Frank runs the agents.We bring your first humans.
Founder Institute now pairs every founder with Frank, an AI agent built into its programme, alongside AI Assist, Pitch Gym and a set of startup agents. Founder Institute is also clear that taste, trust and direction stay human. SkilledUp Life gives AI-native tech startups the first humans they need around Frank: skilled Volunteers from 158+ countries who talk to customers, test what the agents build, sell and support, from Kickoff to Funding Day.
Frank and the agents
- Draft, research and critique
- Build lead lists and sequences
- Generate mockups and code
- Practise the pitch
- Remember every deadline
Your first humans
- Talk to real customers
- Test what the agents build
- Close sales and earn trust
- Support the first customers
- Check the numbers investors see
Frank and the FI Agentic Program are Founder Institute products. See fi.co/aifounder.
Founder Institute is now an AI-native company builder.
The FI Agentic Program takes founders from an idea to early revenue in 11 sessions, from Kickoff to Funding Day, with mentor Feedback Sessions every week and a set of AI tools built in. Its Agentic Track is an AI-personalised curriculum that adapts each sprint to the founder's stage.
Frank
An AI agent built into the programme. Frank knows every Sprint, deliverable, deadline and mentor and, once you connect your tools, your company. Frank also acts for you.
AI Assist
An Assist button on each Sprint deliverable that drafts, researches or critiques, so the founder starts from a first pass.
Pitch Gym
A voice agent that plays the investor across the table, from friends and angels to early and late stage VCs.
Research, outreach, advice, fundraising
Agents for market research, customer outreach, startup advice around the clock and fundraising, included in the programme.
Source: Founder Institute, Meet Frank (July 2026) and FI Agentic Program (page read October 2026).
Agents produce. Founders decide. People build trust.
Founder Institute names three things that stay human for the foreseeable future: taste, trust and strategy. Each one needs people around the founder, not just agents.
Deciding which output matters, which idea to back and what good looks like.
The relationships with customers, partners and investors that turn a product into a company.
Strategy: what to build, who to serve and where the company goes next.
"A company of one is really a company of one human and many agents." Founder Institute, August 2026. Read our essay on the Founder's First Humans.
Frank does the first pass. Volunteers make it real.
The FI Agentic Program runs session by session. This is where skilled Volunteers add what agents cannot, at each stage of the journey.
Agents research the market and draft interview scripts.
Market research and customer development Volunteers hold real conversations with real customers, and bring back evidence an investor will trust.
- Problem Analyst
- Customer Development Analyst
- Competitor Analyst
Founders test pricing and "map out the human and agent roles needed to run your business", with agents modelling the scenarios.
We fill the human roles on that map. A Business Analyst tests pricing with real buyers, and Volunteers take the first human seats in the organisation.
- Business Analyst
- Market Researcher
Agents generate mockups, code and tests.
Designers, developers and QA testers review what the agents build, test it with users and make it reliable enough to sell.
- UI/UX Designer
- Developer
- QA and Automated Testing
Agents draft documents and checklists.
An HR Recruiter finds and onboards the next humans, so the team is ready before launch day.
- HR Recruiter
- Executive Assistant
Agents build lead lists and run outreach sequences.
Sales and customer success Volunteers run discovery calls, close deals and keep the first customers happy. When the Traction session's team analysis shows gaps in skills or experience, Volunteers fill them. Trust is earned person to person.
- Sales Development
- Account Executive
- Customer Success Manager
Pitch Gym gives you reps against AI investors.
Volunteers check the data room, the investor list and the metrics, so the numbers you show on Funding Day stand up.
- Market Researcher
- Business Analyst
- Head of Sales
Agents produce.
Agent Operators brief, supervise and check your AI agents, and sign off what they produce, so you spend your hours on judgment.
- Agent Operator
Session names and the Session 4 quote are from the FI Agentic Program and its Agentic Track, for example the online Caribbean Fall 2026 cohort (Kickoff 28 October 2026, Funding Day 20 January 2027). Volunteer roles and plans are SkilledUp Life's.
Build, de-risk, raise. Together, more founders succeed.
A potential closed loop between Founder Institute, SkilledUp Life and Decile Group, designed to raise the share of founders who reach investment.
Cohort founders subscribe
Founder Institute cohort members subscribe to SkilledUp Life and recruit their first humans in the session they are in.
Volunteers de-risk the startup
Customer evidence, a tested product, first sales and clean numbers: the proof investors look for, built before the raise.
Founder Institute and Decile Group raise investment
Founder Institute brings top performers to Funding Day, Founder Capital and the FI Venture Network. Decile Group supports the venture fund managers who back early stage founders.
Success rates rise
Funded founders grow their teams with more Volunteers, and the next cohort learns from them. Together, more founders build, raise and survive.
From Kickoff to your first Volunteer in days.
Create a company account
Sign up in 30 seconds and pick the plan for the session you are in.
Recruit your first humans
Volunteers apply, or you invite them from a pool of 70,000+.
Bring evidence to every session
Daily updates from your Volunteers become the evidence you take to each Feedback Session.
Frequently asked questions.
Is this part of the Founder Institute programme?
SkilledUp Life is an independent company and a Founder Institute partner through selected chapters. Frank, the FI Agentic Program, AI Assist and Pitch Gym are Founder Institute products. This page shows how SkilledUp Life Volunteers can sit alongside them as your first humans.
Does a Volunteer replace my Founder Institute mentors?
No. Mentors rate you weekly and guide your decisions. Volunteers deliver alongside you: they talk to customers, test the product, sell and support, so you have evidence to bring to every Feedback Session.
Do Volunteers use Frank?
No. Frank is available to enrolled Founder Institute founders. Volunteers use the company email and the tools you authorise, under a signed Volunteer Agreement.
I am a solo founder. Do I need a team?
You can stay small on people and scale on agents, and still need people for taste, trust and direction. Start with one or two Volunteers in the session you are in, and add more only when the evidence says so.
Which plan do I need?
Starter (Idea Validation) covers Sessions 1 to 6, Essential (Product) adds product development, and Advanced (GTM) adds sales, marketing, customer success and the wider business teams. See the pricing plans.
Are Volunteers paid?
No. Volunteering is voluntary and unpaid. Volunteers gain real experience and, on satisfactory completion, endorsements. There are no paid jobs provided by tech startups on SkilledUp Life.
Founder Institute, FI Agentic Program, Frank, AI Assist, Pitch Gym, Founder Capital and FI Venture Network are names used by Founder Institute. Decile Group is a separate company. Facts about them come from their own websites as of October 2026. SkilledUp Life is independent of both.
Give Frank a team of first humans.
See how Founder Institute founders build AI-native tech startups with skilled Volunteers, or create your company account today.