FAQs

What is a “Venture Studio”?

A Venture Studio combines a Venture Fund (capital) and a Venture Studio (labor) to build and launch new startups in partnership with founders.
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We bring our studio team, fund, methodology, and network to bear to significantly increase the chances of success, and decrease the time to get there. We aim to be the best co-founder you could ever hope to have.

Are you a venture fund?

Yes and no.

Per the above, Platform has a Venture Fund. But, unlike traditional venture funds, Platform's venture funds are primarily used to fund the development of new startups rather than invest in existing startups.

We are sometimes able to work with existing startups but only if they are early in their journey, and have not yet raised any money in a priced round.

How does a startup get built by Platform?

We start by developing a thesis in a particular Theme.
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We then identify Unmet Needs (problems to be solved) within one or more of our themes, and do some early validation within our network.

Once we've found an Unmet Need we think is worth solving, we begin reaching out to potential founders.

A core part of our process is matching a founder with the right attributes to succeed with an Unmet Need in order to build a great company.

When we find that match, a potential founder becomes a Founder-in-Residence and we begin our four stage process to build a company.

At each stage, we evaluate what the market response has been, and whether we think the company and founder have proven what it needs to make it to the following stage.

The final stage of the Platform process is to help the founders raise their seed round of funding and graduate from Platform Venture Studio.

What is a Founder-in-Residence?

A Founder-in-Residence (or "FIR") is an entrepreneur we partner with to solve an unmet need and build a great startup.

We predominantly work with solo founders who have unique earned insight in a particular industry or with a particular problem.

Are Platform Founders-in-Residence paid?

Yes; we do offer income to Founders-in-Residence. We believe that the inability to work without income often prevents some well-qualified founders from starting the entrepreneurship journey. However, equity is of course always the primary reward for being a startup founder.

How do I become a Founder-in-Residence?

Let us know you’re interested by filling out our build with us form.

If you have a problem you'd like to see solved, you can also post it as an Unmet Need for feedback from the community. If there’s a fit, we will reach out and schedule a call to learn more.

What do you look for in a Founder?

We assess from many angles but the main qualities we seek are Coachability, Grit, Smarts, and Empathy.

We also like to work with Founders who have unique earned insight in the market or problem their startup is attacking.

Can I pitch my idea to you?

Yes, absolutely! Please first sign up to Platform and post it as an Unmet Need, and then tell us about your proposed Solution, or you can also share your idea, or you can also share your idea directly with us.

What is an "Unmet Need"?

An Unmet Need is a big hairy problem that the Platform Guild has identified and which fits into one or more of our core themes. It is important not to confuse an unmet need for a solution. Once we are clear on the unmet need, it's time to propose solutions, which may be existing solutions or ideas for new products and services.

I already have a startup; can it be part of Platform?

Yes, it’s possible! Please let us know more about your startup by filling out our build with us form. If it’s a good fit, we’ll reach out to learn more and discuss how we can partner together.

Why are you showing everything on your website?

In short, we think "stealth mode" is BS. We believe in full transparency, both with what we’re working on and with our feedback to our founders every step of the way. Any advantages to stealth mode are massively overridden by the benefits of getting early feedback and leveraging the wisdom of the crowd. For every startup that is successful after being in stealth mode, there are ten that come out of stealth mode only to discover that they've built something that no one wants.

Still have questions? Please ask on the Platform feed and someone will answer!