2024 is about to leave, so it’s time to look back, cut losses, and count blessings. Founder Institute also reflected on everything that has happened during the last 12 months. And it was a lot. We’re here to share the highlights about us, our graduates, our partners, and the global startup ecosystem altogether.
This year has been one of hard work, resilience, and progress for early-stage founders around the globe. Despite the challenges of the current economic conditions, founders have shown impressive adaptability, and the trends emerging from our community suggest an optimistic outlook for 2025. Founder Institute’s new cohorts in Greece, Morocco, Milan, Thailand, San Antonio, Los Angeles, South Carolina, and New Orleans, which are about to take off next year, serve as the best validation.
Now, here’s what happened in 2024:
Building Stronger Co-Founder Teams
In 2024, we were once again reminded of the power of a well-rounded team. 85% of our graduates who built successful companies had both technical and business team members. Interestingly, while most of these teams hadn’t been together for more than two years, those with functional diversity and longer-lasting relationships were more likely to cross the finish line. This tendency proves that building complementary and enduring co-founder relationships is a top priority for early-stage startup founders.
We’ve seen firsthand how co-founders who understand each other’s strengths and weaknesses have smoother communication and are off to a better start. Our events have helped thousands of founders meet potential co-founders, validate their ideas, and build the trust necessary to form high-performing teams. In addition, the number of people who completed the Entrepreneur DNA Assessment reached 185K, showing their desire for self-awareness and interest in finding an ideal business partner.
Having the right team makes all the difference, and 2024 reinforced this statement more than ever.
Industries of the Future
Healthtech, biotech, edtech, SaaS, and social networking and news businesses have led the way in 2024, indicating a growing interest in technologies that address real-world challenges. As founders focus on building impactful solutions, these industries have seen increased investment and innovation. It’s clear that founders are prioritizing products that improve lives, connect people, and enhance productivity.
In particular, healthtech and biotech have seen substantial momentum as startups tackle challenges in healthcare delivery, diagnostics, and medical innovation. Edtech continues to expand as remote learning and digital education tools become more sophisticated. SaaS solutions remain a core focus for many founders looking to streamline business operations and enhance efficiency. Meanwhile, social networking and news platforms are evolving to meet the growing demand for authentic and personalized content.
Fundraising Success Stories
This year, Founder Institute companies secured $175 million in total investment.
We also celebrated three major acquisitions:
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Manzil’s Acquisition of Aghaz Invest’s Technology and License
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Generation Food Rural Partners’ Acquisition of Dissolves Inc.
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Evertec’s Acquisition of Zunify in Costa Rica.
Other notable rounds include:
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OCN Raising $86M for gig worker-focused car rentals in Mexico.
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Transtrack Securing $12M to innovate logistics solutions.
And that's not all:
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Orange Charger (FI Silicon Valley), a company making it easier for residential buildings to install EV chargers, raised a $6.5MM seed round.
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Andalin (FI Jakarta), a digital supply chain and freight forwarding platform, raised a Series C Funding Round.
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DisSolves (FI Pittsburgh), a creator of patented biodegradable and edible food packing components, was acquired by Generation Food Rural Partners.
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Leasecake (FI Silicon Valley), a lease and location management solution for multi-unit landlords, raised a $10 million Series A extension round.
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Atomos Space (FI Denver), an orbital transfer spacetech startup, successfully launched two spacecraft and delivered a customer's hosted payload from a SpaceX Falcon-9.
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Endiatx (FI Silicon Valley), a company developing a remote-controlled robotic GI pill, began clinical trials with the prestigious Mayo Clinic (with whom they signed a 15-year partnership agreement).
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Ned (FI New York), a white-label lending platform that makes it easy to qualify borrowers and deploy capital, closed a $4.2MM Seed Round.
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Esusu (FI San Francisco) approached $50BN in new credit tradelines by its renters, and its founders were named to the Forbes BLK50, SVB Catalyst, and Inman Awards.
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Quin AI (FI Turkey), an AI platform that helps businesses predict online visitor behavior, raised $1.5MM in seed funding.
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Wattnow (FI Tunisia), an IoT-based smart energy management solution for businesses, raised a multi-million dollar funding round.
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Slip (FI London), a digital receipt and marketing platform, raised a $2.9MM Seed Round.
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BreachBits (FI Washington DC), an automated cybersecurity testing and assessment platform, raised a Seed Round led by Blu Ventures.
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Scrapays (FI Lagos), a company that empowers waste and recycling small businesses, raised an undisclosed amount of funding from Catalyst Fund.
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Tespire (FI Abuja), a company that equips schools with tablets, internet access, and an all-in-one administration platform, raised Pre-Seed Funding.
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PaintJet (FI Silicon Valley), a robotics company for industrial paint jobs, was named one of the "Top 50 Most Promising Startups of 2024" by The Information.
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Six FI Alumni were accepted to Techstars accelerators, including Revella Health (FI Toronto), dodda.ai (FI Seattle), Autoket (FI Southern California), 40hammocks (FI Silicon Valley), Autoparti (FI Mexico City), and Swyft AI (FI Chicago).
FI alumni's successes are a living proof that even in uncertain economic times, innovative solutions and gritty founders continue to attract investor confidence. The ability to cater to market needs, leverage AI technology, and create scalable solutions has been a hallmark of our graduates in 2024.
Partnerships That Matter
Founder Institute’s influence is amplified through key partnerships, and in 2024, we’ve been proud to collaborate with organizations that share our mission.
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We launched the Gender Equitable Finance & Business Accelerator in Bermuda in partnership with the UNDP
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JP Morgan partnered with us to empower our veteran cohorts, giving former service members the resources and mentorship needed to build successful ventures.
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Additional partners like Startup 425, Rootquotient, Firstbase, and Grasshopper Bank helped provide essential resources, guidance, and tools for early-stage founders.
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We kickstarted new economic development incubators and accelerators in Korea (in partnership with KISED and FI Japan), Nigeria (in partnership with NITDA and FI Abuja), Pakistan (in partnership with NIC and FI Pakistan), and the cities of Bellevue, Kirkland, Redmond, Issaquah, Renton, and Bothell (in partnership with Startup425, Amazon, and Port of Seattle).
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We began new corporate innovation initiatives with Siemens, 10XGrowth, and a major publicly-traded pharmaceutical company.
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We launched a new university incubator with San Jose State University.
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We designed two new programs: Leadership Lab (in partnership with Entrelliance) and "Advisor Lab" (with FI Brazil).
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Our community also thrived through connections forged with platforms like Hustle Fund, GITEX, and Hong Kong FinTech Week. These partnerships are crucial in helping founders access the knowledge, networks, and funding needed to scale their businesses. By working together, we’re building a stronger ecosystem that supports founders at every step of their roadmap.
What’s Trending in Our Community
Founders in 2024 have been eager to hone their skills and strategies. The evidence for their curiosity and ambition is that over 60K people around the world attended our educational events virtually or in-person. Our most popular webinars focused on pitch practice, co-founder networking, investor connections, and fundraising techniques.
Sessions on building an MVP, assembling your first team, and exploring new startup trends saw enthusiastic participation, signaling the ongoing need for practical, actionable advice.
In May, we also kickstarted the Venture Trailblazers Series, which offers fundraising insights from the world’s top investors. They featured names like Warren Packard, Mike Maples Jr, and James Currier and gathered around 5000 attendees in total.
On social media, founders engaged most with content on AI tools, market calculations, and insights into what VCs look for in pitches. These trends reflect the community’s focus on leveraging technology and data-driven strategies to build successful startups. AI tools, in particular, have been an immense force multiplier, enabling founders to automate tasks, gain insights, and enhance their productivity.
Looking Forward to 2025
As we enter 2025, we’re hopeful for what lies ahead. Founder Institute’s biggest program upgrade, FI v5, is set to provide founders with more resources, better mentorship, and tailored support than ever before.
In addition, the changes include over 15 custom GPTs that we’ve built based on the vast dataset and knowledge base that Founder Institute has accumulated over the years. We also released them in public. Below are some of the most popular ones.
Last but not least, we are celebrating 15 years of empowering entrepreneurs and can’t wait to see how our founders will continue to grow and innovate.
With signs of economic recovery on the horizon and a growing appetite for innovative solutions, we’re confident that the future is bright for entrepreneurs who are ready to hustle, adapt, and build.
Watch the Navigating Startup Funding in 2025 - Insights from Jonathan Greechan, Founder Institute CEO here:
Thank you to all our founders, mentors, partners, and supporters who made 2024 a year to remember!
The Founder Institute is the world’s most proven network to turn ideas into fundable startups, and startups into global businesses. Since 2009, our highly-structured accelerator programs have helped entrepreneurs raised over $1.85BN in funding across over 200 cities worldwide.
Learn more about the Founder Institute at FI.co, join an upcoming startup event at FI.co/events, or subscribe to our Insights Newsletter.
