Founders Forum Group

Building a company is hard. We’ve been there. And we want to make it easier. We join founders early on their journey and we stay by your side as you build, navigate the ups and downs, and go on to do great things. We’re a community of B2B SaaS experts, founders and operators here to support you every step of the way. Forum Ventures is the leading early-stage fund, program and community for B2B SaaS startups. Founded in 2014 as Acceleprise, we’re on a mission to make the B2B SaaS journey easier, more accessible and successful for early-stage founders, through pre-seed and seed-stage funding, high touch programming, corporate perks and introductions, and an active SaaS community. Forum For Founders, our pre-seed program, provides founders with $100k in funding and 15 intense weeks of talks, events, mentorship and 1:1 guidance focused on go to market and fundraising. Forum Seed, our seed fund, backs exceptional SaaS startups at the seed-stage both from within and outside of our pre-seed program. With over 250 portfolio companies, Forum founders have gone on to raise from NEA, Andreessen Horowitz, Uncork Capital, 8VC, Founders Fund, Menlo Ventures, Canaan, Bowery Capital, Susa Ventures, Salesforce Ventures, SV Angel, True Ventures and many more. Our private peer community for Innovation executives -- The Innovation Forum -- brings together like-minded intrapreneurs from all backgrounds to share best practices, insights, and advice, and support one another. In addition to our incredible peer community, members get access to industry trend reports, collaborative events, emerging technology, and startup introductions.

Pioneer is a home for founders on day 0. We believe there are thousands (maybe millions!) of potentially great founders around the world who don't have the resources or opportunities to take the leap to start companies. We scour the Internet to find those people, bring them into our community of founders, help them incorporate, fund them, put them through a 2-month accelerator program, introduce them to experts in their field, and much more. In our 3 years since launching, we've funded 200+ founders from 50+ countries. Our Pioneers have gone on to raise from Sequoia, a16z, Y Combinator, Khosla Ventures, General Catalyst, Village Global, and many more VCs & angels. We're a small team of 5 who are optimistic we can find brilliance in places the world has overlooked. OUR CHALLENGES Pioneer isn't just an accelerator - it's a generator. We want to motivate people to become the best versions of themselves, to take their crazy ideas more seriously, and to make betting on themselves less daunting. If we do what we've set out to, we'll not just fund successful startups that might not have otherwise worked out - we'll fund ones that wouldn't have existed at all. We're constantly asking ourselves: How do you reach ambitious outsiders who aren't in any mainstream communities? How do you motivate people to take the leap to work on their own projects, and keep making progress? How do you correctly identify impressive progress at scale? What can we do to make our Pioneers as successful as possible? If these problems sound interesting to you, reach out: jobs@pioneer.app. WORKING AT PIONEER We value autonomy over consensus, speed over correctness, and being different & experimental. If given the choice between a known good and a project that has a small chance of being wildly successful, we'll pick the latter. We're data-driven on our high-level numbers, but trust our instincts. We care more about output than setting rules.

Newchip is a virtual startup accelerator that provides world-changing early-stage companies with the software tools, training, mentorship, and the investor network necessary to successfully raise capital, build, and scale their businesses to eventual exit. We're in 100+ countries and have a portfolio of over 2,000 startups that have raised $1B+ in funding since our launch in 2019. Do you love Shark Tank? Imagine every day being like an episode but on a global scale, that's what we do. We recruit top startups and we launch virtual cohorts each month from our HQ in Austin, TX, with a goal of coaching each to a point of invest-ability. We then invest in our top program graduates alongside our 3,000+ investor network and work with them until exit. -We're a veteran founder team with decades of experience, acquisitions and exits under our belts, and we're looking for the next member of our team that meets both our core values and can add their skillset to our melting pot of diversity. -We're only recruiting entrepreneurial and driven individuals who are in it for the long haul to reach an IPO and that want to truly assist startups to drive results that create investment returns to our investors and investor partner network. -If you're looking to make a difference in the world and learn in 1 year what most learn in 5, we're here to provide the mentorship, leadership, and potential to make that dream a reality - if you're here looking for a 9-5, our company isn't for you. Apply today to join the 100+ employees in our HQ in Austin, Texas, or join one of our remote teams around the globe!

firstminute capital is a $320m sector-agnostic seed fund backed by 120 unicorn founders, including over 20 founders of $10bn+ businesses. Our General Partner Brent Hoberman is a double unicon founder. Yet, we are more than a fund. We’re an ecosystem of entrepreneurs from all over the world who, facilitated by firstminute capital’s team, come together to help one another, turn vision into reality and create the future. Our community is our edge. It is the source of the transformational support we offer to our partners who are warmly welcomed inside. An invitation into the firstminute capital community is secured by those with a special kind of spirit, not just a solid spreadsheet. A rare breed driven by a powerful characteristic we call, ‘Magnetic Ambition.’ Those with it often don’t recognise it in themselves, yet they are propelled forward by it, every day. We see it in their ability to capture hearts and minds with their vision, their belief and their commitment. When we find a founder with Magnetic Ambition, we open the door to the firstminute capital community and we give them everything they need. At your service What can founders expect from working with us? First of all, our 9-person investment team will fight for founders. Between us, members of the team have backed 10 unicorn startups at seed; we have IPO-ed companies; we have started companies; we have fundraised ourselves and we have failed and picked ourselves up again. So we are all here to help with advice, strategy brainstorming, product workshops, introductions to customers, raising a Series A or just being there for you in the tough times as well as the good times. If we can't help, we'll know someone in our extensive network who can and we'll make that intro. On top of the investment team, founders also get the whole "platform" team, which is another 11 people dedicated to helping founders scale their business and help with areas such as hiring and marketing. Our goal is to be the most helpful seed fund in Europe. We love to help founders build. Network effects At firstminute, we see ourselves as collaboration catalysts. We act to unlock the value our the community and bring our own expertise to bear when the time is right. Thanks to our 120 unicorn backers as well as a network of top CEO supporting us, firstminute has an extensive global reach. We like to bring on our investors - some of the top angels in the world - into our deals and as advisers to supercharge companies. firstminute's co-founder is Brent Hoberman, who after founding and exiting two unicorn startups himself created a network of companies under the 'Founders' umbrella. These include a world-class event series called Founders Forum as well as a consultancy, a recruitment firm, a charitable arm and Europe's largest incubator-accelerator. This whole ecosystem is part of our network, which helps with everything from sales introduction to finding top talent. We also have a large investor network to help with that Series A fundraise and beyond, having done deals with our friend at funds such as Tiger Global, Sequoia, Benchmark, a16z, Coatue and Atomico. Being part of our community, with our events and parties with some of the biggest names in tech and business, means you will be working with the best. We do an annual retreat for founders as well as regular drinks and dinners. Every year we hold our flagship summit in London which brings together firstminute investors, portfolio founders, partners from the top US and European multi-stage funds, and friends who are all bright lights in the tech community. Read more about that here.

We designed a unique VC model to serve student-founders. Wonder why? Student-entrepreneurs see the world through a unique lens. They are the most exposed to cutting-edge technology, innovations, and societal change. That’s why game-changing companies are consistently emerging from universities: Snapchat, Facebook, and Figma to list a few. Some people will argue you need 3 years of experience to start a company. They are wrong. With enough hard work and perseverance, you can start building a startup that will have an impact, today. If 25% of US-based unicorns are started at university, why couldn’t this be the same in the UK & EU? That’s why we exist, to select, support, and invest in high-potential founders. 10-100k investment: We know that small investments can make big differences. We help you get your product off the ground and set up your company. 12 weeks of intense support: We have our yearly accelerators, and hackathons. There’s no magic recipe but there some things you should know…We help you build your team, quickly test your ideas and create your company on solid ground. 80+ exports & mentors: A network is key when creating a successful company. We are building Initiator with the help of incredible experts, entrepreneurs and investors. Our network becomes yours.

People power the future. We empower their vision. We ignite the global success of companies by developing the leaders behind them. 100+ companies $600 M+ raised $1,6 B+ market value FounderFuel works to develop both the skills and mindsets of the founders shaping our future through game-changing technology. New founders learn and grow, hone their business models and stories and take their companies to the next level. Five axes that transform vision into leading companies. FounderFuel combines the value of Real Ventures’ expertise, experience and networks with an holistic approach that powers a 4-month acceleration with insightful mentors, intensive networking, expert-led seminars, personal development and coaching, culminating in Canada’s biggest Demo Day on July 11th, 2023. LEADERSHIP: Leaders inspire people to follow them, while managers instruct people to work for them. A crucial area of founder success relates to personal development and leadership coaching. In addition to developing our founder’s operational skills, our leadership track helps founders expand their self-awareness, develop resilience and ultimately learn soft skills that will help them weather all the storms of company-building through the development of themselves and the people they collaborate with to create value. NARRATIVE: A strong narrative is essential to building a venture-backed company. Founders that can communicate a compelling story and gripping vision are more successful in attracting talent, raising financing, and building high-functioning teams. Using techniques honed across hundreds of FounderFuel and Real Ventures companies, our narrative track gives founders the tools to convince others to believe - whether on stage, in board rooms, or even in an elevator. LEARNING: The startup journey is wrought with endless decision points, feedback loops, and second guesses. We believe founders who embrace curiosity and remain open and excited about challenges will see the opportunities to create disruptive business models. Leaders with bold ambitions will need to nurture genuine cultures where their people can continuously learn and unlearn without fear, which will ultimately develop the resilience required to succeed. NETWORK: Founders, and the companies they build, thrive when supported by great advisors and a strong diverse community. With hundreds of mentors, alumni, and partners, FounderFuel is a gateway to one of the premier startup networks in Canada. Our network track leverages this uniquely valuable group across 3 of Canada’s most established VC firms through mentor matching, founder talks, and high-value social encounters. EXECUTION: Acceleration is ultimately measured in business results. Using the OKR method as a base, FounderFuel helps participants set and reach ambitious goals while establishing an operational cadence that can scale. Our execution track includes weekly check-ins, mentor goal setting reviews, and expert-led seminars. The FounderFuel program also gets our companies venture investment ready! Canada’s biggest Demo Day FounderFuel culminates with Demo Day, a gathering of 1,000+ members of the Canadian tech ecosystem to hear the cohort’s pitches and celebrate the ecosystem that enables them to thrive. Four months is a short period of time. High output requires intense focus and execution. Demo Day is the clear deliverable for our work on company narrative, and motivates the CEOs to refine their value proposition and company vision. It’s is also a motivator for driving execution, since great pitches need great numbers!