// Cohort
Current fellows
Meet the domain experts already turning lived constraint into venture theses.
// Co-Build · The Studio · v3.1
Your domain expertise. Our co-build leverage.
You lead with what you know. We build alongside. The result is a company only this combination could produce.
Nine modules, eight gates, six months. A structure you can lean on — and cut where you don't need it.
Fig 1.A — The shape of a fellowship
9
Modules
M1 → M9, end-to-end
8
Gates
G0 → G8, evidence checks
6
Months
Onboard → launch decision
M2
Incorporated
Real company by end of Month 2
01 // A posture, not a promise
You stand on the beam. We carry weight beside you.
01
We're not here to be right. We're here to find out what's true, quickly. Every gate is a signal: the evidence disagrees with the plan.
02 // The spine, not the script
Nine modules, standing upright. A structural beam you can lean on — and adjust around.
We keep the load-bearing work and skip what your venture doesn't need. Same structure, shaped around you.
Fig 2.A — Co-Build engine · M1 → M9
[M1] Onboarding
Gate G0
[M3] Concept
Gate G2
[M5] Brand
Gate —
[M7] Go-to-Market
Gate G5·G6·G7
[M9] Operations
Gate —
[M2] Discovery
Gate G1
[M4] Legal
Gate —
[M6] Product
Gate G3·G4
[M8] Fundraising
Gate G8
03 // The nine modules
Every module opens with what it's for and what it produces.
Max durations are ceilings, not targets. Past one means something is wrong — and we say it out loud.
Fig 3.A — Module ledger · target / ceiling / gate
M1
Gate G0
Onboarding
You arrive, plug in, meet your people, take the plan. By Day 15 you're on calls with customers.
Target · 2 weeks
↳ 3 weeks
M2
Gate G1
Discovery & Problem Validation
You turn your hunch into evidence — 10+ real conversations, including the parts that sting.
Target · 3 weeks
↳ 4 weeks
M3
Gate G2
Concept & Solution Design
You commit to what you'll build, why it's AI-native, and what keeps it defensible.
Target · 3 weeks
↳ 5 weeks
M4
Gate —
Legal & Entity Setup
You become a real legal company. Procurement can't use paperwork to stall your first deal.
Target · 4–6 weeks
↳ 8 weeks
M5
Gate —
Brand & Identity
Not a full brand book — a seed. Just enough that buyers open your email.
Target · 3 weeks
↳ 4 weeks
M6
Gate G3 · G4
Product & Technology
You get the product built. 5+ design partners actually use it, and tests tell you it's working.
Target · 10 weeks
↳ 12 weeks
M7
Gate G5 · G6 · G7
Go-to-Market
First three pilots, paying or committed. You bottle what worked into a playbook.
Target · 5 weeks
↳ 7 weeks
M8
Gate G8
Fundraising Prep
Clean cap table, real deck, data room ready, grants in. By Month 6: launch, extend, or sunset.
Target · 3 weeks
↳ 5 weeks
M9
Gate —
Operations & Finance
The plumbing that keeps the company running on launch day + 1 — KPIs, CRM, hiring plan, risk register.
Target · Continuous
↳ 8–10 weeks
04 // The eight gates
Where we stop and check we haven't fooled ourselves.
Gates aren't stage-gates to prove progress to investors. They're tripwires against wishful thinking — about the problem, the solution, the moat, the buyer.
Fig 4.A — Gate sequence · G0 → G8
G0
Checkpoint · Set up
You're aligned and ready to talk to customers.
G1
Checkpoint · Problem
You can say what the problem is, who has it, and how you could be wrong.
G2
Checkpoint · Solution
You've picked a solution you can defend with evidence.
G3
Checkpoint · Product
Ready for paying customers.
G4
Checkpoint · Pilot
Pilot-ready: design partners onboarded, scorecard live.
G5
Checkpoint · Revenue signal
Pilots converting. Real money or real commitments.
G6
Checkpoint · GTM scale
The motion is repeatable, not heroic.
G7
Checkpoint · Confidence
You'd bet your own capital on the next 12 months.
G8
Checkpoint · Launch
Launch — or extend — or sunset. Decided in the open.
05 // Four ways to notice we're fooling ourselves
Tripwires against wishful thinking. Live from M3 onwards.
Plausible demos, warm pilots, confident outputs — AI makes self-deception easy. Any signal fires: 24h huddle, 48h redesign, then resolve or sunset.
Fig 5.A — Kill signal matrix · 24h huddle · 48h redesign
Signal 01
No data loop by G2
You can't explain how your AI gets smarter from being used → 2-week redesign sprint, or sunset.
Signal 02
Model capability shock
Eval harness shows < 60% on what matters → rebuild, pivot, or sunset.
Signal 03
No AI moat by G3
Moat ledger has fewer than 2 durable reasons you can't be copied → reposition, or sunset.
Signal 04
Accuracy below the safety floor
Error rate drifts past the line you drew → retrain, switch model, or stop shipping until it's back.
06 // The team you're joining
You lead. We build with you.
Partners, directors, engineers, and leads — all in the build from day one.
Fig 6.A — Co-build network · Doha · GCC · SE Asia · Global
// Director
Ollie Graham-Yooll
Studio Director — Product
// Director
Karan Pinto
Studio Director — Tech
// Engineer
James Cannan
Founding Engineer, Rapid Prototyping
// Engineer
Abdelrehman Mattar
Founding Engineer, Rapid Prototyping
// Design
Aiden Yongwoo Kim
Design Lead
// Marketing
Sarah Yeo
Marketing & Social Media
07 // And the spine itself evolves
You're not joining a finished system. You're joining the team that writes the next version.
Every fellow teaches the studio something the next can't afford to relearn. The modules sharpen — or fall behind.
01
Modules get sharpened
Every gate review feeds back. An issue that slowed three ventures in a row becomes a rewritten playbook, a new template, a tighter script.
02
New modules get added
AI Kill Signals didn't exist in v1. The AI Security Pack and Data Advantage Contract were born from procurement blockers we hit in 2025.
03
Old ones get retired
Modules that no longer earn their place get cut. A co-build system that accumulates weight without shedding any is quietly losing.
Current version
Co-Build Modules v3.1
· last updated 19.04.26
08 // One more thing
Six months. Incorporated by Month 2. You set the pace; we bring weight.
Your expertise is the rarest ingredient. The gates, playbooks, and data rooms exist for one reason: so you can spend your time turning what you know into a company the world hasn't seen.