AI accelerator · Andorra · 2027 applications open in spring
Where AI startups grow for real.
Fifth Foundry accelerates and builds Andorran applied-AI companies. Six months working alongside operators, a real pilot customer in the country and a structured funding round with our investor circle. We are the incubation arm of Level Five.
- Startups per cohort
- 4–5
- Duration
- 6 months
- Group stake
- 6%
- Programme fee
- €0
- Legal entity
- Andorran
- Demo Day
- Oct–Nov
What we do
Three ways to work with an AI startup. One thesis.
We are neither a generalist accelerator nor an institutional incubator. We combine three things nobody else brings together in Andorra: mentors who run real businesses, private investors who invest deal by deal, and direct access to the country’s companies as pilot customers.
Fifth Foundry Build
Venture studio
One or two companies a year, built on the group’s own product and technology, each led by a full-time external founder who holds a majority stake.
See Build →Fifth Foundry Boost
Acceleration
An annual cohort of Andorran AI startups at pre-seed or early seed. One lead mentor and one partner per team, a single metric over 180 days, pilot customers and a Demo Day in front of investors.
See Boost →Fifth Foundry Capital
Investment
One investment vehicle per deal, with the investors in our circle. Valuation set by an independent committee. No fund and no upfront capital commitment: each investor decides deal by deal.
For investors →Fifth Foundry Boost
Six months to go from product to a growing company.
No set curriculum: each team starts with a target metric agreed in writing, and the whole programme is built around moving it. Sessions are run by people who have done what they teach.
What the startup gets
- A lead mentor and a reference partnerFortnightly sessions with the mentor, monthly with the partner, plus access to the rest of the network.
- A 180-day plan with one metricRevenue, paying customers, signed pilots or retention. Just one, measured every month.
- Two or three pilot customers in AndorraDirect introductions and support through the negotiation. Customers come before investors.
- Fundraising preparationValuation, materials, data room, investor list and Demo Day at the Valira Valley Summit.
- The group’s ecosystemThe Valira Valley community, relocation to Andorra with Fifth Landing, and suppliers on negotiated terms.
What we ask
A stake in the startup, the same for every team, with no programme fee. Part of it pays the mentors. It is issued through a capital increase at the start of the programme.
The right to invest first through Fifth Foundry Capital in the first round, at the valuation set by our independent committee. The startup remains free to raise elsewhere if it prefers a different price.
Three in-person weeks in Andorra: kick-off, midpoint and Demo Day preparation. The rest of the time, fortnightly sessions.
Diagnosis and metric
Product, market, team, finances and cap table reviewed with audit-level rigour. Signed target metric, 180-day plan, assigned mentor and first pilot introductions.
Week 4 gate · agreed metric and signed planCustomers before investors
Fixed cadence: fortnightly mentor sessions, monthly partner sessions and a metrics review with the committee. On-demand sessions: B2B sales, pricing, inference costs, data protection, finance.
Week 20 gate · at least one pilot or paying customerRound and Demo Day
Independent valuation note, investment memorandum, data room and pitch rehearsals. Demo Day at the Valira Valley Summit, followed by two days of one-to-one investor meetings.
Demo Day · October–NovemberFifth Foundry Build
Companies we build ourselves, with a founder who leads them.
The group contributes existing product or technology, board-level direction and shared services for the first year. The founder brings full-time execution and holds a majority stake, vesting over four years.
- Founder-CEO: 50–65%Senior profile with operating experience in the sector and a proven sales track record. Based in Andorra or willing to relocate.
- Level Five: 20–35%Depending on the value of the asset contributed, measured at replacement cost rather than market value.
- Reserve: 10–15%For the team and first-round investors.
Three conditions before incorporating
We only spin out a product when it has real users or customers, a market clearly larger than Andorra and an identified founder. No founder, no Build: the group’s partners do not run portfolio companies.
Build companies join the Boost cohort as one more team and raise their first round with Fifth Foundry Capital.
I want to lead a Build companyFifth Foundry Capital · for investors
Qualified AI deal flow, one deal at a time, priced by an independent committee.
We do not run a fund or ask for capital commitments. For each startup we set up an Andorran special purpose vehicle (SPV), which circle investors who want that deal can join. One holder on the cap table, one negotiation, one filing.
- MemorandumTeam, product, metrics verified during the programme, market, use of funds, risks and the full valuation note.
- 10 business daysThe circle indicates interest and amount. No prior commitment: each investor decides whether the deal is worth it.
- VehicleOne SPV per deal. A single foreign investment application for non-resident investors.
- Closing and follow-upCapital increase executed before a notary. Quarterly report on the startup’s metrics. 5-year term, extendable.
- Minimum ticket per deal
- €25,000
- Target round per startup
- €150–400k
- Structuring fee
- 5%
- Carried interest
- 20%
The valuation of each deal is set by a two-person committee with no ties to the startup, using three methods and a range. The vehicle never invests above the top of that range. The valuation note is shared in full with investors. Mentors co-invest with no fee or carry on their own ticket. Fifth Foundry does not raise capital from the public or give investment advice: each investor should consult their own adviser.
Why Andorra · value for the country
A country of 80,000 people is the ideal testbed for a B2B AI startup.
Companies and institutions are one call away. Landing a first customer who takes you seriously takes weeks, not months. And the company you build here can expand into Spain and Europe with its base, tax and life already sorted. That is why we only accelerate Andorran companies, and why we ask each one to deliver something measurable for the country: at least one of these three conditions.
Solves a problem in a strategic sector
With an identified Andorran pilot customer.
Creates skilled jobs or trains local talent
During the programme, not in a five-year plan.
Generates reusable knowledge
Data, infrastructure or lessons that other companies in the country can build on.
- Tourism and winter sports
- Retail and distribution
- Banking and financial services
- Health and longevity
- Energy and sustainability
- Education
- Government and public services
- Industry
Founder based in Spain? You can apply: the condition is to incorporate your company in Andorra before the programme starts. Fifth Landing, the group’s relocation arm, manages the process on committed timelines.
Who you work with
Operators, not managers.
The two Level Five partners and a network of mentors who run digital and industrial businesses. Each startup has a lead mentor and no mentor takes on more than two teams, which is why the cohort is small. Mentors are paid a fee, share in the outcome and can co-invest on the same terms as the circle.
Growth, B2B sales, pricing, organisation and financing of digital companies.
Architecture of AI systems, data, inference costs and technical defensibility of the product.
Industry: processes, operations and selling to industrial companies.
One reference partner per startup, the admissions and investment committee, and the relationship with the investor circle.
The network expands in 2028 with product, investment and priority-sector profiles. If you have done what you could teach and want to get involved, get in touch using the form.
I want to be a mentor
On purpose
What we do not accelerate.
Every “no” protects the thesis and our credibility with the circle’s investors and the country’s institutions.
- Companies not incorporated in Andorra, even if the founder lives here
- Projects without artificial intelligence at the core of the product
- Ideas without a working product: consultancies, agencies, pitch decks
- Part-time founders
- Startups that have closed an institutional round and only want visibility
- Projects whose only link to Andorra is the founder’s tax residence
2027 call for applications
First cohort: March to November 2027.
A three-stage selection process with a scoring rubric and two evaluators. Applicants who are not selected receive a short explanation and, where relevant, a referral to other programmes in Andorra’s ecosystem.
- Mar–AprApplications openApplication form, plus an information session in Andorra and one online for Spain.
- Apr–MayInterviews45 minutes with a partner and a mentor. Live product demo.
- 18 MaySelection dayA day in person in Andorra: a real challenge with a mentor and a conversation about terms.
- 14 JunKick-offIn-person week 1: diagnosis, signed metric, 6% stake.
- SepMidpointIn-person week 2 with the full mentor network. Plan review.
- Oct–NovDemo DayAt the Valira Valley Summit, in front of the investor circle and co-investors.
Apply
Tell us what you have built.
Applications for 2027 open on 29 March. If you would like to apply now, send us your application: it will go on the waiting list and we will write to you as soon as applications open.
What you write is shared only with the selection committee and the evaluating mentors, under confidentiality. Applications that are not selected are anonymised after 24 months.
Frequently asked questions
What people ask us before applying.
Why 6% rather than zero, like other programmes?
Free programmes are funded by a patron or by a fund behind them that captures the return. We charge the startup no fee and pay the mentors from part of that 6%. It is fixed and identical for everyone: negotiating it team by team would undermine the cohort’s equality. If it does not work for you, you do not join, and we tell you before you waste any time.
Does Fifth Foundry invest money in the startup?
Level Five puts in a symbolic amount with the 6% capital increase. The significant investment comes through Fifth Foundry Capital, which sets up a vehicle with our circle’s investors if they decide to back your round. Nobody is obliged: they do not have to invest and you do not have to accept their price.
Who sets the valuation of my round?
A two-person committee that has not worked with you during the programme: the partner who is not your reference partner and a mentor not assigned to your team. They triangulate three methods using verified data and set a range. The vehicle does not invest above the top of that range. We explain the range and the reasoning behind it, and you are free to raise elsewhere if you prefer a different price.
I am a founder based in Barcelona. Can I apply?
Yes, as long as you incorporate the company in Andorra before the programme starts (June). Fifth Landing handles incorporation, residency and relocation on committed timelines. At least one full-time founder must live in the country.
What happens if I do not pass a programme gate?
The week 4 gate requires an agreed metric and a signed plan; the week 20 gate, at least one pilot or paying customer. If they are not met, the committee decides whether you continue, present at Demo Day as “work in progress” or postpone your pitch. It is never a surprise: you will see it coming in the monthly reviews.
Do you compete with Andorra’s institutional programmes?
No. We sit before the country’s investment vehicles and alongside its light-touch acceleration programmes: we are where an AI startup wins its first customers and grows until it is ready for its first round. We refer applicants who are a better fit for those programmes and invite them to co-invest in our deals.