OnDeck (nZero)

ODF (On Deck Founder Fellowship), operating at beondeck.com, is a program for early-stage founders and builders centered on an intensive one-week in-person onboarding experience in San Francisco. The stated focus of the week is meeting potential collaborators and co-founders, exploring company ideas, and gaining conviction to start a company. Each cohort has roughly 80-100 participants, of whom more than 50% are described as technical.

After the in-person week, participants gain lifetime alumni access to a community platform with more than 3,000 members, along with more than $800,000 in partner perks from providers such as Mercury, AWS and Stripe Atlas. The program is explicitly non-dilutive, taking no equity from participants. The company also publishes podcasts under the On Deck brand: Execs, aimed at non-founding technology executives and hosted by Erik Torenberg, and The Deep End, hosted by Marshall Kosloff, which features builders, creators and experts discussing ideas across commerce, higher education, art, governance and longevity.

The operator claims more than 1,000 startups launched by participants to date, naming companies such as Loyal, Luma, Cal.com, Lassie, atob, Traba, Levels, Partiful, Finch, Shepherd, Salsa, Roots, Rollfi, Overflow, Roo, Tofu, Settle, Pave and Cal.ai, with several noting that co-founders met through ODF. The site is copyrighted to nZero Labs, Inc. and describes itself as made in San Francisco.

Business model

ODF is a non-dilutive program: the operator states it takes no equity in participating founders' companies. The public site does not disclose fees, sponsorship arrangements or any other revenue mechanism, so the monetization model cannot be determined from the available sources.

Not disclosed in the available sources; the program states it takes no equity from participants.

Traction

Company-reported figures: more than 1,000 startups launched by participants, over $2 billion raised by alumni companies, a community platform with more than 3,000 members, and cohorts of 80-100 participants with more than 50% technical. Named alumni companies include Loyal, Luma, Cal.com, atob, Partiful, Finch, Settle, Pave and Cal.ai, with Traba, Levels, Shepherd, Salsa and Lassie cited as cases where co-founders met via ODF. Cohorts have run at least through ODF28, scheduled for Q1 2027.

Latest developments

The website states that ODF28 will kick off in Q1 2027 and displays a 2026 copyright for nZero Labs, Inc. The most recent listed episode of The Deep End podcast is dated December 13, 2024, featuring Cal.com CEO Bailey Pumfleet, an ODF alum.