Frequently asked questions
Everything you want to know about The Foundry Circle — commitment, cost, vetting, and what it's actually like.
A free, online peer accountability network for early-stage founders building part-time or bootstrapping solo. Weekly calls with 8–12 founders at your stage. No mentors, no investors, no pressure — just real peers holding each other accountable, pushing you to ship faster, grow smarter, and make real progress.
None. We're a peer accountability network. No mentors lecturing you, no investors evaluating you, no pitches required. Just founders at your stage, meeting weekly, keeping each other honest and pushing each other to ship.
Founded by Ali Liaquat, based in New Zealand — a solo founder and builder who experienced the loneliness of side-hustling firsthand. With experience spanning New Zealand's largest corporate organizations (including the country's leading dairy and meat sectors), public sector innovation, and early-stage startups, Ali has worked across strategy, operations, and product development at scale. Now building The Foundry Circle to create the peer accountability network he wished existed when he started. Built by founders, for founders.
Online-first, operating globally. All weekly calls are on Google Meet, and we're accommodating across time zones as we grow.
1 hour a week — the 60-minute weekly call. That's the commitment. Everything else (community Slack, resources) is optional.
Life happens. If you need to miss a week, just let us know. But if we don't hear from you for 3 weeks, we'll assume you've moved on, and that's totally fine. You can always rejoin.
Absolutely. This is designed for people with full-time jobs. Most of our founders are doing this nights and weekends — that's the point.
Each cohort has a dedicated time. We choose times that work for the majority. If Tuesday 8pm doesn't work, check back — we may launch additional cohorts at different times as we grow.
Depends on your tier. Freshmen: 8–12 weeks. Juniors: 12–16 weeks. Seniors: 8–12 weeks. Graduates: as long as you need, no end date. You graduate when you hit your tier's marker.
No. This is for people actively building, or about to. If you're still thinking about it, check back in a month when you're more committed.
Yes. If you've launched and have customers, you'd be in our Graduates tier. You're welcome to join and stay as long as you're getting value.
Absolutely. Plenty of non-technical founders build. You'll find co-founders, hire developers, or build no-code — the Circle helps with all of it.
That's exactly what the 30-minute vetting call is for. We'll chat and place you in the right tier based on where you actually are.
Yes. You graduate when you hit your tier's marker, then move to the next tier. It's flexible and based on your actual progress.
Yes. For now — forever, at least while we're proving the model. No hidden costs, no upsells.
We'll be transparent about it. Any current members get grandfathered in at free, or a significant discount. We value loyalty.
No. All our tools (Slack, Google Meet, shared docs) are free tier. If you want premium tools for your own business, that's separate.
No. Zero equity, zero revenue share. We're building community, not investing in startups.
Not yet. We're focused on the core experience first. Down the road, maybe occasional perks or discounts from sponsors — always optional.
A 30-minute conversation. We chat about your background, your idea, your commitment, and what you're looking for, and share what the Circle is about. It's not an interview — it's a relationship-building call.
Rarely — we accept roughly 90% of applicants. We only reject if someone's running a scam, wants free consulting rather than peer support, has zero actual project, or can't commit to weekly attendance.
Within 48 hours. We respond fast and respect your time.
Yes, a video call. It's more personal and helps us build a real connection.
Nothing special. Just be ready to talk about yourself, your idea, and your goals. Keep it real — no pitch deck needed.
Real, honest, supportive — not corporate. You'll hear from founders dealing with the exact same problems. No BS, just people shipping.
You're welcome here. We don't force people to share. You'll get a turn, but there's no pressure — many introverts thrive in small cohorts.
No. The vibe is supportive, not critical. We help you think through challenges, not tear down your idea.
Not directly from us, but your cohort might include people with connections. Many founders meet investors or mentors through the network.
Not officially, but the community often shares recommendations — you'll have a Slack channel to post needs.
Not to their weekly calls (those are cohort-only), but there's a central community forum where all tiers can ask questions and share resources.
Yes. Your profile notes if you're seeking a co-founder and what skills you need. Matches happen organically through weekly calls.
We don't use algorithms. You get to know each other over weeks of calls — you see their work ethic, how they think, if you vibe. That's a far better signal than any matching algorithm.
Yes! You both join, attend calls together, and hold each other accountable with peers. It's a stronger foundation.
That's real and healthy. Your cohort will help you work through it — sometimes conflict just needs an outside perspective.
You move to the next tier (if applicable), or graduate completely. Either way, you keep access to the central community forum.
Absolutely. If you graduate and later realize you need a cohort again — new product, new challenge — we'll welcome you back.
Not directly. But after 12+ months, we'll have data on your progress, which becomes a pipeline for incubators looking for pre-validated talent.
We track attendance, milestones (MVP shipped, first users, launched, revenue) and engagement. We use this to help you, and potentially connect you with incubators.
Not yet — everything is free. If we ever introduce paid options, they'll be optional (1-on-1 mentorship, exclusive resources, etc.). The core community stays free.
Not officially. But if you're part of the Circle long enough and making real progress, we might make strategic introductions to incubators or other relevant partners.
At sign-up: name, email, location, idea description, stage, background. During calls: attendance, progress updates, blockers. We use this to help you and build anonymized insights about founder progress.
No, your personal data is private. We might reference anonymized progress data, or ask permission to introduce you to an incubator — always opt-in.
Only with your permission. We might ask for testimonials or case studies down the road — always your choice.
Securely. We use industry-standard tools (Airtable, Slack, Google Docs), all encrypted. We take privacy seriously.
Yes. Email us and we'll delete your personal data. We may retain anonymized progress data for insights, but nothing that identifies you.
Email us at hello@thefoundrycircle.com or WhatsApp.
Email us at hello@thefoundrycircle.com, or WhatsApp your question — we respond within 24 hours.
Of course. Reach out and we'll chat — no pressure, just a conversation about whether the Circle is right for you.
Ready to join?
Apply now and let's chat about whether The Foundry Circle is right for you. No pressure, just a conversation.
Apply now