The Founder Institute (http://fi.co), the World’s Largest Entrepreneur Training and Startup Launch Program, aims to create a Silicon Valley-like startup ecosystem in Pakistan and launch over thirty meaningful and enduring technology companies per year in the city. The Silicon-Valley based program recently announced the launch of its first chapter in Karachi, which will help talented employees launch companies of their own through a step-by-step training program led by top local entrepreneurs. “Silicon Valley is not a place, it’s a mindset,” says Adeo Ressi, Founder & CEO of the Founder Institute. “The Founder Institute emulates this mindset in cities across the globe through what we believe to be the three tenets of Silicon Valley: talent, training, and teamwork.” In particular, the Founder Institute identifies the most talented people using a “Predictive Admissions Test” that identifies entrepreneurial personality traits. Then, these talented employees and entrepreneurs take part in a part-time, step-by-step training program, which is based on Silicon Valley-best practices and taught by experienced startup founders. Finally, through a unique “Graduate Liquidity Pool”, all participants in the program (including the enrolled Founders, Mentors, and Local Leaders) share in the equity of the companies formed. This shared equity approach creates a teamwork-oriented, “pay-it-forward” mentality conducive to building great companies, similar to the ecosystem found in Silicon Valley.
