Two sides, one match

Founders publish a co-founder search. People who want to join say what they need. Cofoundista scores the fit in both directions and introduces you only when both say yes.

  • Profiles and searches checked
  • Contact only after both say yes

Found a start-up, or join one

Portrait of Maya, a fictional founder
If you found

Maya has a venture

Ledgerleaf turns the bookkeeping of small companies into carbon reports. Maya sells, and she needs someone to build the platform. So she publishes a co-founder search.

  • You publish a search for the role you need
  • You see candidates ranked by fit
  • You invite people, or answer their requests
Portrait of Alex, a fictional co-founder
If you join

Alex wants to join one

Backend engineer, ten years in fintech. Alex has no idea of his own, but he wants to build a company from the start as a co-founder. So he sets his terms and lets the searches come to him.

  • You set your terms: equity, salary, stage, must-haves
  • You see the searches that fit you, with the reasons
  • You ask for an intro, free of charge

Maya and Alex are fictional people, their portraits generated with AI.

How a profile and a search come about

Everyone starts with a profile

  1. 1About you: role, skills, the hours you commit, your city
  2. 2Your story: a short bio, what you are unusually good at, your working style
  3. 3Proof: your links, a photo and the companies you founded before
Alex's profile as members see it, with the sections to edit beside it
Alex's profile as members see it.
If you found

You start a search

  • What you build: problem, solution, traction
  • Who you need: the role and the skills
  • What you offer: equity, salary, hours
  • Your team today, each with their consent
  • What is a must for you
What founders get
The search form with the public teaser and its live preview

What happens when you submit

EveryoneYour profile
  1. You submitWhen every required field is filled in.
  2. Live at onceMembers can see you. If you join, your suggestions start.
  3. Screened in the backgroundYou only hear from us if something needs a change.
FoundersYour search
  1. You submitWhen the search is complete and your plan covers it.
  2. Checked by our teamUsually within 48 hours. If something is missing, we say what to change.
  3. LiveThe teaser is public, the details are for members.

Two directions, one score

Every pair of a search and a person is scored twice: what the search needs from the person, and what the person needs from the venture. The mutual fit is the lower of the two, so a suggestion works for both.

What the search needs

92
  • Skills: partly fits
  • HoursMust: fits
  • Location: fits
  • Industry experience: fits
  • Equity: fits
  • Salary: fits

What the person needs

100
  • Stage: fits
  • Industry: fits
  • Location: fits
  • Remote work: fits
  • Equity: fits
  • Salary: fits
Excellent fitThe lower of both: 92

Example: Maya's search and Alex's profile, fictional people. Skills fit partly: Maya also looks for cloud operations.

Rules, not AI

Each criterion fits, partly fits or does not fit, and counts by its weight. You always see why.

Must-haves

Each side marks what is a must. A must that does not fit fully keeps the two out of each other's list.

5 bands

  • 90+ Excellent fit
  • 80+ Strong fit
  • 70+ Good fit
  • 50+ Moderate fit
  • Weak fit

How an intro works

  1. A request or an invite, with a notePeople who join ask a search for an intro, founders invite people they like. Always with a note of 100 to 1,000 characters: why this venture, not only why you.
  2. 14 days to answerThe other side sees your full name, links, terms and the note. We remind them after 3, 7, and 13 days.
  3. A yes: you are matchedBoth get full names, email and phone. 14 days later we ask how it went.
  4. A no, or no answerA neutral notice, without a reason. The same intro can be sent again after 30 days.

Up to 5 open requests per person, up to 10 open invites per search, so every intro gets attention.

An intro request from Ben Keller with his note, the mutual fit and the buttons to decline or accept
The match page with both contact cards
Fictional people, portraits generated with AI.

What people ask us

What does Cofoundista cost?

Joining a venture as co-founder is free: your profile, the suggestions and your intros. Founders publish their co-founder searches with a plan. During the beta, plans come from vouchers and from programme partners such as incubators, so founders publish for free too.

Who can see my profile?

Visitors never see profiles, only the teasers of searches. Members see your first name, role, skills, city and bio, and your photo if you show it to members. Your full name, links and terms follow in an intro. Email and phone are shared only after both of you said yes.

How is the fit score calculated?

By rules, not by AI. Each criterion fits, partly fits or does not fit, and counts by its weight. Must-haves have to fit fully. Each side gets its own score, and the mutual score is the lower of the two, so a match has to work for both.

Who checks profiles and searches?

Our team. A profile goes live when you submit it. We screen it in the background and step in when needed. A search is checked before it goes live, usually within 48 hours. We check quality against the published criteria: complete, no selling services, no hiring. We don't select people.

What happens when both say yes?

You both get an email with full names, email and phone, and the match page shows them too. The conversation continues outside Cofoundista. 14 days later we ask both of you how it went.

Where is Cofoundista available?

Cofoundista is for founders and co-founders in Europe: the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, starting in English and German. The beta phase starts with programme partners in selected countries.

Can I delete my account?

Yes, at any time in your settings. Your account is hidden at once, and you can cancel for 14 days. After that we delete it permanently. You can also download all the data we keep about you.