Rare Founders

The UK startup ecosystem needs a shake-up. While the US dominates globally, the UK faces slow decision-making, low risk appetite, and VCs who lack founder-level experience. But what if we, as founders, could fix it? In my latest blog post, I share how founders can take back control, invest in each other, and create a thriving UK ecosystem. You’ll also find links to video recordings of some of the best events we hosted this year! 👉 Read the link to the full post in the comments.

💥 𝗠𝗩𝗣 𝗠𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗰: 𝗧𝗶𝗽𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗽 𝗦𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀! 🚀 What an incredible event hosted at the Google Cloud Startup Hub, featuring the brilliant Cait Pilkington, Dealflow Director at Block Dojo, and Robert Lynch, Co-Founder of Old.St Labs 🌟 𝗧𝗼𝗽 𝘁𝗶𝗽𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻: 1️⃣ Solve a clear problem and focus on core functionality. 2️⃣ Validate your idea with real customers before investing heavily. 3️⃣ Leverage no-code tools like Bubble or Webflow for rapid prototyping. 4️⃣ Build a social media community to spark early interest and gather feedback. 5️⃣ Launch quickly—don’t aim for perfection at the start! 𝗛𝘂𝗴𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝗮 𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗱𝗮𝘆! 🙌 👉 𝗙𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗼 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀! 𝗟𝗶𝗸𝗲, 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗺𝗮𝘇𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀! #RareFounders #StartupTips #MVP #GoogleForStartups #Innovation #Entrepreneurship

💥 𝗠𝗩𝗣 𝗠𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗰: 𝗧𝗶𝗽𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗽 𝗦𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀! 🚀 What an incredible event hosted at the Google Cloud Startup Hub, featuring the brilliant Cait Pilkington, Dealflow Director at Block Dojo, and Robert Lynch, Co-Founder of Old.St Labs 🌟 𝗧𝗼𝗽 𝘁𝗶𝗽𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻: 1️⃣ Solve a clear problem and focus on core functionality. 2️⃣ Validate your idea with real customers before investing heavily. 3️⃣ Leverage no-code tools like Bubble or Webflow for rapid prototyping. 4️⃣ Build a social media community to spark early interest and gather feedback. 5️⃣ Launch quickly—don’t aim for perfection at the start! 𝗛𝘂𝗴𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝗮 𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗱𝗮𝘆! 🙌 👉 𝗙𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗼 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀! 𝗟𝗶𝗸𝗲, 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗺𝗮𝘇𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀! #RareFounders #StartupTips #MVP #GoogleForStartups #Innovation #Entrepreneurship

𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗔𝗜 🎨🤖 Iael Esther Brener, founder of Singularity UK, is on a mission to empower creatives by transforming how AI supports design work. She’s tackling the "grunt work" of tasks like market research and data analysis, so creatives can focus on what they do best—creating! Esther is actively seeking a technical co-founder with deep AI expertise to join her journey, bringing an innovative, designer-focused solution that challenges industry giants like Adobe and Figma. Hosted alongside SeedLegals. With a functional prototype already in place, Esther is ready to take Singularity to the next level with the right partner. #CreativeTech #AIInnovation #Singularity #DesignRevolution #CoFounderSearch #Seedlegals ———————— Follow us to discover amazing startups 🚀 and the founders behind them 🌟, who pitch in front of hundreds at our monthly open mic pitching and networking events, hosted together with SeedLegals! 🎤👥

💥 𝗨𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝗠𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘆: 𝗔 𝗚𝗮𝗺𝗲-𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗽! 🚀 What an incredible session led by Rory Horne, where we dove into building a product-first research strategy and explored the essential methods to gather insights that matter. 🌟 𝗧𝗼𝗽 𝘁𝗶𝗽𝘀 𝗥𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗱: 1. How to align user research with your company’s goals for maximum impact. 2. Choosing which essential research methods to use. 3. Focusing on asking the right questions to get the insights you need. Big thanks to Google Cloud for making it all happen! 🙌 Can’t wait for the next one! 👉 𝗙𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗼 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀! 𝗟𝗶𝗸𝗲, 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀. #UserResearch #StartupTips #GoogleCloud #Innovation #ProductStrategy #CustomerInsights

💥 𝗨𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝗠𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘆: 𝗔 𝗚𝗮𝗺𝗲-𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗽! 🚀 What an incredible session led by Rory Horne, where we dove into building a product-first research strategy and explored the essential methods to gather insights that matter. 🌟 𝗧𝗼𝗽 𝘁𝗶𝗽𝘀 𝗥𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗱: 1. How to align user research with your company’s goals for maximum impact. 2. Choosing which essential research methods to use. 3. Focusing on asking the right questions to get the insights you need. Big thanks to Google Cloud for making it all happen! 🙌 Can’t wait for the next one! 👉 𝗙𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗼 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀! 𝗟𝗶𝗸𝗲, 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀. #UserResearch #StartupTips #GoogleCloud #Innovation #ProductStrategy #CustomerInsights

𝗝𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗠𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝗕𝗲𝗮𝘂𝘁𝘆 & 𝗪𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀! 💻💅 Jonathan Paul Montoya, Founder & CEO of Reservi, is developing an innovative online booking system tailored for the beauty and wellness industry in Latin America. With a clickable prototype already live, Jonathan is actively seeking a skilled CTO to lead the technical and creative vision of Reservi as they gear up for launch in 4-6 months. Hosted alongside SeedLegals, this is an incredible opportunity for a tech-driven co-founder to join a growing team and share in equity, with the potential for salary as they fundraise 🚀. #BeautyTech #WellnessInnovation #Reservi #TechCoFounder #SeedLegals #LatAmStartups #EquityOpportunity ———————— Follow us to discover amazing startups 🚀 and the founders behind them 🌟, who pitch in front of hundreds at our monthly open mic pitching and networking events! 🎤👥

💥 𝗣𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗥𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘆 𝗮𝘁 𝗚𝗼𝗼𝗴𝗹𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗽𝘀: 𝗔 𝗙𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝗖𝗶𝗿𝗰𝗹𝗲 𝗠𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁! 🌟 What an incredible event hosting our second Pitch Relay at Google Cloud for Startups ! The building holds so many memories. It was a nostalgic return, and seeing the Hotbed brand up on the big screen really hit home! Huge thanks to M Coyle, and Perdie Alder for making it all happen. 🙌 Can't wait for the next one! 👉 𝗙𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗼 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀! 𝗟𝗶𝗸𝗲, 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗽 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀. #PitchRelay #GoogleForStartups #Hotbed #StartupJourney #Entrepreneurship #Networking

𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗗𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲, 𝗢𝗻𝗲 𝗙𝗹𝗼𝘀𝘀 𝗮𝘁 𝗮 𝗧𝗶𝗺𝗲! 🦷✨ Felix K., founder of Remora, is taking flossing to a new level with his electric flosser designed for comfort, convenience, and speed 🚀. Remora’s MVP aims to transform the often-ignored habit of flossing, offering a luxurious experience and even integrating health sensors to track oral health in future versions. Currently bootstrapped and gearing up for launch, Felix is actively seeking co-founders in sales, marketing, and product development—perfect for those passionate about dental health and innovation. Hosted in collaboration with SeedLegals. #DentalInnovation #Remora #OralHealthTech #ElectricFlosser #FlossingRevolution #CoFounderOpportunity #SeedLegals ———————— Follow us to discover amazing startups 🚀 and the founders behind them 🌟, who pitch in front of hundreds at our monthly open mic pitching and networking events! 🎤👥

🌟 Navigating Fundraising Challenges for Fintechs 🌟 Last week, with Rare Founders we hosted a room full of fintech founders... At Google's Startup Hub, we hosted a morning event with the aim of helping fintech founders understand the difficult fundraising roadmap. The event featured a panel with the amazing: 🎤 Kyle Masterson, Head of SHIFT Open Finance Community 🎤 Johnnie Martin, Investor at Augmentum Fintech 🎤 Stella Buhalis, Investor at Nauta 🎤 James Fell, Founder and CEO of Credit Canary 🎤Daniel Rose, Founder and CEO of Doshi The conversation was packed with actionable advice and stories from both sides of the fundraising table. A big challenge many of our members face is trying to get funding without proven traction due to regulations holding them back. Some key insights on this topic were to work as close to the edge of regulation as possible (either a supplier, or become an agent of someone else's license) so you can start to prove the need without being regulated. It is also important to ensure a strong story to tell investors that proves there will be success down the road. Thank you to the incredible panellists for their candour and for everyone who joined us to engage, share, and learn from each other. #SHIFTOpenFinance #Fintech #Fundraising #RareFounders