Today, the Founder Institute, the world's premier idea-stage accelerator and startup launch program, is excited to announce that we are now accepting applications for the Seattle Spring 2026 Semester!
If you want to build a startup in Seattle and could use expert training and feedback, then apply to the Seattle Founder Institute today, or attend a free event.
Those who apply by the Early Admissions Deadline (Mar 01, 2026) will have their application fees waived (typically $50), and if you enroll by the Early Deadline you are also eligible for Founder Institute Fellowships.
Since launching in Seattle in 2009, the Founder Institute has helped launch several promising companies in the region, and our efforts in Seattle have also been profiled by several high profile media channels.
To celebrate the launch, the Seattle Founder Institute will host several free startup events for the general public, where you can meet top entrepreneurs and learn more about the program:
- From Idea to Startup Team: Meet Your Future Co-Founder: 5:00pm, Apr 06, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/392195
- Founder Institute Online Information Session: https://FI.co/infosession
- Stuck Without a Startup Idea? Build One That Fits You: 5:30pm, Apr 07, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/390128
- How Multiple Pivots positioned Checkbox as the ‘Legal Front Door’ for Corporations: 5:00pm, Apr 13, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/389463
- Real Startup Lessons From FI Alumni Across the World: 9:00am, Apr 14, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/390749
- How to Go From Raw Idea to Polished Pitch using AI: 9:30am, Apr 20, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/395777
- [Restricted] VIP Pitch Lounge: Pitch Live and Get Feedback from Investors & Advisors: 9:00am, Apr 21, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/395608
- Turn Your Expertise Into an Audience on LinkedIn: 9:00am, Apr 27, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/392400
- How to Overcome the Fear of Starting Your Own Company: 9:00am, Apr 28, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/394030
- How to Get Your First 10 Customers Without a Marketing Team or Budget: 9:30am, May 04, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/394551
- How to Choose the Right Startup Idea Before You Build: 5:00pm, May 18, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/390299
- [Restricted] VIP Pitch Lounge: Get Unfiltered Feedback from Global Investors & Advisors: 9:00am, May 26, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/395464
- Inside the Founder Institute: Real Stories From Alumni: 9:00am, Jun 02, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/390481
- Startup Advisors 101: How to Find Advisors and Maximize their Impact: 5:30pm, Jun 08, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/388431
- Turn Startup Hesitation Into Action: A Founder Mindset Framework: 5:00pm, Jun 15, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/393221
- Stop Guessing, Start Raising: An Investor Q&A : 5:00pm, Jul 06, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/392825
- Stop Overthinking and Build a Great Startup Idea: 9:00am, Jul 20, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/390619
- From Idea to Action: The Startup Mindset : 5:30am, Aug 10, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/393344
- Meet FI Alumni Founders: High-Growth Startups Panel : 9:00am, Aug 10, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/391171
- Build a Startup Idea Investors Won’t Ignore: 5:00pm, Aug 18, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/391256
- What Makes Investors Say Yes: Startup Funding AMA: 9:00am, Sep 01, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/392961
- Break the Idea Loop and Decide What to Build: 5:00pm, Sep 21, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/391540
- From Idea to Traction: Lessons From Global FI Alumni: 5:30pm, Oct 05, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/390895
- From Dreamer to Doer: Build the Founder Mindset: 9:00am, Oct 13, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/393474
- From Founder to Funded: Interactive Q&A with Top Startup Investor: 9:00am, Nov 03, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/393075
- From “Maybe” to Momentum: Building a Great Startup Idea: 5:00pm, Nov 17, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/391410
- From First Idea to First Funding: Global Alumni Stories: 9:00am, Dec 01, 2026 (America/Los_Angeles): https://FI.co/e/391021
Leaders of the world’s fastest-growing startups have used the Founder Institute to transition from employee to entrepreneur, test their startup ideas, build a team, get their first customers, raise funding, and more - like Udemy, Realty Mogul, iCarsClub, Itembase, goplaceit, and Appota. Based in Silicon Valley and with chapters across 200 cities and 100 countries, the Founder Institute's mission is to "Globalize Silicon Valley" and create sustainable startup ecosystems that will create one million new jobs worldwide.
Running the Founder Institute's efforts in Seattle are local startup leaders Aswin Pranam (Senior Product Manager - New Ventures, McKinsey), Raghav Nair (Services Test Engineer, The Pokémon Company International), and Robert Le (Senior Analyst, Emerging Technology - PitchBook).
In addition, some of Seattle's top entrepreneurs will mentor founders in the program, providing them with expert training, feedback, and evaluation. The list of mentors for the Seattle Spring 2026 includes:
- Allison Byers: Founder & CEO, Scroobious
- Amit Gupta: Sys Dev Manager, Amazon
- Andrew Klein: Founder, Zccounting
- Aniket Naravanekar, Skillsheet
- Ankit Srivastav
- Aspen White: Cofounder and CEO, Aerware AI
- Bill Bryant: General Partner, Threshold Ventures
- Carmela Fortin: CEO, Seattle Startup Coaches
- Carson Nye: Investor, Two Ravens
- Chloe Feingold: Financial Advisor, Edward Jones
- Collin Dayley: Founder, Collin Dayley Coaching
- Dave Cotter: Owner, Kelsor Ventures LLC
- David Jorjani: Founder, Qatalyst Labs
- David Abu: Snr PM, Microsoft
- Dominique Simmons: Founder and CEO, CX UX Spark
- Evan Poncelet: evan@dreamward.vc, Dreamward Group / Venture Black
- Gabriela Camilli
- Gaurav Malhotra: CMO, PickMyCar USA
- Gillian Muessig: Co-Founder, Moz
- James Jenkins: Engineering Manager, Andrews Cooper
- Jay Goyal: President, Actively Learn
- Jen Haller: Chief of staff, Ascend VC.
- John Kinsella: Senior Engineering Leader, AWS
- John Robinson: Founder and Owner, Resolution Photomatching
- Jonathan Greechan: Co-Founder & CEO, Founder Institute, GP Founder Capital
- Kevin Chan: Director, Product Marketing, Fleetio
- Kt Mc Bratney: GP
- Leila Ergul Demir: Founder, Partner UP
- Levi Velez Reed: Venture Partner, Startup425
- Louis Newkirk: Co-Founder / City Leader, Venture Black / Founders Live
- Luke Arrigoni: Founder / CEO, Loti
- Marc Krejci
- Michael Avent: Partner, Perkins Coie LLP
- Michael Dryja: Principal and Registered Patent Attorney, Law Offices of Michael Dryja
- Mikaela Kiner: CEO & Founder, Reverb
- Nick Hughes: Founder & CEO, Founders Live
- Nicole Doyle: Founder, CEO, Aspir
- Nishanth Lingamneni
- Noemi Ceapa: Founder / CEO, The Consulting Studio
- Richard Bristol, Bristol Advisory
- Rick Graham, Radd Studio Inc.
- Ryan McRobert: Partner, Fenwick & West
- Shaahin Cheyene: Founder and President, Podcastcola Inc.
- Shama Keskar: Cofounder & CEO, VoxAI
- Symon Perriman: CEO & Founder, FanWide
- Taylor Black: Principal Program Manager, Office of the CTO Incubator , Microsoft
- Tony Nguyen: Founding Partner, TKN Tyson LLP
- Yoko Okano: Co-founder, First Row Partners
- And many more to be announced.
The Founder Institute is the most challenging and effective step-by-step startup launch program for talented and motivated aspiring entrepreneurs. If you are serious about launching a startup, the Founder Institute can give you the structured process, constant feedback and evaluation from expert mentors, and global network of entrepreneurs you need to start an enduring company. In addition, the Founder Institute is the only program of its kind that focuses on people versus ideas, accepts founders with day jobs, and shares equity with all participants.
