Founder-To-Be, The Foundry

Forum Ventures

4d•Remote

About The Position

The Foundry: Forum's Studio Sprint is a five-week program where you validate your idea alongside Forum's AI Studio team. At the end, strong candidates can earn a $250K investment and a full team to build the company with us. You bring the idea. We bring the same validation process we use internally to launch studio companies. Over five weeks, you work directly with our venture building, GTM, and product team to pressure-test your idea against real market demand, willingness to pay, and investor appetite. You'll leave with one of three outcomes: an invitation to pitch us for $250K, a clear answer that the idea isn't the one, or the clarity to go build it on your own. Forum derisks and accelerates the founder path by: Five weeks of hands-on work with our studio team, not a curriculum. Market and customer diligence, ICP definition, and GTM validation. Clear answers on market size, competitive positioning, and investor appetite. A room of founders at the same inflection point. For strong candidates, a $250K USD investment plus a CTO, designer, and GTM support by your side until you hire your own team. A fundraising playbook and network to raise your Seed and Series A. $100K+ worth of business perks.

Requirements

A startup idea already in motion (talking to customers, sketching the product, or testing the market).
Early-stage operator experience.
Expertise in product, business, or a specific domain.
A real desire to be a venture-backed founder.
Ability to commit approximately 4 hours per week for five weeks, alongside your current role.
Ability to collaborate in North American time zones.

Nice To Haves

Repeat Founder experience.
Domain expertise in a specific industry.
Operator with a Technical Cofounder.
Product or GTM Leader experience.

Responsibilities

Validate your startup idea alongside Forum's AI Studio team.
Pressure-test your idea against real market demand, willingness to pay, and investor appetite.
Define Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) and GTM validation.
Gain clarity on market size and competitive positioning.
Attract and lead a great team.