The Radical AI Founders Masterclass is an exclusive annual program designed to equip AI researchers and technical entrepreneurs with the inspiration and practical knowledge to build AI products and businesses. Over four weeks, we host virtual, free sessions with world-leading AI pioneers, successful entrepreneurs, and leaders from top AI companies, complemented by tactical sessions covering AI product development, business integration strategies, and other essential areas that AI founders need to master.
Our 2025 speakers include Jonathan Frankle, Chief Scientist at Databricks; May Habib, CEO of Writer; Jim Fan, Nvidia’s AI Agent lead; and AI pioneer Joelle Pineau, among others to be announced.
Previous speakers have included Geoffrey Hinton, Fei-Fei Li, Ion Stoica, Daphne Koller, Aidan Gomez, Sara Hooker, Pieter Abbeel, Richard Socher, and many other AI luminaries.
The Masterclass is designed for:
You don’t need to have incorporated or be a company founder to participate – we welcome researchers at all stages who are interested in bridging the gap from breakthrough ideas to real-world impact.
The program is completely free.
The 2025 Masterclass kicks off in early October, 2025. Sessions are held twice weekly on Wednesdays and Thursdays, followed by a Friday Circles session (more information on that below). We encourage attending all sessions for the full experience.
All sessions are held virtually, and key speaker sessions are recorded for participants in conflicting time zones.
We’ve collaborated with leading institutions including Stanford HAI, Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence, Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute, University College London, MIT, Oxford, Cambridge, Berkeley, University of Toronto, and premier AI institutes like Mila and Allen Institute for AI.
As part of the Masterclass, participants will be organized into intimate groups of 10-15 founders called “Circles”, which are ongoing peer advisory networks designed to help you build meaningful relationships, get targeted feedback on startup challenges, and access a trusted network of fellow AI entrepreneurs.
Groups will be curated based on commonalities like technical focus, geographic location, industry vertical, and/or startup stage. They will meet weekly during the 4-week Masterclass, then monthly thereafter. Agendas are member-driven agendas with no Radical Ventures staff participation. Expectations are that participants will maintain confidentiality and commit to regular engagement. Participation is optional but strongly encouraged.
During the Masterclass, they’ll be 60-minute sessions every Friday at 1 pm PT/4 pm ET. After the Masterclass, the group will decide on the best meeting cadence.
The Compute Cohort is a selective program for the most promising AI startups from the Masterclass. In partnership with Google Cloud, we provide substantial computing resources and mentorship to help participants build and scale their AI products.
Only 10-15 participants are selected for the Compute Cohort from the larger Masterclass community.
No, acceptance into the Masterclass does not guarantee access to the Compute Cohort. The Compute Cohort has a separate, more selective application process.
Applications are currently open and reviewed on a rolling basis, closing end of September.
If you’re interested in partnering with us for the Masterclass or as part of the broader AI Founders community, please reach out to AIFounders@radical.vc with relevant information about your organization and proposed collaboration.
Please reach out to AIFounders@radical.vc for any additional questions about the Masterclass, Compute Cohort, or partnership opportunities.