bn online advertising sector.
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I cannot thank FI and its mentors enough for helping me go from idea to launch and now a seed round! Their programs really push you to towards your goals. The mentors at FI were always available for help and support: from reviewing cap tables to strategizing about launch. Without FI it would have been difficult to scale!
Swathi Arulguppe NagendraBettermeal.ai ($500K+ funding) -
The real question is: can the Founder Institute be game-changing for your business? The answer is yes. Without FI, Udemy may have never raised any money.
Gagan BiyaniUdemy (IPO, 2021) -
FI's content and structure were extremely helpful to learn everything in a step by step manner. It saved me a significant amount of time and prevented me from making a lot of mistakes!
Purva GuptaLily ($41M+ funding) -
The biggest challenge I had during fundraising was explaining our value proposition. It was complicated. The advice I got around everything from FI was spot on!
Ernest ChanPredictNow ($750K+ funding)
Startup Funding Bootcamp Schedule
The 8-week online bootcamp consists of live sessions with startup experts and investors, practical exercises, and multiple networking opportunities.
Dates
Kickoff & Funding Checklist
Momentum is critical to fundraising, yet many founders immediately halt their progress by being unprepared. We will start with a quick orientation and then jump right into the requirements for fundraising.
- Kickoff, expectations & meet the cohort
- Startup Funding Checklist and self-assessment
- Identify your gaps
Fundraising Math
In this easy-to-follow introduction to Funding Math, we'll demystify the numbers behind startup fundraising. You'll gain essential skills for understanding term sheets, equity, and valuation.
- What is equity and valuation
- How to figure out how much money you need
- Create a simple ownership chart
Fundraising Process
This session explores the step-by-step process of raising funds and managing investor relationships. You will get insights into investor expectations, legal steps, and communication best practices.
- Overview of the fundraising timeline and key milestones
- Legal and operational steps in closing a funding round
- Prepare a fundraising checklist tailored to your startup
Pitch Deck
This session will cover everything you need to deliver an effective pitch. By the end of the week, you’ll be equipped to tell your story with impact and structure your presentation around what matters most.
- How to pick the right pitch narrative
- Insider tips and tricks from the Founder Institute
- Create a process of continuous pitch improvement
Ask-Me-Anything w/ Angel Investors
Use this interactive session to ask questions and gain valuable guidance for your fundraising efforts. You'll hear directly from angel investors about their investment priorities and decision-making.
- What angel investors prioritize when evaluating startups
- How to build relationships with angel investors
- Engage investors with thoughtful questions
Investor Pitch Feedback Session 1
This is your chance to get personalized feedback from angel investors and sharpen your pitch to clearly communicate your startup’s value. Practice refining your story and delivery to engage more effectively.
- Detailed feedback on your pitch content and structure
- How to improve your storytelling and clarity
- Answer investor questions confidently
Ask-Me-Anything w/ VC Investors
Use this interactive session to ask questions and gain valuable guidance for your fundraising efforts. You'll hear directly from VC investors about their investment priorities and decision-making.
- What VC investors prioritize when evaluating startups
- How to build relationships with angel investors
- Engage investors with thoughtful questions
Investor Pitch Feedback Session 2
This is your chance to get personalized feedback from VC investors and sharpen your pitch to clearly communicate your startup’s value. Practice refining your story and delivery to engage more effectively.
- Receive detailed feedback on your pitch content and structure
- How to improve your storytelling and clarity
- Answer investor questions confidently
Delivered via World Class Tools
Participants get access to the Founder Institute's 'FounderGen Platform' - the world's leading LMS for startup creation.
- Experiential learning and structured, action-oriented sprints
- Embedded videos, templates, and resources to help with every step of the business-building process
- State of the art AI tools to help students augment their capabilities and speed up progress
Powered by the Founder Institute
Based in Silicon Valley, the Founder Institute is the world's largest pre-seed startup accelerator. Since 2009, FI's accelerators have helped new and early-stage entrepreneurs raise funding across nearly every geography, industry, and sector. The company's mission is to empower communities of talented and motivated people to build impactful technology companies worldwide.
7,500+
Portfolio Companies
$1.85BN+
Portfolio Company Funding
200+
Chapter Cities
100+
Chapter Countries
6
Continents
35,000+
Global Mentors & Advisors
Frequently Asked Questions
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The fundraising journey will (typically) last several months. The Startup Funding Bootcamp is suited for both founders actively raising and planning to raise. The bootcamp exposes you to the fundraising methodology and will give you a deep understanding of everything required to raise a round. Some founders are enrolling in this bootcamp to prepare for their fundraising journey. However, there are also other founders actively raising and enrolling to improve their fundraising process (get feedback on their pitch, refine their outreach to investors, etc).
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No. During the bootcamp, participants will meet investors at the weekly session, they are there to give feedback and answer questions, but you should not expect any direct introductions. The Startup Funding Bootcamp is an educational program to teach the latest best practices in startup fundraising.
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There is no specific content you need to review. This bootcamp is centered around educating founders on the best practices around fundraising and helping them prepare accordingly.
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The live sessions are 1 hour long. The first 4 session of the bootcamp are focused on learning. The next four sessions are focused on getting pitch feedback from investors and getting your questions answered.
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All live sessions will be recorded and shared with all enrolled bootcamp founders. Submitting the weekly assignments for the first four weeks will grant you access to the AMA and pitch feedback sessions with investors. It is recommended to attend the live sessions so you can participate in the question and answer portion of the session.
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Yes! Any Founder on the Traction Track who enrolled and paid to join the Founder Institute Core program gets FREE access to the Startup Funding Bootcamp as a free perk.
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There are no refunds for this bootcamp.
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Due to the small size of the cohort, we are not offering any scholarships at this time.
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Yes, each session has a discussion portion to ensure cohort members can get to know one another.
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No, there is no equity component to this bootcamp.
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Please email any questions to bootcamps(at)founderinstitute.com
The Founder Institute is the world’s most proven network to turn ideas into fundable startups, and startups into global businesses. Since 2009, our structured accelerator programs have helped over 7,500 entrepreneurs raise over $1.85BN in funding. Based in Silicon Valley and with chapters across 100 countries, our mission is to empower communities of talented and motivated people to build impactful technology companies worldwide.
