# The Founder Labs Programme

Built for you. Unfair advantages from day one.

Founder Labs is a hands-on, six-month programme built by founders for founders. We combine deep mentoring, real customer access, world-class perks, and investor-ready execution so you can build faster, smarter, and with momentum.

## Structure

Two three-month phases:

1. **Build phase (months 1-3, intensive, in person).** An intense mentoring period to calibrate where you are, then company fundamentals and go-to-market strategy, then company narrative, pitching and the venture landscape. Core weeks are in person and themed; non-core weeks are hybrid with in-office days Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The phase culminates in a Demo Day at Ormeau Labs where you pitch to 100 investors, mentors and ecosystem supporters.
2. **Concierge growth phase (months 4-6).** Space to lead and grow, with the team on hand when you need support. May include travel and events.

## What you get

- **Human capital**: meet over 100 founders, investors and customers. Two entrepreneurs-in-residence support founders weekly; further mentors come from the local and international network.
- **Financial capital**: £25k non-dilutive grant from Invest NI, paid in four tranches as you complete the programme. No equity, no repayment. Access to an international network of angels and VCs.
- **Physical capital**: dedicated programme space at Ormeau Labs, Belfast, plus free office space across the Irish Tech Hub Network (Derry, Dublin, Cork, Kerry, Galway) and internationally.
- **Tools and credits**: over £500k in credits from partners including OpenAI, Anthropic (Claude), Microsoft, Stripe, Google, AWS and Perplexity.
- **Trips**: international trips to New York, London and Dublin.

## Tracks covered during the programme

- Business development (customer intros, GTM sprints, positioning, sales immersion in New York, London and Dublin)
- Marketing and story (brand and narrative workshops, content creation)
- Mentors, talent and community (founder firesides, Entrepreneurs-in-Residence)
- People and operations (fundamentals of finance, hiring, legals; tooling for lean operations)
- Capital (regular investor days, 1:1 fundraising prep, Demo Day)
- Workspace and network (hybrid delivery anchored at Ormeau Labs)

## Who it is for

Ambitious founders with a tech-focused, scalable idea: from idea stage through to first customers. Up to 10 companies per cohort. See the [FAQ](https://founderlabs.network/faq.md) for eligibility detail.

## Next cohort

The next cohort is being planned now. [Register your interest](https://founderlabs.network/apply) and you will be contacted the moment applications open.