EWOR Launches $68 Million Founder Fellowship Program
EWOR, short for "Entrepreneurship Without Risk," has launched a new founder fellowship program with $68 million in funding. The program will award €500,000 to 35 entrepreneurs each year. This investment includes €110,000 from EWOR GmbH and an additional €390,000 from its investment fund, structured as an uncapped convertible note or similar instrument.
The fellowship targets "visionaries, technical prodigies, deeply driven operators, and serial entrepreneurs." EWOR offers a virtual-first support system, including 1:1 mentorship with unicorn founders, access to a network of 2,000 mentors, VCs, and subject matter experts.
EWOR vs. Project Europe
EWOR's fellowship offers more capital than similar programs like Project Europe, which provides €200,000 for a 6.66% stake. EWOR takes a 7% stake for its €500,000 investment. EWOR emphasizes supporting founders at all stages, from ideation to traction.
Fellowship Benefits and Success Stories
Fellows receive 1 to 5 hours per week of mentorship with a unicorn founder. They also gain access to a vast network of experts. EWOR claims its alumni have raised between €1 million and €11 million during the fellowship.
Success stories include Aspect Health, a startup built in Moldova that secured funding in Silicon Valley and New York, ultimately reaching a $50 million valuation. Other successful fellows include Ricky Knox, with two 9-figure exits from Azimo and Tandem Bank, and Tim Seithe, who led Tillhub to a bootstrapped exit near €100 million.
EWOR's Approach
EWOR, founded in 2021, is run by six experienced entrepreneurs. Daniel Dippold, one of the founders, highlighted EWOR's data-driven approach to talent acquisition, using a vector database to identify individuals with specific technical skills.
“We run [EWOR] like a software company, build measure, learn. The only thing that matters is it needs to be the most useful thing any founder can possibly do.” - Daniel Dippold
Current Cohort
Ten founders have been accepted into this year's cohort. They include Mark Golab, a 3D printing pioneer applying the technology to organ transplants with Cambridge Surgical Models (Cambridge Surgical Models), and Viktoria Izdebezka, working on lead generation with Salesy (Salesy).
Jørgen Tveit, founder of Thaleron and an EWOR fellow, praised the founders' technical expertise and understanding of the challenges faced by tech companies.
