AI SMARTUP: Ignite Lite Program

DELIVERABLES - Ignite Lite Program

• Week 1: Orientation

• 1. Where are you now?: Detail your business concepts along with any experimentation or advancements achieved so far.
  2. Founder hotseat: Ready a one-minute oral pitch for the weekly "Founder Hotseat," a segment during the Feedback Sessions where you pitch to Mentors. Begin with program concise pitch format, and if your idea isn't finalized, introduce yourself, your passion, and the unique field you're well-suited to venture into.
  3. Co-Founders: In search of a Co-Founder? Draft a simple profile outlining your ideal partner. This information will be circulated within your cohort for potential matches.

• Week 2: VMC (Vision, Mission, Core Values)

• 1. Ideation: Compile a list of the ideas you're keen on exploring, or consider exploring different iterations of the business you're currently developing.
  2. Initial interviews: Employ program provided templates to conduct interviews with at least 23 individuals who are knowledgeable about the customer issues or could potentially be customers.
  3. Market research: Use a designated market research template to gather precise and accessible data about the customer challenges you're investigating.

• Week 3: Customer Development Accelerator

• 1. Customer Interviews: Expand upon your initial interviews and fundamental hypotheses to craft an extended set of customer interview inquiries. Ensure you include at least ten open-ended questions for each identified customer issue.
  2. Customer Persona: Follow program directions to either establish or refine a preliminary customer archetype that accurately represents your ideal target customer.
  3. Collect: For every customer problem still under consideration, create or enhance a professional-looking landing page aimed at your initial customer archetype. Use this as a strategy to rapidly grow a mailing list for gathering customer insights.

• Week 4: Lean Business Models

• 1. Customer issue/problem: From your investigations, choose a single customer issue/problem to focus on within the program, which holds the highest potential for substantial income generation.
  2. Revenue strategies: Refine this issue to three viable revenue strategies, conducting a detailed examination of the advantages and drawbacks associated with each approach.
  3. Expert pitch presentation: Utilize program templates to craft an expert three-minute pitch presentation, incorporating the feedback, ideas, and structure that have proven effective in your Hotseat presentations.

• Week 5: Pitch Mastery

• 1. Select a storyline for your pitch: Successful fundraisers weave a compelling narrative about the future direction of the world and their company's role in that future. Examine pitches from companies in similar sectors, then apply program guidelines to choose the most fitting narrative structure for your pitch.
  2. Craft your pitch script: Rehearsing is key to refining an initial version of your pitch. A typical three-minute pitch contains about 500 words at a standard speaking pace. Draft your script and seek critiques from colleagues.
  3. Finalize your idea review pitch presentation: Prepare your three-minute pitch presentation for the Mentor Idea Review, following program provided templates and instructions. Rehearse your presentation at least three times with your peers, adjusting it based on their input. Submit a final video on the designated submissions page.

• Week 6: Idea Validation

• 1. Corporate documents: Revise your three-minute pitch presentation and video in response to feedback from the Mentor Idea Review. Also, craft an updated Executive Summary.
  2. Prospective advisors: Over the coming some weeks, you'll establish (or expand) your Advisory Board. Start by compiling a list of potential new advisors, selecting candidates who can fill your current knowledge or network gaps.
  3. Engaging potential advisors: Utilize the AI SMARTUP network for introductions to your chosen candidates as needed. Follow program structured approach to advance the formation of your advisory board effectively.

• Week 7: Corporate Governance

• 1. Legal assessment: Consult the Legal Guide to gain a comprehensive understanding of essential legal aspects for startups, such as allocating and vesting equity, options issuance, and the differences between common and preferred shares. Should you discover discrepancies between your current legal framework and these recommended practices, devise a plan to address them.
  2. Ownership structure documentation: Update or create your capitalization table ("Cap Table") to accurately reflect your company's ownership distribution, following program provided template and instructions.
  3. Co-founder agreements: Compile a list of current co-founders, potential co-founder candidates, or key founding team members associated with your AI SMARTUP venture, and initiate the process to officially formalize these partnerships.

• Week 8: Growth Strategy

• 1. Growth strategy revision: Evaluate the success of your growth objectives and refine your growth strategy to enhance performance and accountability.
  2. Sales targets: Set ambitious targets for acquiring new revenue or users, whether through signups, transactions, executed contracts, pre-payments, or letters of intent.
  3. Expansion strategies: Collaborate with your team and advisors to generate 5-8 innovative strategies for expanding your customer base. Document these strategies in a list of Growth Tactics.

• Week 9: Go to Market & Scale

• 1. Options exploration: Pinpoint three different approaches (market opportunities or strategic shifts) for launching your product to unearth the most profitable market niche. Conduct interviews with a minimum of three potential customers for each option.
  2. Advisor engagement: As you move to officially bring advisors on board in the forthcoming phase, initiate wrap-up discussions with your prime prospects, and, where applicable, set up preliminary advisory assignments using program outlined procedures.
  3. Marketing message experimentation: Craft a minimum of three distinct promotional messages for your offering and conduct comparative analysis through landing pages, aiming for at least 50 interactions per test.

• Week 10: AI Product Building

  Develop the Minimum Viable Product (MVP) for Your AI Initiatives
• 1. Intellectual property protection: If not yet undertaken, ensure all intellectual property (IP) generated thus far is legally secured. Consider the pursuit of patents where relevant, adhering to our recommended procedures.
  2. Objective setting for solutions: Assess the current effectiveness of your solution. Define three key objectives that the upcoming version of your product aims to achieve for your target clientele in the forthcoming year.
  3. Team composition: If necessary, consolidate the expertise and positions required to accomplish your solution objectives. Utilize current team members or enhance the team by recruiting or contracting additional talent as needed.

• Week 11: AI Application in business

• 1. Intellectual property protection: Ensure all intellectual creations and innovations are legally safeguarded if you haven't already. Assess the potential requirement for patent applications in accordance with our established guidelines.
  2. Strategic objectives for your solution: Conduct a thorough review of your solution's present effectiveness. Identify and document three strategic objectives that you aim for the forthcoming product iteration to achieve for your intended audience within the next year.
  3. Team configuration: If not already in place, strategically assemble the necessary competencies and roles to fulfill your solution's strategic objectives. This may involve leveraging current team members or augmenting your team through new hires or external partnerships.

• Week 12: Co-Founders & Team

• 1. Talent acquisition: Begin the recruitment process for key positions, including Co-Founders, by compiling a list of suitable candidates from your network or utilizing the AI SMARTUP (AIS) network. Focus on filling the most crucial two or three positions that you do not intend to outsource.
  2. Recruitment and integration strategy: Formulate a systematic approach for recruiting and integrating new team members based on program recommendations. Initiate this strategy to expand your team effectively.
  3. Evaluation projects: For each of the primary roles you're hiring for, devise at least one evaluation project. These projects should be designed to allow promising candidates to showcase their capabilities and expertise.

• Week 13: Equity & Funding

• 1. Essential success benchmark: Collaborate with your Local Leaders to define your "Achievement Goal". Ensure this goal is scheduled in your business calendar.
  2. Advisor engagement plan: Schedule a meeting with each of your advisors to discuss your "Achievement Goal" alongside strategies for funding, recruitment, sales, and product development.
  3. Financial planning: Review your company's financial requirements and refine your financial projections to forecast revenue and expenditures for the next 36 months.

• Week 14: Investor Pitch Review

  Evaluate the pitch deck and presentation/public speaking abilities. Address the frequently asked questions by investors.

• Week 15: Final Coaching and Mentor Progress Review

• 1. Refined investment presentation: Develop a comprehensive, slide presentation deck based on insights gained from the Mentor Progress Review, utilizing our provided templates.
  2. Expansion: Advance towards your growth objectives, assessing and refining your approach and accountability mechanisms as necessary.
  3. Development: Progress with the upcoming product launch, detailing and tackling any challenges encountered by your development team.

• Week 16: Close-out

  Project completion and preparation for graduation. You are now poised to launch your actual business. Congratulations!