Global Founder Camp · by iHub Venture
We bring the world's best founders to Vietnam — to solve real problems and build companies that scale globally. Local First. Global Scale.
The model
The camp isn't the product — it's how we gather talents. We spot the strongest teams first, back them early, and connect with real demands. Each win pulls in better founders.
Top founders worldwide come to Vietnam — selected on merit.
Sprints and the Startup Challenge show who really ships.
iHub backs the best teams early — seed grants and capital.
Pilots, sandbox, and enterprise access validate real demand.
Breakout startups attract even better founders.
Three stages, one ecosystem
Initial capital to validate products, build teams, and achieve product-market fit.
Growth investment from angel investors, venture capital funds, corporate venture capital, and strategic investors.
Expansion capital to accelerate scaling, regional expansion, and long-term enterprise growth.
Powered by iHub
No one should have to wait for Demo Day to prove themselves. iHub turns real problems from our's enterprises partnes into paid bounties, so every builder ships, earns, and builds a track record in-camp.
Cash or crypto for a scoped task — income and proof of skill from week one.
Turn a win into a paid enterprise pilot, brokered by iHub.
The strongest builders spin a bounty into a startup — backed by iHub Ventures.
The flagship programs
The production house of entrepreneurship — promising builders from across the globe gather to build, to create, to solve, and to become the next founders.
1 event · every month
Vietnam students under one roof, building on real demands.
12 events · every month
11 HUB Network chapters worldwide, on the mission to solves city, corporate, and national demands.
Global Innovation Network
Participants
From local innovation communities across Vietnam and global HUB Network chapters.
Entrepreneurs, builders, researchers, engineers, innovators.
Program highlights
Solve real innovation challenges proposed by government agencies, corporations, and ecosystem partners.
50–60 outstanding startup teams selected from the HUB Network ecosystem and global innovation communities.
Rapid ideation, solution design, prototype development, and business pitching within an intensive challenge format.
Work alongside entrepreneurs, engineers, researchers, product builders, designers, and business talents.
Receive real-time guidance from entrepreneurs, industry experts, technology specialists, and investors throughout the challenge.
Leverage AI tools and digital technologies to accelerate idea generation, prototyping, and solution development.
Present solutions before government representatives, corporate leaders, investors, and ecosystem experts.
Outstanding teams will be selected to advance into the iHub Ventures Builder Camp for long-term venture building.
Our flagship intake: founders from around the world building startups together in Vietnam — inspired by Network School and founder residencies, adapted for Vietnam.
1 month · 50 founders
An exclusive international cohort, low acceptance rate.
3 months · 100–150
100–150 founders per cohort, 2–4 cohorts a year.
Skin in the game
No tuition — but not a free holiday either. Founders place a fully refundable commitment deposit and earn every dollar back by shipping. It keeps the cohort full of builders, not working-holiday tourists.
First commit shipped & Daily Build joined
A sandbox task cleared
Working product at Weekly Demo
Milestone hit — deposit fully returned
Place a refundable deposit up front. It comes back week by week as you hit milestones — 100% returned if you go the distance.
No cash up front. Complete a pre-camp technical task to waive the deposit entirely — so talent, not bank balance, is the filter.
Inside the camp
Gym, wellness, and deep work — a rhythm built for peak performance.
Daily Build, Weekly Demo, sprints, founder talks, and workshops.
Connect with Vietnamese startups, students, and enterprises.
Old Quarter, craft villages, cuisine, Ha Long — a lasting bond with Vietnam.
Build on real Vietnam problems: AI gov, smart city, climate, health, and more.
Seed grant, cloud & AI credits, plus legal and accounting — incorporate on-site.
First customers, pilots, enterprise intros, and a regulatory sandbox.
Pitch to VC, PE, corporates, and government.
Who & where we recruit
A small cohort, a low acceptance rate — exceptional builders from the world's leading tech hubs and universities.
Cohort composition
Groups that already build together and have a rough working product — fundable units from day one. No shotgun marriages formed on grant day.
Exceptional individuals — AI engineers, researchers, PhDs — matched into teams that need a missing piece during a pre-camp sprint, before any capital.
Who we select · the catalyst talent pool
Priority technology domains
| Software-defined tech | Leading hubs | Reference companies |
|---|---|---|
| AI Applications & Agents | US, UK, Canada | OpenAI, Anthropic, Perplexity |
| Web3 Infrastructure | Singapore, Switzerland, UAE | Ethereum, Solana, Polygon |
| Automation & Edge AI | US, EU, Singapore | Hugging Face, Groq, n8n |
| Cloud & Data Tooling | US | AWS, Snowflake, Databricks |
| Cybersecurity (software) | Israel, US | Wiz, CyberArk, Palo Alto Networks |
| Deep & hardware tech | Leading hubs | Reference companies |
|---|---|---|
| Semiconductor | Taiwan, Korea, US, Japan | TSMC, Samsung, NVIDIA |
| Quantum Computing | US, Canada, Germany | IBM Quantum, Google Quantum AI, D-Wave |
| Robotics & Automation | Japan, Germany, Korea | FANUC, Yaskawa, KUKA |
| Biotech & HealthTech | US, Germany, Switzerland | Moderna, BioNTech, Roche |
| 5G / 6G & Telecom | Korea, Finland, Sweden, Japan | Samsung, Nokia, Ericsson |
| Advanced Energy & Materials | US, China, Japan | CATL, Tesla Energy, Panasonic |
| Aerospace & SpaceTech | US, France, Japan | SpaceX, Airbus, JAXA |
| Climate Tech & Smart City | Netherlands, Denmark, Singapore | Singapore Smart Nation, Rotterdam Smart City |
On the roadmap as dedicated labs, supply chains, and longer residencies come online — beyond the 1–3 month software cycle.
Why join
Our first pilot brought founders together in Da Nang. The Vietnam camp builds on what we learned there.
Built to scale
With the HUB’s full capacity, what we proved in Da Nang is built to expand 10× — across founders, cohorts, and hubs worldwide.
The network
A global innovation community connecting young Vietnamese entrepreneurs, innovators, builders, and future founders worldwide — youth-led, built and operated by young leaders.
Hubs on the ground — where the network gathers.
Built by people — the founders behind every hub.
Exclusive and free for founders who ship — your commitment deposit is fully refundable. Tell us what you're building.
