CTO in Residence

CTO in Residence at Builders

At Builders, we co-found stellar companies that define the future of work with bold entrepreneurs, technical excellence, and AI at the core.

We validate high-potential opportunities with business founders and launch new ventures from scratch. From day zero, we know one thing for sure: no great company is built without strong technical leadership. That’s why we’re looking for exceptional CTOs to join our studio as residents with the clear ambition to become a co-founder.

This isn’t a freelance gig. It’s not advisory.

This is full-time, hands-on, high conviction company building.

🤝 How we work together

As a CTO in Residence, you’ll collaborate with one or more of our business founders to explore, shape, and validate high-potential company opportunities. Once there’s a clear mutual fit — and the venture shows traction — we co-found the company together.

During this phase, you’ll:

• Dive into technical feasibility and explore potential edge cases
• Prototype early versions, test with real users, and iterate fast
• Collaborate tightly with founders already deep in the problem space
• Work shoulder-to-shoulder with the Builders team at our Rotterdam HQ
• Shape product, architecture, and direction from the ground up — as a future co-founder

🧠 The kind of builder this residency is for

We’re not looking for help — we’re looking for future co-founders. If your comfort zone leans more enterprise than experimental — or you feel the pace of AI is “a bit much” — we’re probably not a fit. You might be a fit if you’re:

• A hands-on builder who writes code, ships fast, and solves real problems
• Deeply experienced with AI-native tools — LLMs, embeddings, agents, graphs, vectors, etc.
• Comfortable with ambiguity and obsessed with building toward product-market fit
• Fluent in technical strategy and user-centred product thinking
• Energized by working at pace, iterating fast, and learning directly from users
• All-in on the co-founding path — not browsing or advising on the side
• Based in (or moving to) Rotterdam — we only build in-person, together

🔍 Before we co-found

During the residency:

• Full-time immersion in our studio and founder community
• Hands-on support from the Builders team across tech, product, and strategy
• Standard collaboration agreement (IP transfers if we launch)
• No compensation during the residency — everyone’s investing their time
• Co-found a company with real traction, strong backing, and a sharp team beside you

🌟 Why build with Builders

When you co-found a company with Builders, you're not starting from zero — you're backed by the momentum of a proven venture studio. Here’s what you get:

• Capital for 12 months of runway to focus on building, not fundraising
• Co-founder matching with a sharp business founder already in validation
• All-in execution, working side-by-side with our studio team in Rotterdam
• Access to proven playbooks, templates, and go-to-market flows
• Hands-on support from ex-operators across product, growth, and fundraising
• Early traction validated through 100+ customer interviews
• Founder-friendly equity, clean governance, and full transparency
• Bold branding and identity support from day one

🧠 All-in? Let’s talk.

Not alone. Not from scratch. Not with fuzzy roadmaps. But hands-on, backed by a proven system, and surrounded by people who move fast and build hard.

If that’s your tempo — let’s talk.