Can You Raise Money with Just an Idea?

🔥 The Deep Dive: Can You Raise Money with Just an Idea?

Joshua Lee, Partner @ Gumshoe Ventures
What’s an idea really worth? More than you think. In this session, Joshua explored how early-stage founders can validate, package, and even raise capital around ideas — before a product or prototype exists. He shared stories of idea-stage fundraising, how to build investor confidence without traction, and why bold vision still matters in a world obsessed with metrics.

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👀 Showcase

Aditya Bahl, Founder @ Buildnow AI
‍Aditya introduced Buildnow AI, a platform that helps teams create engaging training videos using just text. With AI avatars, voiceovers in 100+ languages, and rapid video generation, Buildnow is making dry documents a thing of the past. He walked us through the vision, the tech, and how it’s already transforming how teams onboard and train.

Oscar R. Garcia, Founder & CEO & Sam Ali, Business Development Executive @ Need2Say
‍Clear communication saves lives — especially in high-stakes environments like construction. Oscar and Sam showcased Need2Say, a platform focused on streamlining communication for frontline workers. They shared how their tech is helping teams stay safe, productive, and aligned in the field.

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🙏 Special Thanks to Our Sponsors

Big shoutout to the partners who help make Exit Hours possible. Your support fuels the founders, ideas, and conversations that keep this community growing.

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The Leatherby Center is an incubator for startups. Our vision is to inspire, educate, and empower the next generation of talent to have an entrepreneurial mindset. We encourage students to innovate, take risks, and be future global citizens. Learn more here.

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Staxiom is an AI-powered fintech platform that automates key financial and tax processes, starting with R&D tax credits. We simplify complex calculations, helping businesses maximize their eligible credits with minimal effort. Learn more here.

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