Forum Ventures, the early-stage B2B venture studio, accelerator, and pre-seed fund that has backed 550+ companies since 2014, today released performance data from its most recent accelerator cohort. The data offers a detailed look at revenue outcomes, founder backgrounds, and team composition across the program.
Three findings stand out: 64.1% of founders reached early revenue during the program, 58.3% are first-time founders, and 25.6% are solo-founder led. These independent data points reflect different dimensions of who is in the program and what they achieved.
“Most accelerators are subconsciously filtering out the founders who need them most. Solo founders, first-timers, founders without a product yet — those are exactly the people we built Forum for. The data shows they can deliver,” said Michael Cardamone, CEO & Managing Partner of Forum Ventures.
The narrative around early-stage funding has long assumed that the safest bets are repeat founders, co-founding teams, and companies with demonstrated traction before the program begins. Forum's 2026 cohort data offers a different perspective on each of these assumptions.
Solo founders represent 25.6% of the cohort. Many accelerators and early-stage funds favor co-founding teams during evaluation, but Forum's approach pairs each company with a dedicated Managing Director who works 1:1 weekly, providing the operational support and accountability a co-founder would typically offer.
First-time founders constitute 58.3% of the cohort. Prior startup experience is often favored by investors, yet the cohort's revenue and follow-on outcomes are consistent with Forum's 3-year averages: a 65% fund-through rate and an 80+ NPS score across the portfolio. First-time founders receiving structured support — 15 hours minimum of 1:1 Managing Director time, 40+ investor introductions per showcase — perform.
Revenue during the program is the real traction benchmark, with 64.1% of founders reaching early revenue in the 16-week accelerator. The Forum model, focused on go-to-market, customer traction, and fundraise readiness from week one, is designed to produce this outcome regardless of prior traction.
“The $100k is nice... but the real value comes from having the MDs on your team. Their perspective, energy, and introductions as you grow are worth the investment. Especially for first-time founders who need someone to walk the journey with,” said Kory Kelly, Founder of Legal Karma (raised $6.8M to date).
Forum's accelerator is a 16-week program investing $100K for 7.5% equity via post-money SAFE. Each company receives a dedicated Managing Director. The program is focused on go-to-market, customer traction, and fundraise readiness. Forum does not run a curriculum; it meets founders where they are. The accelerator is best suited for founders who have raised less than $500K and are pre- or post-MVP.
Forum Ventures is an early-stage B2B venture studio, accelerator, and pre-seed fund. Founded in 2014 and headquartered in New York City, with offices in San Francisco and Toronto, Forum has backed 550+ portfolio companies and 1,000+ founders, with $1B+ in follow-on funding raised across the portfolio. Learn more at forumvc.com.
