Founder Connect Lab
✨ What is Founder Connect Lab?
Founder Connect Lab is a structured, community-driven collaboration program designed to help early-stage founders and builders find potential cofounders or core collaborators through short-term, meaningful work.
Rather than relying on traditional networking or surface-level matching, participants connect through real collaboration — building together, testing working dynamics, and exploring long-term partnership opportunities in a low-risk, high-trust environment.
⚙️ How It Works
📝 Participants register by submitting a short introduction deck (Jan 29 – Feb 10):
Submit your deck here
🚀 Founders / Project Leads
1–2 slides introducing your startup idea
Your problem space
What kind of collaborator you’re looking for
🛠 Builders / Collaborators
1–2 slides introducing your background
Skills and interests
What types of projects excite you
These profiles help ensure thoughtful, high-quality matching across the community.
🎤 Pitch & Connect Session (Feb 11)
Founders and builders meet during a live Pitch & Connect event.
Each participant gets 3–5 minutes to:
Present their project or profile
Share what they’re looking to build or join
This is followed by structured breakout sessions for open conversations and initial matching.
🧪 Collaboration Lab (Feb 12 – Feb 27)
After the Pitch & Connect session, participants select 1–3 collaborators and define a short collaboration plan.
Teams work together on 1–3 focused tasks, such as:
Building a prototype or feature
Conducting user interviews
Creating a pitch deck
Running a growth or validation experiment
Exploring product or market fit
🎬 Demo & Reflection (Mar 2)
At the end of the Lab, teams reconvene for a group wrap-up session to reflect on:
What they built or explored
What worked well
What didn’t
Whether they plan to continue working together
🔁 Multiple Matches Encouraged
Founders may collaborate with one or multiple builders.
Builders may join more than one project.
The Lab is designed to encourage exploration and reduce pressure around “finding the one” immediately.
👥 Who Should Join?
🚀 Founders / Project Leads
Have a startup idea, concept, or MVP
Are looking for a technical, product, or business cofounder
Are open to experimentation and feedback
Can commit to a short collaboration cycle
🛠 Builders / Collaborators
Curious about startups or early-stage teams
Want to try before committing long-term
Have skills in tech, product, design, growth, strategy, or ops
Interested in real-world startup experience
🎁 What You’ll Get
Access to high-quality early talent
Real proof-of-work team validation
Tangible progress on your idea
Potential long-term partners
🗓 Timeline
📌 Jan 29 – Feb 10: Registration & Profiles
Participants register and submit a short introduction deck. Founders share their project and what they’re building; builders share their background, skills, and interests.
📌 Feb 11: Pitch & Connect Session
Founders and builders meet during a live Pitch & Connect event to present their projects or profiles and begin initial matching through structured conversations.
📌 Feb 12 – Feb 27: Collaboration Lab
Matched teams work together on focused tasks to test working dynamics, team fit, and long-term alignment.
📌 Mar 2: Demo & Reflection
Teams reconvene for a group wrap-up session to share what they built, what they learned, and whether they plan to continue working together.