Founder OS · founder cohorts
Build Before You’re Ready.
A cohort that installs an operating system for how you think, decide, sell and keep going as a founder, built for first-generation founders and the realities of starting up in India.
- 2 cohortsWeekday and weekend
- 180 hoursGuided, in Cohort 01
- 12 + 12 weeksWith follow-on support
- 16 weekendsCohort 02, for working professionals
- 8 foundersAt most, per cohort
Systems for how to operate.
Many ventures don’t fail only because the idea was wrong. They fail because the founder had no system for operating. Founder OS gives you systems for how to operate, not only what to think, applied to your own venture from day one.
You validate a real problem with customers, build a first version, register what you need, find first customers and leave with a pitch and a 90-day plan.
What it is not: a promise of product–market fit or revenue in 12 weeks. Those come after the cohort, which is why Cohort 01 includes a 12-week follow-on.
Two ways in. One curriculum.
| Detail | Cohort 01 · Weekday | Cohort 02 · Weekend |
|---|---|---|
| For | Full-time first-generation founders | Working professionals with an idea and a stable job |
| Starts | Monday 15 March 2027 | Saturday 13 March 2027 |
| Applications close | Friday 5 March 2027 | Wednesday 3 March 2027 |
| Length | 12 weeks (ends Friday 4 June 2027) + 12-week follow-on | 16 weeks (ends Sunday 27 June 2027) |
| Live time | Mon–Fri, 09:30–12:30 IST (180 guided hours) | Sat 09:30–14:00, Sun 09:30–12:30, Wed 20:30–21:30 IST |
| Total effort | About 30 hours a week, including your own build time | About 13.5 hours a week, about 216 hours in total |
| Where | In-room sessions in Bengaluru + live online | 100% online; one optional in-person Saturday a month in a city where enough members live |
| Seats | At most 8 founders | At most 8 founders |
| Fee | ₹74,500 + GST or 2 × ₹39,000 + GST | ₹59,500 + GST or 2 × ₹31,250 + GST |
| Ends with | Demo Day and a 90-day plan | Demo Day and a go / not-yet / no-go plan for leaving your job |
| Apply | Apply for Cohort 01 | Apply for Cohort 02 |
How a weekday runs.
Mornings are guided. Afternoons are for building your venture, with optional co-working in Bengaluru and mentor office hours twice a week. Saturdays are off, or every other week a field day for customer visits.
| Weeks | Phase | What you do |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ground | Founder mindset and resilience, your purpose, a shared digital and financial baseline |
| 2–4 | Ideate and validate | Problem discovery, customer interviews, market sizing, a real validation experiment. Gate: validated problem |
| 5–6 | Model and register | Business Model Canvas, legal structure, Udyam / DPIIT / GST, costing, unit economics, cash flow |
| 7–8 | Make | Build your MVP: digital founders with no-code and AI tools; service and physical-product founders prototype and source. Gate: MVP with users |
| 9 | Reach | Brand basics, WhatsApp, Instagram and Google Business Profile, the sales conversation, retention |
| 10 | Fund | Bootstrapping vs raising, Startup India Seed Fund, Mudra and Stand-Up India, pitch decks, plain-language term sheets |
| 11 | Operate | Your first hire, delegation, when to expand, tools that save a small team time |
| 12 | Launch | Pitch clinics, mentor speed-rounds, dress rehearsal, Demo Day, a 90-day plan |
- Gates. Week 4: problem validated with customers. Week 8: MVP in users’ hands. A founder who misses a gate gets a mentor clinic, not elimination.
- Follow-on, 12 weeks after Demo Day. A monthly cohort review, a fortnightly one-to-one with a mentor, and an investor or bank introduction when you are ready.
How a weekend week runs.
Sunday afternoons stay free. People who burn out by Week 6 don’t finish.
| When (IST) | What | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Saturday 09:30–10:00 | Check-in: each founder’s numbers and blockers | 0.5 |
| Saturday 10:00–11:15 | Live workshop: the week’s concept | 1.25 |
| Saturday 11:30–13:00 | Applied lab on your own venture | 1.5 |
| Saturday 13:00–14:00 | Optional mentor office hours | 1 |
| Sunday 09:30–11:00 | Peer pods: review customer interviews, plans and builds | 1.5 |
| Sunday 11:00–12:30 | Build clinic: no-code, AI tools and finance models | 1.5 |
| Wednesday 20:30–21:30 | Online accountability call | 1 |
| Weekdays, your own time | Customer calls in lunch breaks, building in the evenings | about 5 |
| Weeks | Phase | Milestone |
|---|---|---|
| 1–2 | Ground: founder fit, your employment-contract check, time plan | Personal 16-week plan signed |
| 3–6 | Discover and validate | 15 customer conversations; validated problem (gate) |
| 7–8 | Model and register | Business model, unit economics, entity choice |
| 9–12 | Build | MVP or pilot in users’ hands (gate) |
| 13–14 | Sell | First paying customer or signed pilot |
| 15–16 | Decide and pitch | Demo Day, plus a go / not-yet / no-go plan for leaving your job |
Your employment contract. Many Indian employment contracts have moonlighting and IP clauses. In Week 1, every weekend member checks theirs and agrees to build only on personal devices and personal time, so an employer cannot claim the venture.
- You have an idea or an early venture and want to build it properly, in India.
- You’re a first-generation founder, without a family playbook or a ready network.
- You’d rather work on your own business than sit through lectures.
- You’re building a digital product, a service or a physical product. Both build tracks are covered.
Not for you if you want a certificate without building anything, want an MVP built for you, or cannot protect the weekly hours.
No written exams. Each milestone is signed off by your pod and mentor. By Demo Day you hold a portfolio:
- A validated problem statement
- Your Business Model Canvas
- Udyam / DPIIT registration, or a documented reason it doesn’t apply yet
- A working MVP or prototype
- A financial model and pitch deck
- A 90-day plan
Completion earns a Certificate of Completion from LifeShine Learning Solutions LLP, a non-formal training certificate, not a degree or diploma.
You won’t build alone.
Lead facilitator
Runs the rhythm and carries the cohort from start to Demo Day.
Guest domain mentors
Practitioners for the finance, sales and funding weeks. Names are published only with their written consent.
Accountability pod
Four founders who review each other’s work.
Mentor-buddy
One mentor per founder for the whole cohort.
The cost of joining shouldn’t be the barrier.
Support is available for eligible first-generation founders and may include a fee reduction, help with devices and data, and travel for in-room days.
Established methods, built for India.
Founder OS draws on ILO Start and Improve Your Business, Y Combinator’s Startup School, Lean Startup and the Business Model Canvas, design thinking, and Babson’s Entrepreneurial Thought & Action, and adds what building in India requires: Startup India / DPIIT, Udyam, GST, Mudra, Stand-Up India and state startup missions.
LifeShine is not affiliated with these organisations.
What it costs, and what it takes.
- Cohort 01 · Weekday: ₹74,500 + GST. Includes the in-room sessions and the 12-week follow-on.
- Cohort 02 · Weekend: ₹59,500 + GST.
- Pay in full before the start, or in two equal instalments that cost about 5% more in total (Cohort 01: 2 × ₹39,000; Cohort 02: 2 × ₹31,250; plus GST). The first is due on accepting your offer, the second before Week 5.
- To complete: attend at least 85% of live sessions, pass both gates and present on Demo Day.
Read the Terms & Conditions, Code of Conduct and Anti-Harassment Policy. Admitted members complete the Cohort Member Information & Contact Form.
Questions founders ask.
Which cohort should I choose?
Cohort 01 (weekday) if you can give the venture your full working day. Cohort 02 (weekend) if you have a job and want to test the idea before leaving it.
Do I need a registered company?
No. Registration is part of the programme where it applies.
Can I keep my job?
On the weekend cohort, yes. Every weekend member checks their employment contract in Week 1.
Can I pay in instalments?
Yes: two equal instalments, about 5% more in total than paying in full. Cohort 01: 2 × ₹39,000 + GST. Cohort 02: 2 × ₹31,250 + GST. The second is due before Week 5.
Is this therapy or counselling?
No. Founder OS is a learning programme.
What if I miss sessions?
Recordings help you catch up, but you need 85% attendance to complete.
Do I need a laptop?
Yes, plus a reliable internet connection. Eligible founders can ask for device and data help through access support. [CONFIRM: device support details]