LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- Samuel Lungu, a high school student in Malawi, Africa, set out to solve a real problem his family was experiencing and as a result, he is disrupting an industry, changing lives and revolutionizing an entire country— with one mobile app—Agronet. Agronet connects subsistence farmers directly with buyers—thereby circumventing predatory middle men, increasing profits to farmers, and achieving equilibrium between supply and demand. Thanks to Founders Bootcamp, the world’s first venture capital fund for teenagers, Samuel and his co-founder were able to participate in a business accelerator for teens.
“We’re ecstatic about what we’re seeing. There’s never been anything like it,” says Richard Kassebaum, co-founder of Founders Bootcamp. “These five teen teams have launched businesses that are completely disrupting their respective industries. The Waterpoint team for instance, has develop patent-pending technology that addresses the clean water crisis for 1/3 of the world’s population who lack access to clean water—starting in Africa and India. We believe we’re working with brilliant minds the likes of Steve Jobs, Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg. These teenagers are remarkable,” states Kassebaum.
Five teen startups were selected from among 1,100+ applicants to participate in the Founders Bootcamp summer accelerator. Each team was offered a $50,000 investment for 5% of their company. In just three months, each team has made significant traction towards building thriving, disruptive businesses with GLOBAL impact.
The five teen startup companies:
· Waterpoint is a portable machine that inexpensively delivers water where it is needed most - from disaster zones to developing countries to drought areas - by extracting potable water from moisture in the air.
· Agronet is modernizing African agriculture with an accessible online marketplace that connects farmers directly with crop buyers, thereby circumventing predatory middlemen.
· HERO is smart, stylish jewelry that deters assault by alerting friends or police when activated.
· Trill is a safe, anonymous social network that curates content and battles bullying with machine learning algorithms.
· Loop is a mobile platform that makes party hosting worry-free.
Founded by a former Los Angeles high school science teacher, Roger Kassebaum, and his former student and MIT graduate, Richard Dahan, Founders Bootcamp is the world's first venture capital fund for teenagers. Founders Bootcamp empowers teenagers to build startup companies from scratch, develop polished products, gain persuasive traction, and secure additional investor funding. In 2017, Founders Bootcamp teen startups collectively acquired over 25,000 users and secured over $1,100,000 in signed investment commitments. Founders Bootcamp is inspiring a generation of teens worldwide with aspirational stories of youth entrepreneurs succeeding in a global evolving economy. Learn more at FoundersBootcamp.org. For interviews contact Anita S. Lane: 313.447.9083. [email protected]
They received $50,000 in startup capital, and in less than six months, Agronet is on track to earn $100,000 in gross profit in the month of September alone. In October 2018, Agronet and four other startups (Trill, Waterpoint, HERO and LOOP), also funded by Founders Bootcamp, will participate in “Demo Day” with top-tier Silicon Valley venture capitalists.
“We’re ecstatic about what we’re seeing. There’s never been anything like it,” says Richard Kassebaum, co-founder of Founders Bootcamp. “These five teen teams have launched businesses that are completely disrupting their respective industries. The Waterpoint team for instance, has develop patent-pending technology that addresses the clean water crisis for 1/3 of the world’s population who lack access to clean water—starting in Africa and India. We believe we’re working with brilliant minds the likes of Steve Jobs, Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg. These teenagers are remarkable,” states Kassebaum.
Five teen startups were selected from among 1,100+ applicants to participate in the Founders Bootcamp summer accelerator. Each team was offered a $50,000 investment for 5% of their company. In just three months, each team has made significant traction towards building thriving, disruptive businesses with GLOBAL impact.
The five teen startup companies:
· Waterpoint is a portable machine that inexpensively delivers water where it is needed most - from disaster zones to developing countries to drought areas - by extracting potable water from moisture in the air.
· Agronet is modernizing African agriculture with an accessible online marketplace that connects farmers directly with crop buyers, thereby circumventing predatory middlemen.
· HERO is smart, stylish jewelry that deters assault by alerting friends or police when activated.
· Trill is a safe, anonymous social network that curates content and battles bullying with machine learning algorithms.
· Loop is a mobile platform that makes party hosting worry-free.
Founded by a former Los Angeles high school science teacher, Roger Kassebaum, and his former student and MIT graduate, Richard Dahan, Founders Bootcamp is the world's first venture capital fund for teenagers. Founders Bootcamp empowers teenagers to build startup companies from scratch, develop polished products, gain persuasive traction, and secure additional investor funding. In 2017, Founders Bootcamp teen startups collectively acquired over 25,000 users and secured over $1,100,000 in signed investment commitments. Founders Bootcamp is inspiring a generation of teens worldwide with aspirational stories of youth entrepreneurs succeeding in a global evolving economy. Learn more at FoundersBootcamp.org. For interviews contact Anita S. Lane: 313.447.9083. [email protected]
