About us
Startup Founder 101 brings together aspiring and experienced tech entrepreneurs to discuss, meet, and collaborate to build great new startups, and to push the local startup ecosystem forward.\
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This group hosts numerous free events throughout the year where you can learn the best practices of starting a company from people who have been there and done that. You’ll have the opportunity to meet local founders and investors, exchange ideas with experts, get feedback on your idea, participate in startup workshops, and more.\
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Typical startup event topics include:\
• Coming up with a strong startup idea\
• Startup legal basics\
• How to pitch your startup\
• Starting a company without quitting your day job\
• How to raise funding for your startup\
• And much more!\
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Join the group to be invited to our next event!
Featured event
FounderX Silicon Valley: VIP Gathering of Global Founders/ Investors
Three days in Silicon Valley. A night of curated introductions, a day of closed-door AI workshops and investor meetings, and a finale at STEP San Francisco with 50+ speakers across four stages.
Not a conference. Not a summit. A working session for the people building the agentic era.
FounderX (FounderX.com) is the exclusive VIP gathering of founders, mentors, investors, LPs, and accelerator leaders from the world's largest startup network.
This highly-curated, intimate 'un-conference' includes:
✅ Practical AI Workshops: Structured, hands-on workshops from the people building and funding the future of startups with AI.
🎉 Curated Networking Events: A welcoming party with party games, a brew hall, and a view of the San Francisco skyline. A private breakfast, lunch, and happy hour. An afterparty at at hip bar in Oakland. And that's just days 1 and 2.
🤝 AI-Assisted Matchmaking: We've partnered with Boardy, an AI Superconnector to help you meet the right people at FounderX and beyond. Plus, every attendee gets 12 months of Boardy Pro for free!
🌎 Access to STEP San Francisco: Day 3 of FounderX converges on STEP San Francisco, where you'll get special access and our own dedicated space at the premier international Silicon Valley conference. 50+ speakers, four stages, and thousands of attendees.
❯❯ Meetup members get $300 off here: https://luma.com/659pksxq?coupon=GJ3H7P
TO REGISTER, YOU MUST RSVP AND PAY AT THE LINK ABOVE. RSVPING TO THIS MEETUP DOES NOT GRANT YOU ACCESS TO THIS EVENT.
Previous speakers for FounderX events include Steve Jurvetson (DFJ), Esther Dyson (Angel & Philanthropist), Jason Calacanis (Author, angel, and "All-In" host), Allison Ellsworth (Co-Founder of Poppi), Evan Goldberg (Co-Founder of Netsuite), and many more.
See all the latest event details at http://FounderX.com (exact details and speakers will not be updated on this Meetup page).
Please note: this event is mainly for Founder Institute investors, alumni, mentors, and leaders - so Meetup availability will expire.
The goal of FounderX is to facilitate meaningful connections and learning across the FI and Decile Group Networks, which span 40,000+ innovators across 100+ countries and 6 continents.
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Upcoming events
5
FI San Francisco Spring 2026 Graduation: Meet the New Portfolio Companies
·OnlineOnlineMeet the newest startups joining the Founder Institute portfolio at the FI San Francisco Spring 2026 Graduation. In this live online event, you'll watch selected founders pitch their companies, hear an inspiring keynote, and learn what it really takes to build a fundable startup. More than a celebration, this is a showcase of real execution and a chance to connect with founders, mentors, and investors shaping the next generation of startups.
❯ Graduation Keynote Address
- Shaun Gold – Chief Evangelist @ OpenVC - Bio:
❯ We Proudly Announce the Following Graduates:
- Oprava (Isaac Mbimi) - Workforce intelligence platform quantifying productivity loss, attrition risk and financial impact
- Precision Wellness (Shenita-Ann Grymes) - Mobile precision-health platform delivering diagnostic testing and personalized prevention plans to underserved communities.
- Proxi AI (Rene Spellman) - Secure executive operations platform automating intake, stakeholder coordination and briefing generation
- The Experience Factor (Nicolette Chambers & Tenille Medley) - Helping independent fitness instructors market, book and monetize culture-driven classes
- Sondare (Camila Loureiro & Daniel Donnelly) - AI-powered investigative journalism platform helping newsrooms organize sources, map relationships and uncover hidden connections
- weRoundUp (Moses Amedonu) - Digital platform automating community savings circles, contributions and payouts without interest or credit checks
❯ What You’ll See:
- 3-minute debut pitches from selected Graduates
- Real-world lessons from completing the FI accelerator
- Insights into what investors look for at pre-seed
- Clear next steps if you want to build a fundable startup
❯ Who Should Attend:
- Early-stage founders preparing to launch their startup
- Founders looking to raise pre-seed funding
- Entrepreneurs validating an idea and seeking real-world benchmarks
- Aspiring founders considering applying to the next Founder Institute cohort
❯❯ This is a live, interactive online event, so be sure to RSVP at https://fi.co/e/403199/meetup to receive the Zoom URL to join us live!
4 attendees
Build a Startup Idea with AI Investors Won’t Ignore
·OnlineOnlineThe gap between a good idea and a fundable startup isn't talent. It's knowing how to test what's real before you invest months into what isn't. AI has made that process faster and more accessible than ever, but only if you know which prompts and workflows actually work. In this session with Jonathan Greechan (Co-Founder and CEO of the Founder Institute), you'll get the exact tools and processes founders are using to run customer research, validate demand, and scope products without burning time on the wrong assumptions. If you've been waiting for a smarter way to start, this is it.
❯❯ RSVP now at https://fi.co/startupwebinar/23361 to get your link and join us live!
What You'll Learn:
- How to use AI to stress-test a startup idea before writing a single line of code
- The prompts that replace weeks of customer and market research
- How to define your first product without a technical background or a co-founder
- The most costly AI mistakes aspiring founders make, and how to skip them entirely
- How to generate real market signals from your idea in days, not months
Featured Speaker:
- Jonathan Greechan - Co-Founder & CEO of the Founder Institute - Jonathan Greechan is the Co-Founder & CEO of the Founder Institute, the world's largest pre-seed startup accelerator. Since 2009, he has grown and scaled the organization to chapters in over 200 cities and over 100 countries, producing over 9,000 portfolio companies with nearly $2BN in venture funding. In his long career in tech and marketing, Jonathan has advised thousands of startups on marketing, growth, and product strategy and has spoken at startup conferences on four continents.
Who Should Attend:
- Anyone who has an early-stage company or a startup idea.
- Anyone who would like feedback on their idea or pitch.
- Anyone that is interested in joining a new startup or looking for a co-founder.
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❯❯ Don’t miss this live, interactive online event packed with valuable insights! RSVP now at https://fi.co/startupwebinar/23361 to get your link and join us live!1 attendee
How to Find the First Customers for Your Startup Idea
·OnlineOnlineYour first customers are often the hardest to acquire, and countless aspiring entrepreneurs give up too early because they haven't properly defined their 'Early Adopter' or run a structured outreach campaign. On this interactive event, Jonathan Greechan (Co-Founder & CEO of the Founder Institute) will share a practical guide to defining and reaching your initial customers, with actionable tactics on how to overcome each challenge you will face. Drawing from his experience working with 10,000+ early-stage startups, you'll get a step-by-step framework and several helpful AI tools to make the process as simple as possible.
❯❯ RSVP now at https://fi.co/startupwebinar/26689 to get your link and join us live!
❯ What You'll Learn:
- A step-by-step framework to find your first customers in places you're already overlooked;
- How to write a three-sentence outreach message that doesn't read like a sales pitch;
- How to build a simple referral loop from your very first customer conversation;
- Which AI tools cut your customer discovery time in half without sacrificing quality.
❯ Who Should Attend:
- Experienced professionals who know their industry but have never sold their own product;
- First-time solo founders who are stuck between building and selling;
- AI-curious professionals who want to use AI to accelerate their go-to-market from day one;
- Pre-revenue founders who need to prove demand before their runway runs out.
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❯❯ Don’t miss this live, interactive online event packed with valuable insights! RSVP now at https://fi.co/startupwebinar/26689 to get your link and join us live!2 attendees
How to Get Customer Feeback on your Startup Idea in the Age of AI
·OnlineOnlineEven in the age of AI, it is crucial for aspiring entrepreneurs to speak with potential customers to gain a deep understanding of their pain points. On this interactive event, Jonathan Greechan (Co-Founder & CEO of the Founder Institute) will share practical insights on how to leverage AI to interview potential customers and glean valuable insights for your new startup ideas - whether you have a product or not. You'll walk away with a step-by-step framework, as well as AI prompts and workflows that anyone can use.
❯❯ RSVP now at https://fi.co/startupwebinar/26691 to get your link and join us live!
❯ What You'll Learn:
- How to use AI to stress-test your startup idea and run faster customer development.
- Specific prompts and tool combinations for market research, competitive analysis, and prototyping.
- How to craft and practice your pitch using AI, including building a full pitch deck with Claude Skills.
❯ Featured Speaker:
- Jonathan Greechan - Co-Founder & CEO of the Founder Institute - Jonathan Greechan is the Co-Founder & CEO of the Founder Institute, the world's largest pre-seed startup accelerator. Since 2009, he has grown and scaled the organization to chapters in over 200 and across over 100 countries, producing over 9,000 portfolio companies with nearly $[total funding] in venture funding. In his long career in tech and marketing, Jonathan has advised thousands of startups on marketing, growth, and product strategy and has spoken at startup conferences on four continents.
❯ Who Should Attend?
- Aspiring founders who want to start a business but lack technical skills
- Entrepreneurs exploring how AI can accelerate their startup journey
- Professionals considering launching a side project or solo startup
- Early-stage founders interested in AI-powered workflows
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❯❯ Don’t miss this live, interactive online event packed with valuable insights! RSVP now at https://fi.co/startupwebinar/26691 to get your link and join us live!
1 attendee
Past events
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