Founders Launchpad: Accelerating the Philippines’ next wave of startups

Founders Launchpad is one of the most hands‑on early‑stage partners operating out of Metro Manila today. Blending a 12‑week accelerator with a true operator‑investor approach, FL backs gritty founders building for the Philippines and Southeast Asia. They combine capital (typically a capped SAFE) with sleeves‑rolled‑up support across product, growth, legal, finance, and investor readiness, plus co‑living and co‑working in Makati. For investors watching the emergence of the Philippine tech market, FL is a meaningful node: a consistent source of pre‑seed dealflow and a collaborator to marquee regional funds.

Who is Founders Launchpad?

• Type: Early‑stage accelerator + venture investor (industry‑agnostic)

• Founded: 2023 by AHG Lab & Draper Startup House; expanded through a 2024 partnership with Kaya Founders

• HQ: Draper House, Poblacion, Makati (Metro Manila, Philippines)

• Model: Guaranteed investment for accepted startups, intensive 12‑week build sprint, Demo Day and curated investor introductions

Key Facts at a Glance

• Stage: Pre‑seed to Seed

• Typical check: US$50k–US$100k (capped SAFE)

• Program length: 12 weeks (co‑living/workspace available)

• Focus: Sector‑agnostic tech with visible activity in FinTech, SaaS, HealthTech, EdTech, E‑commerce, Logistics, CleanTech, AI/Creator

• Geography: Philippines‑first, open to SEA

• Recent highlights: LenderLink (US$1.25M pre‑seed, 2025), OneLot (US$4M pre‑seed, 2024)

Stages & Geography

• Stage: Pre‑seed to Seed. FL is comfortable at the formation stage (from idea/MVP to early revenue) and often provides the first institutional check. Post‑program, companies may access selective follow‑on and co‑investment to bridge into priced seed rounds.

• Geography: Philippines‑first with a Southeast Asia lens. The core operating base is Makati (Metro Manila), but the accelerator accommodates remote teams and welcomes founders from across the region who are building for the PH market.

Why this matters

The Philippines is entering a period of compounding digital adoption, rising fintech penetration, logistics upgrades across the archipelago, and a young, mobile‑first population. By concentrating on the pre‑seed layer where market insight and operating support move the needle most, FL effectively compresses early risk and builds pipelines that later attract regional seed funds. For founders, the geography focus means immediate customer discovery and regulatory context; for investors, it means curated exposure to a market with structural tailwinds and growing exit pathways.

Ticket Size & Terms

• Initial check: US$50k–US$100k (commonly up to US$100k)

• Instrument: Capped SAFE with potential follow‑on

• Co‑investment network: Strong overlap with regional seed funds and angels; selective follow‑ons possible (including from Kaya Founders and others)

How the Accelerator Works (12 weeks)

• Hands‑on build: Dedicated operating support across strategy, product, GTM, legal, finance, and fundraising

• Environment: Co‑living and co‑working at Draper House, Makati

• Outcomes: Investor‑ready narrative, traction milestones, warm intros to active seed funds and angels, and Demo Day visibility

Notable Investments (selection)

• LenderLink — API‑first credit data aggregator building a real‑time credit bureau for the Philippines; raised US$1.25M pre‑seed (2025) with participation from FL alongside Iterative, Kaya Founders, and Manila Business Angels.

• OneLot — Working‑capital lending and OS for used car dealers; raised US$4M pre‑seed (2024) led by 468 Capital; FL participated with Kaya, Crestone, and others.

• MedsGo — Omni‑channel pharmacy marketplace; early FL cohort company with a reported ~US$57k raised at pre‑seed (2023).

• Itemcount — Inventory/POS SaaS for multi‑branch wholesalers/distributors (2023 cohort).

• Kippap — EdTech board‑review platform (2023 cohort).

• Supafaya — Collectibles marketplace (2023 cohort).

• Rezbin — Tech‑enabled plastic recovery (2023 cohort).

What Founders Launchpad Looks For

• Founder–problem fit. Teams with lived insight into Philippine pain points (e.g., financial access, healthcare distribution, fragmented retail, logistics).

• Execution velocity. Cadence of shipping, learning, and iterating weekly; a culture of testing hypotheses rather than debating them.

• Distribution edge. Unique access to customers or channels, B2B2C routes, offline‑to‑online funnels, or partnerships with incumbents.

• Unit‑economics discipline. Early clarity on contribution margin, payback, and operational bottlenecks, especially in regulated or thin‑margin categories.

• Regulatory readiness. Practical navigation of compliance (e.g., fintech/health) with the help of FL’s legal and operating bench.

• Data fluency. Instrumented funnels and dashboards; founders who treat data as a product, not an afterthought.

• Coachability & ethics. An open feedback loop and responsible scaling practices.

Investor lens: These attributes correlate with faster validation inside a 12‑week window and cleaner diligence post‑program (crisper data rooms, measurable traction, clearer risks). For general readers, it simply means FL backs teams that can turn insight into progress, quickly and responsibly.

Why Investors Are Watching

• Proprietary pre‑seed funnel. A steady pipeline of PH‑focused founders sourced through cohorts, operator networks, and partner programs.

• Risk compression via acceleration. The operator model helps teams hit evidence milestones (live product, revenue pilots, compliance steps) before a priced round.

• Co‑investor signaling. Regular collaboration with tier‑one regional seed funds and active angels provides validation and follow‑on pathways.

• Governance & readiness. Post‑program companies tend to present cleaner caps, standard docs (SAFE), and organized data rooms, shortening diligence cycles.

• Macro tailwinds. Demographic growth, increasing digital payments, and logistics modernization make the PH an attractive multi‑year story.

• Cohort momentum. Emerging portfolio wins (e.g., LenderLink, OneLot) illustrate the model’s ability to surface bankable narratives.

WOWS Take

Founders Launchpad is a high‑signal entry point into the Philippines’ earliest stages: operator‑led, standards‑driven, and connected to the right co‑investors. If you want warm access to FL or to explore co‑investment opportunities around upcoming cohorts and alumni, connect with us and we’ll tailor intros and a focused diligence flow.

Ready to raise?

• Schedule a call with our investment team today to raise your next round: https://meetings-na2.hubspot.com/gagan15

• Or submit your pitch deck here and we’ll follow up fast: Submit your pitchdeck for strategic investor matchmaking by our team of experts.