Manifesto
Foundations’ Vision & Mission
Seattle, while excellent for building businesses, lacks the ecosystem necessary for founding them. Foundations, an invite-only community of technical founders, aims to change this by providing the essential scaffolding for the most capable and ambitious entrepreneurs.
Our vision is a thriving startup ecosystem that exists across regional boundaries where established leaders, up-and-comers, and new entrants can connect, share experiences, and grow together.
We’re building a fabric for our startup community that fosters deep relationships and knowledge sharing, crucial for a high-performing ecosystem and anchored physical spaces in the hearts of Seattle and San Francisco. Our goal is to support founders efficiently, respecting their most valuable asset: time.
The Importance of Community and Diversity
We’ve identified two distinct groups of potential members who want to engage with the community in different ways:
Founders in Residence: 0 to seed founders who are working torward product/market-fit and are in the first six months of their membership. For founders in residence, the Foundations space is their full-time office.
Members: Active or former founders and operators who look to Foundations for peer mentorship, the opportunity to connect, and/or the desire to give back to those a few steps behind them on the journey. For members, the Foundations office is their third space and visited up to a couple of times a week.
The Role of Physical Space and Structured Programs
Foundations has a 15,000 sqft office space on Capitol Hill designed to handle events of up to 75 people. The shared space includes:
- Four meeting rooms, a recording studio, and four phone booths
- A deep-work space and two casual hangout spaces
- An affordable adjacent parking garage
- 50 desks
We’ve since expanded and now have a 5,000 sqft office space in South FiDi in San Francisco that is home to Seattle ex-pats and founders visiting the area.
Structured programs include:
- Member-only events (Friday happy hour, monthly founder fireside chat, product demo days, tech talks)
- Public events
- Mentor office hours
- A founder in residence program where early-stage members can access free desk space and mentorship throughout a 6-month process
Ownership & Leadership
Foundations is designed to support the Seattle startup ecosystem: Full-stop. Our board consists of some of the most respected local founders, VCs, and operators dedicated to our mission.
The Sustainable and Long-term Approach
Foundations is organized as a benefit corporation with the goal of becoming financially self-sustaining, owned by the community it serves, and with a long-term mandate to evaluate additional mission-aligned revenue opportunities.
Charter
The public benefit purpose of the Corporation is to promote the long-term vitality, inclusiveness, and effectiveness of greater Seattle area technology founders by fostering community, collaboration, and shared learning among startup founders; providing physical and programmatic infrastructure that supports early-stage company formation and growth; expanding access to mentorship, peer support, and capital-readiness resources; and contributing to local economic development and innovation for the benefit of founders, workers, and the broader public.