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§ Accelerator
Accelerator for AI startup founders, covering product-market fit, structured sprints, 1:1 support, and $150k investment.
Character Labs G6: Accelerator for AI startup founders, covering product-market fit, structured sprints, 1:1 support, and $150k investment.
Character Labs G6 is offered by Character Capital.
Character Labs G6 currently lists $150K for 5% equity on day of acceptance. No fees, no milestones. Pro rata follow-on in next round. 5-week hybrid program (SF + remote) with hands-on sprints led by Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky (creators of Design Sprint, authors of Sprint and Click). Max 15 companies per group. as its value.
Startup founders pre-PMF. Software products and software-enabled services only. Must be incorporated in USA. Teams of 2-3 preferred.
Character Labs G6 is listed for Remote.
Character Labs G6 is an eight-week accelerator program administered by Character Capital to help early-stage artificial intelligence startups achieve product-market fit. The structured curriculum includes a three-day in-person kickoff event in San Francisco, followed by remote pitch sprints and dedicated one-on-one operational support. Accepted companies receive a standard $150,000 investment in exchange for five percent equity, alongside a pro rata follow-on commitment for their next venture capital round. The sixth cohort accepts up to fifteen participating teams, with final applications due on April 8, 2026, and official programming commencing on May 12, 2026. Applicants must be formally incorporated, provide a detailed equity breakdown, and fully disclose all prior funding, runway metrics, and previous accelerator participation. This resource targets artificial intelligence startup founders seeking venture backing, operational mentorship, and structured programming to validate hypotheses and scale their go-to-market strategies.
Character Labs G6 is the sixth batch of Character Labs, a sprint-based accelerator that invests $150,000 for 5% equity on day of acceptance. The program runs May 12 through June 9, 2026 - five weeks of back-to-back structured sprints led by Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky, former Google Ventures partners who created the Design Sprint and co-authored the bestseller Sprint. Applications close April 8, 2026 with decisions by April 20.
Unlike traditional accelerators built around office hours and mentor networks, Character Labs is 100% focused on product-market fit. Every session is a working sprint - founders leave each week with tangible outputs, not just advice.
Each week is a distinct sprint with a specific outcome:
Character Labs targets pre-PMF founders building software products or software-enabled services. The ideal team is 2-3 technical co-founders incorporated in the US (Delaware preferred). Companies can be anywhere from idea stage to early product that is not yet working. International founders are welcome as long as the company is US-incorporated.
The fund behind the program, Character Capital ($52M), focuses on frontier applications of software - particularly AI for science, medicine, industry, and commerce. Core investments from the fund range up to $2M for 6-10% equity.
Character Labs alumni include Reclaim (acquired by Dropbox), Fathom (follow-on from Zoom and Telescope Partners), Phaidra (follow-on from Index Ventures and Collab Fund), Inductive Bio (follow-on from a16z and Obvious Ventures), House Rx (follow-on from Bessemer and NEA), Orbital Materials (follow-on from NVIDIA), and Extend (follow-on from Innovation Endeavors). Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky previously invested in and worked with Slack, Flatiron Health, One Medical, Blue Bottle Coffee, and Gusto during their time at Google Ventures.
The application is a short form that takes about five minutes - no video required, no warm intro needed. Applications are reviewed in order received, so earlier submissions have an advantage. Interview notifications go out by April 13, with final decisions by April 20.