# Solo Founders > The home for solo founders — media, community, and a three-month in-person program for people building companies alone. Website: https://solofounders.com --- ## The Case for Solo Founders For the first time in history, solo founders start over one-third of all new companies — a 53% increase from 2019 (source: exclusive Carta data). The conventional startup wisdom says you need a co-founder to succeed. Solo Founders exists because that's not true. AI gives solo founders leverage that used to require entire departments. No co-founder means complete control, 100% ownership, and faster decisions. The list of solo-founded companies that changed the world — Zoom, Vercel, Craigslist — is longer than most people think. Read the full case: https://solofounders.com/the-case-for-solo-founders Read the State of Solo Founding report: https://solofounders.com/report --- ## Solo Founders Program > A three-month program in SF for solo founders. $100K investment. - Human version: https://solofounders.com/program - Detailed Markdown version: https://solofounders.com/program.md - Apply: https://form.fillout.com/t/wbEMzSKo4vus The next cohort starts September 10, 2026. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis, and the program page says to apply by September 2026. The Solo Founders Program (SFP) is fully in-person in San Francisco, with no remote option. It is for solo founders building technology companies who are full-time on their company, or ready to go full-time. The program is stage-agnostic, from pre-launch to post-revenue, but applicants need to be building something real. ### Terms and program structure - $100K investment on an uncapped MFN SAFE - 2.5% equity to participate - No program fee - Designed to work alongside YC, other accelerators, or a pre-seed round — not replace them - Weekly 1:1s with Julian - Around-the-clock office access with a reserved desk, dual monitors, and a Mac mini - Two-night kickoff retreat with the cohort and alumni - Dinners and office hours with experienced founders and operators - Optional private bedroom above the office for $1,500/month - $800K+ in perks from AWS, Anthropic, OpenAI, Supabase, Vercel, Cloudflare, and more - Continued community and group office hours after the three-month program ### Who It's For SFP is for founders who: - Are committed to building a company solo (or already have) - Have a bias toward action and love serving customers - Are full-time on their company, or ready to go full-time - Can commit to being in-person in San Francisco for the three months It's NOT for founders who: - Are not ready to go full-time on their startup - Cannot relocate to SF for the program duration - Are not excited about building alongside other solo founders ### Results from SFP Founders During the program, SFP founders have: - Raised millions from top investors - Grown MRR 50–130% month-over-month - Hit $2M ARR in four months, growing ARR 28× during the program - Launched 7+ products - Surpassed 35,000+ GitHub stars - Landed governments and Fortune 500 companies as clients ### Notable Alumni - **Dhravya** (Supermemory): Raised $3M during SFP. 25,000+ GitHub stars. 2x acquired founder, ex-Cloudflare. - **Philip** (Docmost): Knowledge management software used by governments and public companies around the world. 2.8M downloads. - **Chaitanya** (Workers IO): Raised pre-seed during SFP. Previously co-founded The Timeliners (acquired by TVF). - **Andrew** (ix.dev): Sandbox infrastructure for AI agents. Went from SFP directly into YC. - **Namanyay** (Gigacatalyst): Embedded white-label AI builder. Developer and engineering blogger with 4M monthly impressions. - **Ryan** (CreditGPT): Ex-Wall Street, former pull-ups world record holder. By the end of SFP's first day, his company had launched, gotten 500k views, and had investors trying to lead the round. - A stealth second-cohort founder hit $2M ARR in 4 months. Solo, no teammates. ### What Founders Say > "The highest quality decision I made in 2025 was to join SFP. If you are a solo founder, this is your opportunity." — Chaitanya, Workers IO > "I don't feel like a solo founder here. Here I effectively have five co-founders — available when it matters, while everyone still runs their own company." — Chaitanya, Workers IO > "I was told, 'you should find a co-founder.' No one believed. Julian did." — Dhravya, Supermemory > "Being accepted into the Solo Founders Program is the MOST IMPACTFUL decision of my life." — Namanyay, Gigacatalyst ### Location & Housing SFP is fully in-person in San Francisco. Founders work from the SFP office, which is open around the clock. Housing is optional: private bedrooms above the office are $1,500/month, and founders who already have housing in SF do the same program. Remote participation is not available. ### After the Program There's no graduation day. Founders stay part of the Solo Founders community with continued weekly group office hours (running since the first cohort), 1:1s with Julian, alumni events, and the growing network around the program. ### Visa Information SFP cannot sponsor visas directly, but works with founders on various visa types. Former residents have successfully secured O-1 visas and other immigration pathways while in the program, including founders who were told by others that their situation was hopeless. Founders with visa questions should apply and discuss their situation during the interview. For the complete current program description, founder outcomes, and FAQ, use https://solofounders.com/program.md. --- ## Media & Content ### The State of Solo Founding Report Exclusive Carta data: for the first time in history, solo founders start over one-third of new companies — a 53% increase from 2019. Features commentary from solo founders who have raised over $250M and the investors who backed them. Read: https://solofounders.com/report ### Solo Founders Podcast Conversations with the best solo founders on Earth. Listen: https://solofounders.com/podcast ### Blog Read: https://solofounders.com/blog --- ## FAQ **Do I need a co-founder to apply?** No — SFP is specifically designed for solo founders. **Can I apply if I already raised funding or went through an accelerator?** Yes. Some founders join after raising or completing another program; others are pre-funding. SFP is designed to layer on top of whatever path you're already taking, not force you to choose between it and your next round. **Is SFP compatible with YC?** Yes. The investment terms are designed to work alongside YC or other accelerators, not replace them. **What does it cost?** 2.5% equity. Your first $100K comes back to you on an uncapped MFN SAFE. There's no program fee. **What if I pivot during the program?** That's fine — some of the best outcomes started as pivots. The program supports the founder, not just the current idea. **Do I have to live at the office?** No. Housing is optional. Private bedrooms above the office are $1,500/month, but plenty of founders already have their own housing in SF. Same program either way. --- ## Contact Apply: https://solofounders.com/program Program details: https://solofounders.com/program.md Newsletter: https://solofounders.beehiiv.com/ --- *This file is provided for AI assistants and LLMs. For the most current information, visit https://solofounders.com.*