I’m exploring the idea of launching a Founders Collective—a network of early-stage startup founders who support each other not just with advice or intros, but through token swaps and structured collaboration.
The goal is to create real skin-in-the-game alignment between founders building in the same ecosystem. Instead of every founder grinding in isolation, we share upside, resources, and credibility—like a mutual aid society for high-leverage builders.
To move this forward, I’m proposing a research collaboration with Allo Capital with an aim to explore:
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How Allo Protocol could enable this kind of collective
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Whether a Founders Collective could be a new module in the Allo toolbox
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What the optimal mechanism design might look like
What’s in it for founders?
I believe a well-designed collective could offer real benefits, like for example:
- Mutual skin in the game – Token swaps align incentives and deepen commitment among founders.
- Diversified upside – Each founder participating in the token swap gains exposure to the success of multiple projects, not just their own. Shared risk is less risk.
- Resource and talent sharing – Members can pool skills, tools, intros, and support to move faster and leaner.
- Boosted credibility – Being part of a vetted collective enhances legitimacy and trust with investors and partners.
- Accelerated learning – Founders learn from each other’s wins and mistakes in real time. Getting advice, help and support from other founders in similar situation is invalueable.
- Fundraising support – Members can help each other with warm intros and shared deal flow.
- Co-governance experiments – Opportunity to test shared treasury, grants, or DAO-style decision-making.
- Co-marketing and Ecosystem synergy – Founders can integrate the other’s products, tokens, or protocols for mutual growth.
What we’ll be researching:
I’m drafting a research piece to explore this model deeply. Here’s a proposed table of contents:
Chapter I. Lifecycle of a Founder Collective
- Prerequisites: Value Alignment
- Onboarding – Attracting, qualifying, and matching founders.
- Assembling the Collective – Complementary projects, avoiding overlap, aligning on chain/token stack
- Formalizing Structure – Collaboration charter, P2P equity, joint holding entity
- Growth Phase – Solo traction with collective support and shared wins
- Dynamic Rebalancing – Reward growth; re-balance equity over time to reflect contributions
- Token Launches – Collective or individual tokens, q/acc-style launchpad models?
- Graduation & Exit – Options for liquidity, spin-outs, and founder exits
- Beyond the Pool – Meta-holding structure for cross-pool alumni and support
Chapter II. Shared Services: Cold Start & Partnership Playbook
- Grant Infrastructure – Scouting, writing, and managing
- Research Hub – Shared investigations, ecosystem mapping
- Community Builders – Growth squads for network expansion
- Beta Tester Army – Cross-pool early users and feedback
- Marketing Collective – Shill squad, co-promotion, content swaps
- Tech Studio – Devs, token engineers, designers on retainer
- Talent Ops – Recruitment, bounties, payroll, offboarding
- Strategy Cell – Org design, product-market fit, growth loops
Chapter III. Mechanisms & Incentives
- Anti-Grift Design – Filters and penalties for low contribution
- Capital Coordination – Attracting grants/angles/VCs and fair pooling
- Growth Metrics – Tracking shared KPIs: users, revenue, TVL, impact
Chapter IV. Holding the Collective Together
- Shared Currency – Internal equity token or stablecoin for shared services. Commitment pooling?
- Aligned Values – Shared goals, mutual uplift, internal preference loops
- Collective Care – Peer support, cross-promos, customer referrals, discounts
- Shared Stack – Agreeing on tools (e.g. HyperCerts vs KarmaGap, Notion vs CharmVerse, etc)
Some of the key questions we’ll be tackling include:
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Design & Structure - What’s the ideal governance model for a founders collective? Should equity be peer-to-peer or held via a shared entity? How do we ensure fair token swap mechanics and founder alignment without internal competition?
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Incentives & Rebalancing - How can we reward high contributors and disincentivize free riders? What rebalancing mechanism fairly adjusts equity based on growth or engagement?
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Token & Capital Strategy - Should we launch a shared token or support individual founder tokens? How can Allo Protocol coordinate capital inflow, and what’s the best model for fundraising and token distribution?
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Cold Start & Shared Services - How do we attract the first wave of aligned founders? What core services (grants, marketing, dev) should be cold-started, and how do we select providers?
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Exit & Longevity - How can founders exit without destabilizing the pool? What structures support long-term collaboration across pools or in an alumni network?
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Shared Culture & Tools - What values, communication norms, and tech stack (e.g. Notion, HyperCerts, ChainCrew) should be shared to ensure smooth collaboration?
Questions for you:
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Would you join a Founders Collective like this?
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What would make it worth your time?
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Who else should we involve in this? Who to talk to?
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Would you like to help shape the research?
Please discuss!
Let’s build something founders would actually use!