
Female Founders Circle
A community for technical female founders. Applications are now open until February 6th.
Applications for Winter 2026 are now open
Apply by February 6, 2026 at 11:59 PM PST to be considered for FFC AI Cohort 10. Programming starts in February.

8 weeks in San Francisco.
A community for life.
We are looking for the next generation of technical female and nonbinary entrepreneurs.
Be inspired by AI visionaries.
Attend intimate fireside chats with visionaries and successful female leaders in AI. Engage with Pear’s AI team across infrastructure and applications in B2B, healthcare, consumer, climate, fintech, legal, robotics, deep tech, and beyond.
Learn from experts on how to build, sell, and market a world class AI product.
Valuable workshops on building from 0-to-1 in AI, including talks on building with the latest advancements, go-to-market, and fundraising.
Learn from visionary leaders and founders.
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Lisa Su
CEO, AMD
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Niki Parmar
Co-Founder, Essential; Co-Author of seminal paper on transformers; Former CTO/Founder, Adept
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May Habib
CEO and Founder of Writer
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Ami Vora
Head of Product, Anthropic; formerly VP, Product and Design WhatsApp and FB
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Kate Ryder
CEO and Co-Founder, Maven Clinic
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Laura Wu
CEO and Co-Founder, Shippo
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Claire Hughes Johnson
Former COO of Stripe
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Wei Deng
CEO and Co-Founder, Clipboard Health
Frequently asked questions
Who is eligible for this program?
FFC is best for people who are:
πββοΈWomen and nonbinary technical founders (engineers, product managers, or related fields) looking to build community in person in San Francisco
π» Pre-product market fit and have not fundraised at scale. Founders must be building part time or full time
π€ Building in AI
What is the application process like?
We prioritize applications coming from referrals or invitations to apply. We then invite some applicants to participate in a brief 10-minute interview. We only accept ~30 founders per cohort and receive many applications.
How much does it cost?
All FFC programming is free. We have two simple asks: 1) Be an active member of the community. Joining FFC is more of a commitment to the other founders than it is to Pear. 2) If you decide to fundraise, please give us the opportunity to hear your pitch. FFC doesn’t guarantee or require an investment, but we do ask that you at least consider us as investors.
Do I need to have started a company to join?
No, but we require everyone to be actively working on a startup idea full-time or part-time
What are the dates of the program?
The Winter 2026 cohort will begin in mid February.
Whatβs the time commitment?
FFC programming spans approximately 8 weeks from February to April 2026. We expect individuals to commit to coming to as many sessions as possible, typically at the end of the work day on Wednesdays in San Francisco. If you cannot commit to this time right now, we encourage you to apply at a later date.
Where is FFC based?
FFC is in person in the Mission Bay neighborhood of San Francisco.
How can I find out more / get in touch?
We encourage you to subscribe to our newsletter for the latest information on FFC and other programs.
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