Go Beyond Lab: From Idea to Incorporation
An 8-week pre-acceleration programme for aspiring founders in Italy, Türkiye and Morocco, delivered by the Founder Institute and powered by Go Beyond — Sisal's responsible innovation platform connecting startups, companies, and people across Southern Europe and Africa. Validate your idea, build your business case, and pitch to a jury of experts at Demo Day in Milan. Fully funded, no equity taken.
Bootcamp Dates
Bootcamp Structure
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8 live online workshops (~90 min each) led by Founder Institute experts covering ideation, market opportunity, customer validation, business model, and pitch.
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Weekly coaching sessions with a dedicated Innovation Coach across Italy, Türkiye, and Morocco are included throughout.
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Structured Office Hours with the Go Beyond Mentor network, giving access to corporate innovators and operators. Includes Founder Institute’s FounderGen learning platform with curriculum, templates, and milestone-based gamified evaluation.
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In-person Demo Day in Milan with a jury of experts. Up to 5 winning teams share a grant pool of up to €5,000 to support incorporation.
Who is it for?
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Early-stage founders and pre-incorporation teams in Italy, Türkiye, or Morocco with an innovative idea ready to validate. Teams of 2–3 with complementary skills are strongly encouraged, though solo applicants are also welcome within the cohort cap.
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Builders working on AI-Native B2B Products, GreenTech and Circular Economy, or Gaming and Fan Experiences.
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Founders ready to commit 6–8 hours per week over 8 weeks who want structured methodology, hands-on coaching, and direct access to a corporate innovation pipeline through Sisal and Flutter Entertainment.
Go from idea to validated business case to investor-ready pitch in 8 weeks
Through 8 weeks of structured workshops, coaching, and mentor office hours, you will:
- Define a real problem worth solving and identify your customer archetype
- Size your market (TAM/SAM/SOM), map your competition, and design a viable business model
- Run structured customer interviews and refine your idea based on real insights — not assumptions
- Scope a credible MVP with revenue streams, unit economics, and a go-to-market plan for your first 100 customers
- Pitch your project on a Milan stage to a jury of investors and corporate innovators — with up to €5,000 in non-equity grants for winning teams
- Join an international cohort of founders across Italy, Türkiye and Morocco, plus the global Founder Institute alumni network
Meet your Coaches
Participants will work with an international team of experienced founders, operators, and corporate innovators from the Founder Institute network, with deep roots in the Italian, Turkish, and Moroccan startup ecosystems.
Duygu Sefa
A product marketing professional turned entrepreneur, Duygu spent 10+ years in the multinational automotive sector before founding Babonbo, Europe's first baby equipment rental marketplace, now active in 100+ cities. Her experience navigating both corporate strategy and early-stage company building makes her a grounded and practical guide for Go Beyond Lab founders working on sustainable, community-driven ventures.
Alberto Martellini
An innovation advisor with 20+ years in business development, Alberto has worked with top startups across Europe to help them maximise growth potential and secure capital. He brings deep expertise in scaling ventures, building strategic partnerships, and measuring impact, making him an ideal guide for founders navigating the earliest stages of company building.
Youssef Koun
A fintech and financial inclusion specialist, Youssef has spent his career designing innovative financial products and public policy frameworks to bring quality financial services to underserved populations across emerging markets. He has built strategic partnerships with companies and nonprofits alike to create sustainable, impact-driven solutions, bringing a strong social lens to Go Beyond Lab's innovation themes.
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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)
Go Beyond Lab Schedule
The 8-week programme combines weekly live online workshops with FI experts, hands-on team coaching, structured mentor office hours, and milestone-based assignments. It concludes with an in-person Demo Day in Milan.
Program Dates
Onboarding & Ideation
Kick off the programme, meet your international cohort across Italy, Türkiye and Morocco, and learn the FounderGen platform, milestone system, and coaching structure. Run rapid ideation sprints to surface and stress-test your first hypotheses.
- Meet fellow aspiring founders across three markets
- Get oriented on the programme structure, FounderGen platform, and gamified evaluation
- Generate and prioritise initial ideas through rapid ideation
- Set personal and team commitments for the 8 weeks ahead
Market Opportunity (Part 1)
Falling in love with a startup idea can be dangerous. This week you will develop a sharp problem statement and define your customer archetype — the foundation everything else depends on.
- Develop a clear, specific problem statement
- Define your primary customer archetype
- Identify the core assumptions you need to test
- Begin sourcing potential interviewees
Market Opportunity (Part 2)
Size the opportunity, map the competition, and sketch a credible business model. Move from "interesting idea" to "investable opportunity".
- Build a TAM/SAM/SOM analysis grounded in real data
- Run a competitive analysis and identify your differentiation
- Sketch the first version of your business model
- Prepare for customer interview cycles
Customer Validation (Part 1)
Get out of the building. Run structured customer interviews to validate the problem, the customer, and the willingness to pay. Document everything.
- Run a structured interview script with target customers
- Complete a target number of customer interviews
- Capture insights in a structured validation log
- Identify which assumptions held — and which broke
Customer Validation (Part 2)
Synthesise interview insights and refine your problem, customer, and proposed solution. This week separates founders who listen from founders who don't.
- Analyse interview data and surface patterns
- Refine problem statement, customer archetype, and value proposition
- Decide whether to persevere or pivot — with evidence
- Update your business model based on validation findings
Business Model & MVP Scope
Translate validated insights into a credible MVP. Define what you will build, what you will not, and how the economics work.
- Lock the MVP scope — what's in, what's out, why
- Map revenue streams and unit economics
- Build a 90-day execution roadmap
- Identify the minimum traction needed to be investor-ready
Validation Pitch
Founders never stop pitching. This week you will craft a one-sentence pitch, a problem statement that lands, and a go-to-market plan for your first 100 customers.
- Craft a sharp one-sentence pitch
- Build a written and verbal validation pitch
- Define the go-to-market plan for your first 100 customers
- Practice delivery and incorporate peer feedback
Startup Idea Feedback & Demo Day Prep
Final preparation for Demo Day. Pitch to expert mentors from the FI network and the Go Beyond ecosystem, get real-time feedback, and build the investor-ready version of your pitch.
- Pitch to expert mentors and receive real-time feedback
- Build the investor-ready version of your pitch deck
- Refine presentation skills and Q&A handling
- Set the agenda for the post-programme period and Demo Day
Demo Day — Milan
In-person Demo Day in Milan. Selected teams pitch their projects to a jury of experts. Up to 5 winning teams share a grant pool of up to €5,000 to support incorporation expenses (legal fees, company formation, brand and domain registration). Winners also gain access to the Go Beyond ecosystem, pilot/PoC opportunities with Flutter Entertainment, and priority access to the next Go Beyond Call for Startups.
- Deliver a compelling investor-grade pitch in front of the jury
- Demonstrate quality of MVP/prototype, validation evidence, and early traction
- Compete for grants and unlock pilot opportunities with Flutter Entertainment
- Earn official "Go Beyond Lab 2026 Graduate" certification
Join a Global Network
After completing the bootcamp you will immediately get access to additional benefits, like:
- Invites to several private FI networking events with investors in 2026, so you can make important connections
- Early access and priority admissions to FI Core Programs and Bootcamps
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 launch fast-growing, funded technology companies across nearly every geography, industry, and sector.
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Frequently Asked Questions
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Aspiring founders and pre-incorporation teams (max 3 members per team). At least one team member must be resident in Italy, Türkiye, or Morocco. Applicants must be 18+ and able to participate in English. Already-incorporated startups and Sisal/Flutter Entertainment employees are not eligible.
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All workshops, coaching, and Demo Day are delivered in English.
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The programme is fully funded by Sisal (Flutter Entertainment). Participation is free for selected teams.
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Approximately 6–8 hours per week across 8 weeks: 1.5-hour weekly workshops, team coaching, mentor office hours, and assignments. Minimum 75% attendance is required to qualify for Demo Day.
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Applications should align with at least one of: AI-Native B2B Products; GreenTech and Circular Economy; Gaming and Fan Experiences.
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Teams of 2–3 with complementary skills are strongly encouraged as they typically demonstrate higher completion rates. Solo applicants are welcome within the cohort cap. Team-matching is not provided; form your team before applying.
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Two-step process: (1) application form, (2) Founder Institute DNA Assessment — a scientifically validated psychometric tool refined across tens of thousands of founder applications. Selection criteria: founder potential, team quality, innovation, feasibility, and commitment. Each scored 1–10.
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Selected teams pitch in person in Milan during the week of 14 September 2026. A jury of experts evaluates prototypes, validation evidence, and pitch quality. Up to 5 winning teams share a grant pool of up to €5,000 to support incorporation.
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Yes. Grants are non-equity. Flutter Entertainment acquires no ownership or economic rights in resulting entities. Grants are disbursed within 6 months of Demo Day and may require evidence of use.
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All intellectual property developed during the programme remains the exclusive property of participants. A Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) is signed prior to enrolment, governed by the laws of the State of California, covering confidentiality between participants, mentors, coaches, and Founder Institute proprietary materials.
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Official "Founder Institute Go Beyond Lab 2026 Graduate" status, access to the GoBeyond ecosystem, pilot/PoC opportunities with Flutter Entertainment, priority access to the next Go Beyond Call for Startups, and continued access to the Go Beyond mentor network for up to 3 months post-programme.
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Sessions are not recorded without participants' prior consent. Pitches and coaching content are not publicly disclosed without consent, except Demo Day, which may be documented for programme reporting purposes.
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Data is processed in compliance with GDPR and applicable laws in Italy, Türkiye, and Morocco. A detailed Privacy Notice is provided at registration on the FounderGen platform. Founder Institute and Sisal S.p.A. act as independent data controllers.
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Please email any questions to enrollment@founderinstitute.com & info.gobeyond@fluttersea.com