WHAT TO EXPECT
WHAT
Minimum 3 month, full commitment Winter 2026 founder residency
- •Hyper selective: 10 startups only (<1% acceptance, can be teams or solo founders)
- •Hyper intense: Min 6 days/week in office for 3+ months, surrounded by amazing peers
- •Fully in person: Miami relocation required for all co-founders, costs offset with investment
WHY
Join a tight-knit community of relentless builders who raise each other's bar daily:
- •Become part of a highly curated and elite cohort of exceptional builders
- •Distraction-free, high output environment to do your best work
- •Free office space at The LAB Miami
- •Possible investment from focal.vc + access to 200+ investor network
- •>$1M in vendor perks (OpenAI, Anthropic, Stripe, Vercel, AWS, etc.)
WHO
There's no "too early" - apply with nothing more than:
- •The will to start a venture scale company
- •Strong technical chops on the founding team
- •Ability to build exceptional products at breakneck speed
- •Not raised yet and live within the world of AI + Software
WORLD-CLASS MENTORSHIP
Close mentorship from unicorn founders, operators, and investors who call Miami home
$4B
Digital Ocean (NYSE)
$2B
Mural
$1.2B
Papa
$1B
vLex
$1B
Quicknode
$1B
Spotnana
PROGRAMMING
You're here to talk to customers and build - programming is kept light but impactful:
- →Weekly dinners with seasoned founders & investors (including $B founder mentors)
- →Weekly office hours with focal, typically on Sundays
- →The rest of the time is yours to build and learn alongside each other
TERMS
Get all the benefits of a top accelerator without suffering the heavy dilution.
This is NOT an accelerator taking 7+% for a small check!
- 1.Upfront: (Optional) $25K for solo founders / $50K for teams on uncapped SAFE with MFN to offset cost of relocation
- 2.During residency: Potential pre-seed (up to $1M at market terms) + potential additional funding from 200+ VCs/angels
- 3.After residency: Support raising additional funding from 200+ VC firms / angels / mentors
Note: All financial investments will be made through focal.vc
LOGISTICS
Application Deadline
Dec 14, 2025, acceptance on a rolling basis (apply ASAP)
Acceptance Confirmation
Rolling, by Dec 19, 2025 latest
Start Date
Flexible between Jan 18, 2026 - Feb 27, 2026
Duration
Minimum 3 months, can be extended to up to 6 months (optional)
Housing
We will help you get set up / find housing / get discounts / etc. Month-to-month, furnished rentals available within walking distance from The LAB Miami. Same goes for gyms, restaurants, laundry service, etc.
WHY MIAMI?
State Income Tax
Lower Cost of Living vs SF/NYC
Days of Sunshine
With 0% state income tax and >25% lower cost of living vs SF / NYC, your runway lasts significantly longer. Plus, you'll be building in one of the fastest-growing tech ecosystems in North America - in perfect weather year-round.
THE PARTNERSHIP
The residency is a partnership between focal.vc and The LAB Miami.
focal vc
Your first lead. At focal, we're true stage specialists who exclusively lead the first round (pre-seed / inception) in AI native software startups.
That's all we do to do it best. Thereafter, we help founders get off the ground faster, and bring best-in-class networks and expertise to help them nail their GTM from Day 1 alongside the 200+ GTM leaders at the fastest growing startups in The GTM Circle we run.
Visit focal.vc →The LAB Miami
Located in the heart of Wynwood, The LAB is where Miami's most relentless founders, technical talent, and startup operators come to build.
The campus is designed for those pushing the edge of what's possible - with the infrastructure, community, and energy to accelerate real progress. The residency takes place at The LAB and office space is free for founders during the program.
Explore Our Campus →