Validate the idea.
Step-by-step business-building sprints to eliminate 'analysis paralysis'. Bootstrap the business and get to work, no theory.
Vibecode a Unicorn with Adeo Ressi, Founder of FI
ai_company_builder activated
9,000+ companies launched
200+ chapter cities
awaiting new founder...
// What you get
Present your progress at a live Feedback Session every week, and mentors rate it. Between sessions, AI tools help you research, draft and practice your pitch. All included in the entrance fee.
Playbook: Your week-by-week plan, built for your idea and stage
AI Assist: Drafts each deliverable with you, from your own answers.
Pitch Gym: Practice on an AI investor that pushes back and scores you.
Frank: Answers any startup question, at any hour, with your context.
40,000+ mentors and investors: The network behind your chapter. The mentors in your sessions rate your work every week.
Oddbox wouldn't exist without the Founder Institute. FI gave me the structure I needed to take Oddbox from idea to an MVP.
Emilie Vanpoperinghe
Founder, Oddbox
Joining the Founder Institute was a defining chapter in my founder journey. The experience, the pressure, and most importantly the mentorship shaped how I think, build, and lead TransTRACK today.
Anggia Meisesari
Founder, TransTRACK
Without Founder Institute, Udemy may have never raised any money.
Gagan Biyani
Founder, Udemy
FI's accelerator was tough, but it prepared me for life as an entrepreneur. The support from local leaders, mentors, and ecosystem partners helped us close our first round.
Renata Redondo
Founder, SleepUp
Global businesses start local, so FI builds sustainable startup ecosystems to help aspiring entrepreneurs. Apply to build alongside top local investors, advisors, and mentors.
Startups Investor & Advisor /Program Director/Conselheiro Fiscal, LGA/Italcam/Mobicity
If you have an idea and want to build a company, apply to the FI Agentic Program: 10 sessions plus Demo Day, a Playbook generated for your startup, Pitch Gym and weekly feedback from mentors. It runs in 200+ cities; apply to the chapter nearest you or to an online cohort.
The entrance fee for the Silicon Valley cohort is $1199 USD USD. It is fully refundable before Kickoff and 75 percent refundable before Session 3. Payment plans are available through Partial.ly (5 percent service fee). Teams of 2 to 3 founders pay 1.5 times the fee and teams of 4 to 5 pay 2 times; the 2.5 percent Equity Collective pledge is per company, not per founder.
Yes. About two-thirds of the way through the program, founders pledge 2.5 percent of future equity to the Equity Collective. It activates only at a qualified financing, carries no board seat or voting rights, and dissolves if the company fails. How the Equity Collective works.
All program agreements are public at fi.co/agreements, including the Entrance Agreement, the only document you sign to enroll, and the Warrant you sign later in the program.
Yes. Come to a free event in your city or online at fi.co/events, where local leaders and mentors take questions, or write to us at fi.co/support.
Join the FI Agentic Program: an AI-powered curriculum, world-class mentors, and free AI agents to turn your idea into a fundable company.
Our programs helped launch Udemy, Esusu, and thousands more, with a portfolio worth an estimated $20B. Yours could be next.
A global network of founders, mentors, and investors building enduring companies, with free AI agents to help you do the work.
