Business purpose

Founder Profiles serves four commercial roles: investor / partner discovery surface, Founder Account subscription engine (Phase 2), platform credibility asset, and the foundation for introduction services. Each profile is a verified entity in a region where verified founder data is scarce — that scarcity IS the moat.

Four commercial roles

Investor / partner discovery

Investors filter by sector + stage + country to build pipeline. Partners use the directory to find counter-parties. The directory IS the platform service to these audiences.

Founder Account subscription (Phase 2)

Founders pay to take ownership of their profile, manage social links, request introductions, and access founder-only resources. The free tier keeps the editorial profile public.

Platform credibility asset

A verified founder directory is what sponsors associate with. Sector reports + editorial coverage gain weight because the underlying directory is verified.

Introduction services

Phase 3: warm-introduction routing for verified accounts (investor → founder, partner → founder). Lead gen flows through the verified founder directory.