Comparison · 15 material differences
Founders Forum vs On Deck
This comparison was generated on request from the records. It carries no editorial verdict and is not indexed. The published comparisons are listed on the compare page.
Read down each column for one organization, across a row for the difference. A bronze mark at the left of a cell means the organizations differ on that row. A dash or “not published” means the organization does not disclose the fact — it is not a zero.
Verified September 2026
Invitation-only community
Verified September 2026 Founders Forum
Founders of high-growth technology companies, senior investors, corporate chief executives and senior policymakers
Invitation-only community
On Deck
Pre-seed and pre-idea technology founders in or willing to travel to San Francisco, building for United States customers, who are committed full-time to starting a company.
What the records say
- Minimum capital raised — Founders Forum: No published minimum capital raised; On Deck: Must not have raised beyond pre-seed.
- Geographic restriction — Founders Forum: No published geographic restriction; On Deck: Target customers must be in the United States; attendance in San Francisco for five business days is required.
- Annual dues — Founders Forum: Not applicable; Founders Forum has no standing membership and charges no dues.; On Deck: $10,000 a year.
Side by side
| Founders Forum | On Deck | |
|---|---|---|
| Profile | ||
| Type | Invitation-only community | Invitation-only community |
| Founded | 2005 ("Founders Forum started in 2005... Our community first convened at a 50-person event in London." Brent Hoberman is listed as co-founder and executive chair.) | 2019 (TechCrunch reported that On Deck launched in June 2019, co-founded by Erik Torenberg and David Booth. The current ODF site does not publish a founding date.) |
| Headquarters | London, United Kingdom | San Francisco, United States |
| Geographic footprint | More than 40 forums held in over 20 cities worldwide, including Los Angeles, Rio de Janeiro, Tel Aviv, Mumbai, Paris and Hong Kong; the current calendar centres on London, Dubai, Singapore, North America, Europe and India | The core programme is an in-person week in San Francisco; the ongoing community is online. The published eligibility notes rule out founders whose target customers are outside the United States. |
| Members | 450as of September 2026 | 3,000as of September 2026 |
| Chapters | No chapters. The group runs a set of branded forums by region and by role, including FF Global, FF MEASA, FF Asia, FF Europe, FF North America, FF India, the Founders Family Office Forum, Europe 100, the CMO Forum, the CFO Forum and a VC Summit. | No chapters; the programme runs as numbered cohorts from a single San Francisco base. |
| Primary audience | Founders of high-growth technology companies, senior investors, corporate chief executives and senior policymakers | Pre-seed and pre-idea technology founders in or willing to travel to San Francisco, building for United States customers, who are committed full-time to starting a company. |
| Typical member | Attendees are founders of significant technology companies, venture investors and chief executives. The 2025 flagship drew 300 unicorn founders and 129 venture capitalists collectively managing $2.7 trillion, alongside corporate executives and government figures. | ODF states that cohorts run 80 to 100 people and that more than half have technical backgrounds. The published eligibility screen excludes founders who have raised beyond pre-seed, who already have a team, whose business cannot reach venture scale, or whose target customers are outside the United States. Named alumni companies include Cal.com, Luma and Partiful. |
| Qualification | ||
| Minimum capital raised | No published minimum capital raised | Must not have raised beyond pre-seedThis is an upper bound, not a floor: the FAQ says the programme is not suitable for founders who have already raised beyond pre-seed.verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Geographic restriction | No published geographic restriction | Target customers must be in the United States; attendance in San Francisco for five business days is requiredThe FAQ lists non-US target customers as a disqualifier and requires the "full SF sprint (five business days)".verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Invitation required | Yes | No |
| Sponsor required | Not documented | No |
| Application process | There is no application to a membership. Invitations are issued to specific forums; the site offers a register-your-interest form for the flagship event and an apply-to-exhibit route for companies wanting to demonstrate technology. Selection is curatorial and the criteria are not published. | The published sequence is: apply through an online form, then an optional asynchronous video, then an interview, then an optional second interview, with a decision stated at roughly 36 hours. Admission is to a specific numbered cohort rather than to open-ended membership. |
| Selectivity | Not publicly disclosed. The organisation publishes attendance composition for its flagship (450 entrepreneurs in 2025) but no acceptance rate or invitation volume. | Not publicly disclosed. Cohort size is published at 80 to 100 people, but no application volume or acceptance rate is given. |
| Cost | ||
| Annual dues | Not applicable; Founders Forum has no standing membership and charges no dues.verified September 2026 · source ↗ | $10,000 a yearHistorical: On Deck Scale, the programme for high-growth companies, was reported at US$10,000 per year in September 2022. This programme is not listed on the current ODF site.verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Programme fee | No fee schedule is published. The forums are supported by named corporate partners, and the group also earns revenue from its associated businesses. | $1,000 one-timeCurrent ODF cohort fee: "Non-dilutive program with a Pay-what-you-can model; we suggest $1000 USD which covers venue, food, and year-round community infrastructure." The suggested figure is a guideline, not a fixed charge.verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Event costs | Not publicly disclosed. No ticket price or attendance fee is published for any Founders Forum event; the forums carry named corporate partners.verified September 2026 · source ↗ | The programme takes no equity. The related three-month Solo Founders residency does not publish a price on its own site. |
| Membership term | Not documented | Admission is to a single cohort; the site describes year-round community access afterwards without stating a renewal term. |
| Structure | ||
| Meeting frequency | A calendar of forums through the year: FF Global in June, FF MEASA in March, FF Asia and FF Europe in October, plus role-specific and regional forums | One five-business-day in-person sprint in San Francisco per cohort, then continuing online community activity |
| Peer forums | Panels, intimate breakout brainstorms and fireside chats, on the stated principle that every attendee could be a keynote speaker | Cohorts of 80 to 100 founders, more than half of them technical; there is no standing confidential forum group |
| Confidentiality | Not publicly disclosed. The organisation publishes an "InsideFF" write-up series from its flagship, so the forums are not wholly off the record. | Not publicly disclosed |
| Time commitment | Two to three days per forum attended | Five business days in San Francisco for the sprint; no ongoing commitment is published |
| Organized as | Event-focused | Cohort-based, Event-focused, Virtual |
| Confidential peer forums | Partial | Partial |
| Local chapters | No | No |
| Virtual membership | No | Partial |
| Online community | Not documented | Yes |
| Member directory | No | Yes |
| Events | Yes | Yes |
| Programming | ||
| Educational programming | Partial | Yes |
| Leadership development | Partial | Partial |
| Retreats | Yes | No |
| Travel | Yes | No |
| Family programming | No | No |
| Spouse and partner programming | No | No |
| Next-generation programming | Partial | No |
| Investment discussions | Yes | Yes |
| Investment opportunities | Yes | Partial |
| Philanthropic component | Partial | No |
| Networking emphasis | High | High |
| Social emphasis | High | Medium |
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Sources
Drawn from the sources listed on each page: Founders Forum · On Deck