The YFL Story
Our Team
Learn from real entrepreneurs and technologists by building in the real world
Co-Founder
Harvard College A.B., Oxford University Ph.D.
Ex- Bridgewater, Dalberg Advisors
Dhruva
Director
UChicago B.A., EIU MBA
Ex-founder of tutoring company
Felipe
Co-Founder
Harvard College A.B., HBS (dropped out)
Ex-McKinsey, founder of 8-figure revenue startup
Stephen
Partnerships lead
LSE
Entrepreneurship nerd
KP
Our founding story
Hi, my name is Stephen, and I’m one of the co-founders of Young Founders Lab. I grew up in a small town in Missouri, and the closest thing I saw to a start-up growing up was a pizzeria my friend’s dad started (and shut down after six months). Entrepreneurship was just not something I was exposed to.
Going to Harvard as an undergraduate changed my perspective on start-ups and what was possible. Suddenly, my friends were talking about raising venture capital, running real businesses, and dropping out of school.
My two best friends from college each went on to found startups. The first, Luke, raised money from Y-Combinator and is now one of our mentors. The second, Greg, has also crushed it—raising tens of millions from world-class venture capitalists like Andreessen Horowitz.I ended up working at McKinsey & Company for a few years before returning to start my own start-up (you’re a part of that start-up if you’re reading this!
Greg, Luke and I didn’t have any exposure to start-ups in high school (we lived in Nevada, Minnesota, and Missouri, respectively). So, I founded Young Founders Lab to create a bridge for talented, ambitious high school students to build their own startup.
Our goal is to give you all the resources you need to succeed as a young professional: training from my time at McKinsey, coaching from world-class coaches, and the structure to build a start-up that generates real revenue. In that sense, we are part incubator, part professional development training program.
For many, this is their first time working on a start-up, but for almost all of our participants it won’t be their last. I can’t wait to see what you’ll build!
Join a network of ambitious and passionate student entrepreneurs
WORKING TOGETHER
Applications to interview for Young Founders Lab’s Summer 2025 programs are now open—apply today.
