Why
Stay HUNGRY.
Why

Built for people who want to build big.

Stay Hungry is a founder program for ambitious people in Central Europe who want to turn an idea, technology, or insight into a company that can scale globally.

We believe exceptional regional talent and AI create a rare opportunity to build faster, aim higher, and compete internationally.

Building the ecosystem

The ecosystem should move as fast as the founders.

Actively pushing for more founder- and investor-friendly legal, investment and operating frameworks: simpler ways to fund companies, better incentives for talent and structures designed for startups that want to scale globally from day one.

A longer path

From curiosity to company.

Stay Hungry is building a path into entrepreneurship for people at different stages, from discovering that building is an option to taking the leap and starting a company.

  1. 01 Discover

    High school

    Meet entrepreneurship early. Events, startup weekends and exposure to people who build.

  2. 02 Experiment

    University

    Find co-founders, test ideas and meet people outside your usual circle.

  3. 03 Build

    Professionals

    Turn experience, expertise or an unfinished idea into a company.

Who should apply

You don’t need to have it all figured out.

We’re looking for unusually driven people who want to build technology companies. You may already have a startup, be working on an idea, or simply know that you want to build something of your own.

What you need is ambition.

What matters is how quickly you learn, how willing you are to build and talk to customers, and whether you can change direction when reality tells you to.

How

12 weeks. Build, sell, repeat.

Stay Hungry Bootcamp is an intensive 12-week program in Budapest built around turning an early company into one with real momentum.

You’ll build and iterate with AI, get it in front of customers, learn how to sell and grow it, work closely with experienced founders and mentors, and keep sharpening the company through real market feedback.

After the 12-week Bootcamp, teams present at Demo Day in front of investors.

  1. Week 1

    Start building

    Product + AI

  2. Weeks 2–3

    Product–market fit

    Find the right market

  3. Weeks 4–8

    Grow

    Find repeatable momentum

  4. Week 9

    Fundraise

    Plan the raise

  5. Weeks 10–12

    Pitch

    Make the case

See the 12 weeks →
How we work

Not a course. A working rhythm.

Every week, teams come back with evidence of what changed: what they shipped, what customers did, what sold, and what didn’t.

Business reviews put the numbers on the table. Mentor sessions focus on the biggest bottleneck. Then teams go back out and execute.

The program

12 weeks, week by week.

Week 1

Set the foundation

Start with the company as it really is, and make AI part of how it operates.

Set the baseline, establish the operating rhythm, define the metrics that matter, and identify the biggest questions the team needs to answer during the Bootcamp. At the same time, set up the AI workflows that will help the team build faster, learn faster, and automate repetitive work throughout the program.

Focus areas

  • Company and product setup
  • Revenue, growth and NPS tracking
  • AI-native development and operating workflows
  • Coding agents, automation and internal AI tools
  • UI/UX and technical design
  • Key assumptions to test
  • Baseline engineering and product velocity
  • Mentor introductions
Weeks 2–3

Product–market fit

Find the problem. Prove the solution.

Get sharper on the customer and the problem, then turn that understanding into evidence by putting the product in front of real users and customers.

  1. Week 2

    Find the problem

    Understand who the customer is, what problem matters most, and which assumptions need to be tested first.

  2. Week 3

    Prove the solution

    Test the product and value proposition with customers, learn from real responses, and decide what to build next.

Week 4

Growth strategy

Learn how your market grows.

Combine the relevant B2C, B2B, B2G, marketplace, or other growth mechanics into one focused week. Teams start running rapid experiments across distribution, acquisition, sales, partnerships, referrals, conversion, and automation.

Weeks 5–8

Grow. Learn. Iterate.

Work on what your company actually needs.

The program becomes increasingly team- and industry-specific. Each company focuses on its biggest bottleneck and works on it with the relevant founders, mentors, and experts. AI is integrated into the operating model to build faster, test more, automate repetitive work, and accelerate iteration.

Focus areas

  • Product
  • Growth and distribution
  • Sales and retention
  • Pricing
  • Technical execution
  • Partnerships
Week 9

Understand fundraising

Understand the game before you play it.

A concentrated week covering Seed and Series financing, differences between markets, investor expectations, fundraising mechanics, preparation, and common mistakes.

Weeks 10–12

Learn to tell the story

Turn the company into a story investors can understand.

Teams repeatedly present, get challenged, improve the story and come back stronger.

  1. Week 10

    Shape the story

    Clarify the problem, insight, product, market, traction, team, and ambition into one coherent narrative.

  2. Week 11

    Sharpen the pitch

    Improve the deck, numbers, pacing, demo, and Q&A through repeated presentations and feedback.

  3. Week 12

    Stress-test the case

    Challenge the weak points, work through difficult questions, and make the case ready for external investors.

After Week 12

Demo Day

Now show what changed.

Present the company, the progress made during the Bootcamp, and where you want to take it next in front of investors. Show what the team built, learned, sold, changed, and proved during the program.

Ongoing

After Demo Day

The relationship continues after the Bootcamp.

Stay Hungry continues to support founders as they build, hire, raise capital, and grow beyond the program.

Focus areas

  • Founder network
  • Mentors
  • Investor introductions
  • Fundraising support
  • Recruiting
  • Portfolio and community support
Join the first cohort

Apply in November. Start building in January.

  1. 01 November 1–30

    Apply

    Tell us about the company you want to build, the people behind it, and why you think it should exist.

    You don’t need to have everything figured out. We care about ambition, ability to execute, and how quickly you learn.

  2. 02 December

    Selection

    We’ll review every application, then invite the strongest teams and founders to the next stage.

    Selection will focus on the founders, the problem, the potential of the idea, and whether Stay Hungry can materially help the team move faster.

    1. 01

      Review

    2. 02

      Interview

    3. 03

      Final decision

  3. 03 Before Bootcamp

    Funding

    Go full-time.

    Selected teams receive funding designed to give founders the space to commit fully to building the company.

Stay HUNGRY. © 2026