Dubai Teens Will Learn to Crowdfund From the Founders Who Raised $400,000 Doing It

Founder Mode Bootcamp, a new 12-week startup accelerator at Dubai Knowledge Park, teaches teenagers to build and crowdfund real companies. No case studies. No simulations.

PRESS RELEASE

ME-HR & Learning

9/18/20262 min read

Ankita Garg and Harsh Garg know what it takes to fund a company from scratch. Their Kickstarter campaign for the Golchi travel bottle raised more than $400,000 from over 5,000 backers, one of the most-funded thermos campaigns in Kickstarter history, earning them a Chicago Innovation Award nomination and coverage across national and international media. Now they are teaching that playbook to teenagers.

Founder Mode Bootcamp, their new 12-week accelerator at Dubai Knowledge Park, opens its first cohort on 26 September 2026.

There are no case studies here. No hypothetical companies. Students work on their own real ideas from day one: talking to real customers, validating demand, building a working MVP. At the center of it all sits crowdfunding, FMB's sharpest point of difference from any other youth program. Students learn to position a product, tell their founder story, price and structure rewards, and build and launch a live campaign page, the same process Garg used to take Golchi from concept to a record-setting Kickstarter run.

"Teenagers do not need to wait until university to start building. At Founder Mode Bootcamp, we give them the tools, mentorship, and accountability to test real ideas, build MVPs, and pitch with confidence," said Ankita Garg, Founder and Program Director of Founder Mode Bootcamp.

Both mentors are still building. Garg draws on experience from BauBax, another major crowdfunding success story, and continues to advise new startups today. Harsh Garg, Strategic Mentor and fellow Golchi co-founder, brings senior strategy, M&A and startup-building experience across global corporations and consulting, and remains active in advising early-stage ventures. Students don't just get guidance, they get introductions into the same networks of operators, backers and early customers the Gargs draw on themselves.

Dubai is deliberate, not incidental. The city gives teen founders early access to mentors, AI tools and a multicultural customer base, three ingredients Founder Mode Bootcamp considers essential for a first business idea.

Each cohort is capped at 15-20 students. Applications for the September intake close on 20 September 2026, ahead of a live pitch on Demo Day.

"They do not study startups. They build them," said Garg.

Founder Mode Bootcamp is accepting applications now for its 26 September 2026 cohort at Dubai Knowledge Park.

More information is available at www.foundermodebootcamp.com|

Instagram: @foundermodebootcamp

Ankita’s profile

linkedin.com/in/coachankitagarg

HARSH’s profile

linkedin.com/in/harshgarg8

Web: www.foundermodebootcamp.com