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
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
Grateful to the FI team for their support and belief in our journey, and proud of what we're building at Tespire as we keep pushing forward.
Abdulkadir Suleiman Lapai
Founder, Tespire
There's no better time than the present.
Apply to the Silicon Valley Fall 2026 program today.
Skills are no longer a barrier to entry. Your domain expertise is your unfair advantage, but only if you become AI-enabled.
RECRUIT A TEAM TO START
No Co-Founder? No Problem.
AI tools and agents can get you to first traction and funding. Solo founders can go further than ever without funding or a team.
6 MONTHS TO LAUNCH AN MVP
Launch an MVP tomorrow
Building product is no longer a barrier to entry with AI tools. Every founder can be AI-enabled, and speed is the new moat.
RAISE FUNDING TO LAUNCH
Bootstrap to prove
Bootstrapping is no longer optional - it's required. Prove your business case with real metrics and then raise funding or hire from a position of strength.
Co-Founder & CEO, Founder Institute, GP Founder Capital
Lubna Forzley
Founder & CEO, Stories
Events
Learn from the world's best founders, for free.
1,000+ events per year — online webinars, panels with top investors, fireside chats with successful founders, and networking mixers across 200+ cities. All free, all year.
You don't need to call yourself an entrepreneur yet. You just need an idea, ambition, and the right system behind you.
Employee to Entrepreneur
The Career Changer
You have 5-15+ years of experience and deep domain knowledge in your industry. You've been thinking "someday I'll start something." AI just made someday today. Your industry expertise is the unfair advantage that AI can't replace — we help you turn it into a company.
Solo Founder
The First-Time Founder
You have the idea. You need the system — structure, feedback, community, and the right AI tools to move forward. No co-founder required. No technical background needed. Just clarity, momentum, and a proven process.
AI-Curious
The AI-Curious Professional
You see the AI revolution reshaping every industry and you want to be on the building side, not the sidelines. Learn to leverage AI to create a startup from scratch — even if you've never built anything before.
Your industry expertise is your unfair advantage
AI handles the rest — we help you turn domain knowledge into a company.
No co-founder or technical background needed
Just clarity, momentum, and a proven process to move forward.
From spectator to builder — start from scratch
Leverage AI to create your startup, even with zero experience.
There is a one-time Entrance Fee to start the FI Core Program. This fee is 100% refundable before the 'Revenue & Business Models' session (Oct 01, 2026), so you can make an educated decision on whether or not FI is right for you. According to geolocation we think you are in the Silicon Valley region, which has an Entrance Fee of $799 USD by Apr 26, 2026 ($1199 USD after Apr 26, 2026).
When incentives are aligned, great things happen. That is why FI developed a groundbreaking 'Equity Collective' where your program Leaders, Mentors, and FI HQ are vested in the success of your business - for the long term.
Learn more about the Equity Collective at FI.co/equity.
Our agreements have always been public and freely available at FI.co/agreements.
Yes! Please attend an upcoming Info Session to hear an overview of our programs and chat with our team.
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 9,000 entrepreneurs raise over 2BN 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.
