Last week's number against the plan. Thirty minutes, no slides.
Acceleration · three months · zero to one
Twelve weeks, zero to one.
Then the firm decides.
For companies that are not yet ready for a first check: an idea, a team, nothing in use yet. Three months inside W² with everything the firm has: space, partners, operators, counsel, customers. Finish with a product people use, and the company is eligible for the firm's first check.
Three months, three gates
Each month ends with a review. The company moves on when the work is there.
- 01Weeks 1–4
Foundation
A company that can be reasoned about.
- The problem, written down, with the customer named
- Company formed, cap table clean, bank and books open
- Product scope cut to the one thing that must work
- Metrics instrumented from day one
- 02Weeks 5–8
Proof
Something in use by people who are not your friends.
- Ship every week; demo every Friday
- First ten customer conversations, then the first ten users
- Pricing tested against a real invoice
- A weekly number the whole company watches
- 03Weeks 9–12
Readiness
A company the firm can write a first check into.
- Traction told honestly: what moved, what did not
- Data room complete; diligence questions answered in advance
- Hiring plan and the first use of money
- Final review with the partners
Week 12Final review with the partners.Pass, and the company is eligible for the first check. Terms are drafted for the company and the firm's decision process begins at once.
A week in the program
The same shape every week for twelve weeks. That is the point.
Heads down. Office hours open with operators from the firm's network.
Calls, demos, and the introductions the firm made for the week.
Ship. The firm's designers, counsel, and recruiters are on call.
Show what shipped to the cohort and the partners. Set next week's number.
Everything provided
The firm's whole facility, for three months.
What a company normally assembles over a year, in place from week one.
- 01A desk at the firm
Space at W² for the three months. Come in; the partners are in the room.
- 02Weekly partner session
One hour every week with the partner who knows your company.
- 03Operator office hours
Product, growth, sales, and engineering leads from the portfolio and the firm's network.
- 04Formation and counsel
Incorporation, cap table, founder agreements, and IP, handled with the firm's counsel.
- 05Finance set-up
Banking, bookkeeping, and a simple model. The numbers the firm will later diligence.
- 06Cloud and tooling credits
Infrastructure, analytics, and the software a small team needs to ship.
- 07Design and brand
A designer embedded for the sprint that matters: the product, the site, the deck.
- 08Recruiting
Role scoping and sourcing for the first hires, and help closing them.
- 09Customer introductions
Warm introductions from the firm's and the portfolio's networks, every week.
- 10Data room and metrics kit
The templates the firm uses in diligence, so you build toward them from week one.
- 11Founder coaching
Monthly sessions on the decisions that usually get made alone.
- 12The portfolio
Founders already in the partnership, available as a working peer group.
The grind
What the firm asks of the company in return.
- Full time
The program is the company's whole week. Side projects and day jobs do not fit.
- Ship weekly
Something new in users' hands every Friday, without exception.
- One number
A single weekly metric, reported honestly, up or down.
- In the room
Mondays and Fridays in person at the firm; the rest wherever the work is.
Questions
The short answers. More on the FAQ.
Does finishing mean W² invests?
Finishing means the company is eligible for the firm's first check and goes straight into the firm's decision process, with terms drafted for the company. The decision is still a decision, made by the partners after the final review.
What are the terms?
W² takes 4% of the company for the three months and sits with the company as board observer and board advisor, among other terms set out in the program agreement when the company joins. There is no cash fee; everything the firm provides for the twelve weeks is included.
Does W² join the board?
During the program, as observer and advisor. If the firm invests afterwards, a board seat is decided for that company; the firm may take one, or may not.
How is this different from the six months?
Acceleration is zero to one. It comes before the check, takes the company from an idea to something in use, and earns eligibility for the check. The six months come after the check, and they are about growing exponentially from there.
Who should apply?
Founders at pre-seed or earlier with no institutional check, who can commit the company full time for twelve weeks.
When does it start?
Rolling. A company starts when the firm says yes to the application, usually within a few weeks of the conversation.
Twelve weeks. Then a first check is on the table.
Pre-seed or earlier, no institutional check yet, and a company that can go full time. Every application is read by the firm.