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Startup Lab

Where ideas get built.

The Startup Lab is our incubator: a structured path that takes a member’s idea from a rough problem statement to a tested venture with real customers.

Incubator program

Five stages from idea to venture.

Teams move through the path at their own pace. Every stage ends with something concrete you can show.

  1. Discover

    Find a problem worth solving, and the people who have it.

    Output

    A one-page problem brief

  2. Validate

    Interview those people before building anything. Most ideas change here.

    Output

    Interview notes and a sharper idea

  3. Build

    Make the smallest version that proves the idea creates value.

    Output

    A working prototype or pilot

  4. Launch

    Put it in front of real customers and learn from what they do, not what they say.

    Output

    First users, first sales, first lessons

  5. Pitch

    Present the venture, the evidence, and what comes next.

    Output

    A pitch, a demo, and a plan

Entrepreneurship challenges

Challenges that force the first step.

Short, sharp formats with a deadline. The fastest way to find out what you are capable of is to try it with a clock running.

  • The Seed Challenge

    Teams, a few weeks

    Each team gets a small starting budget and a deadline to create as much value with it as they can.

    You practicePricing, selling, resourcefulness

  • 48-Hour Sprint

    Teams, one weekend

    Pick a problem on Friday. Show a working solution on Sunday. Learn how much is possible in two days.

    You practicePrototyping, focus, teamwork

  • Problem Hunt

    Solo or pairs

    Interview people across school and the community, and bring back problems worth solving.

    You practiceListening, research, empathy

  • Community Challenge

    Teams

    Design a venture that improves something specific about our school or our town.

    You practiceSocial impact, partnerships

Pitch competitions

Pitch Night.

Members present their ventures to a panel of judges and an audience of peers. Every team leaves with written feedback, and the strongest pitches advance to the finals at the Future Founders Summit.

What judges look for

6 criteria
Problem
Is it real, specific, and worth solving?
Solution
Does it clearly solve the problem better than the alternatives?
Evidence
What have real customers said and done?
Business model
How does it make or save money, and can it last?
Team
Why is this team the one to build it?
Delivery
Is the pitch clear, honest, and confident?

Showcase

The showcase is open.

Ventures built in the Startup Lab will be featured here, with their founders, their stage, and what they learned. The first ones are being started now.

Membership

Bring the idea. We will help build it.

You do not need a business plan to join the Startup Lab. A problem you care about is enough to start.

Become a Member
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