How 40 technical founders took their first leap
What happens when you give ambitious builders five weeks, five evenings of meaningful discussions with top founders, and a 48-hour sprint to start building AI companies?
The AI Startup School was our way to find out.
From February to March this year the Paris team brought together 40 of Europe’s brightest technical minds and tried to create a space not for theory, but for action. A place where technical talent could go from thinking about starting to actually starting.
The outcome: 9 teams formed, 15 projects built – many of which are now continuing beyond the program, with or without EF.
Why we did this
AI Startup School was born from a simple belief: Europe has the talent – what’s missing is the catalyst.
Too many brilliant engineers and researchers are sitting on big ideas but missing the community, context, or courage to take the first step. We designed the AI Startup School to change that – with real founder stories, practical advice, and a cohort of peers to learn and build with.
With the support of OpenAI and Galion.exe, we built a hands-on, high-energy program tailored for technical builders at the edge of conviction.
What it looked like
Each Monday night focused on one thing: practical, candid advice from real founders. We tackled the real questions. Here’s some of them:
- How do you know when to persist vs when to pivot? Is it linked to metrics, a feeling, a change of heart or a change in the market?
- 0 to 1: how do you get your first 10 (for B2B) or your first 1000 (for B2C) customers? What should you absolutely NOT do to get them?
- How do you know if you have a GTM problem vs a product problem?
- If you could “import” one thing from the US startup scene to Europe, what would it be – and vice versa?
- What does fundraising actually look like when your network is zero?
Founders didn’t hold back. They shared failures and the uncomfortable tradeoffs that never make it into blog posts. Over drinks and casual chats the participants got the chance to go deeper, asking the unfiltered questions, getting real-time feedback, and connecting directly.