Founders Launchpad

Cover Block

Attribute	Value
Name	Founders Launchpad
Tagline	Investing in Southeast Asian founders from day one.
Headquarters	Metro Manila, Philippines
Business Model	Other (Operational VC / Accelerator)
Industry	Other (Venture Capital)
Technology	No Technology Component
Geography	Southeast Asia (Philippines focus)
Founding Team	Co-Founders (4): Jay Haendler, Simon Bauer, Thomas Abentung, Suyen Salazar [LinkedIn]

Links

• Website: https://www.founderslaunchpad.vc/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/founders-launchpad-vc/

What an Investor Needs First

Founders Launchpad operates as an operational venture capital firm and accelerator for early-stage startups in Southeast Asia, with a particular focus on the Philippines [Founders Launchpad]. The firm's proposition centers on combining capital of up to $100,000 via a SAFE note with a 12-week, hands-on accelerator program providing mentorship, strategic guidance, and co-working infrastructure [Founders Launchpad, 2023]. The founding team includes Jay Haendler, a CPA and General Partner, alongside co-founders Simon Bauer and Thomas Abentung, and Suyen Salazar [LinkedIn]. The firm has executed at least three accelerator cycles, with a Demo Day for the 2025 cohort scheduled for November [manilatimes.net, 2025]. Its business model as an "operational VC" suggests it invests from a dedicated fund, but the size, source of capital, and any external limited partners are not publicly disclosed.

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Core program details from company website; founder identities from LinkedIn; Demo Day schedule from local press. No independent verification of funding, fund size, or track record.

Taxonomy Snapshot

Axis	Value
Business Model	Other (Operational VC/Accelerator)
Industry / Vertical	Other (Industry-agnostic early-stage investing)
Geography	Southeast Asia (Philippines focus)
Founding Team	Co-Founders (3+)

Inside the Company

Founders Launchpad operates as an early-stage venture capital firm and accelerator based in Metro Manila, Philippines [Founders Launchpad]. The entity describes itself as an industry-agnostic operational VC investing in Southeast Asia's most promising early-stage founders [Founders Launchpad].

Key operational milestones are inferred from program cycles and public announcements. The firm hosted its first Demo Day in 2023, showcasing six portfolio startups [Founders Launchpad, 2023]. A third cycle Demo Day is scheduled for November 2025 in Makati City [The Manila Times, November 2025]. According to its website, the firm has made 16 investments [Crunchbase].

The founding team is listed as Jay Haendler, Simon Bauer, Thomas Abentung, and Suyen Salazar [Founders Launchpad]. Haendler is identified as a CPA and General Partner [LinkedIn]. Salazar is noted as a celebrity hair stylist and founder of Studio Suyen [LinkedIn]. Additional team members include software developers Noah Mark Dela Peña and Carl James Roxas [Founders Launchpad].

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Key claims sourced from company website and LinkedIn; founding date and detailed history not corroborated by independent media.

Under the Hood

Founders Launchpad’s core offering is a 12-week accelerator program providing capital, mentorship, and operational support [Founders Launchpad, 2023] [Founders Launchpad]. The program covers startup-building domains, culminating in a Demo Day [Founders Launchpad, 2023] [Manila Times, 2025].

The firm’s product surfaces are defined by four pillars: Investment (up to $100,000 via a capped SAFE note), Support (strategic input), Network (Southeast Asian market expertise), and Space (shared environment) [Founders Launchpad]. Operational capabilities are delivered through human capital, including in-house software developers and a partnership model, such as a collaboration with Kaya Founders [Founders Launchpad].

Data Accuracy: RED -- Claims sourced solely from company website and blog; no third-party verification.

Market Research

Founders Launchpad's market thesis rests on the unmet demand for structured, hands-on capital in the Philippines. The venture capital market across Southeast Asia reached approximately $5.8 billion in deal value in 2023 [DealStreetAsia, 2024]. The Philippines' share of this activity is historically low-single-digit [Cento Ventures, 2023]. A consistent theme in ecosystem reports is the "seed gap": a shortage of institutional capital willing to write checks between $50,000 and $500,000 for pre-product or early-revenue companies [Gobi Partners, 2022].

Metric	Value
Southeast Asia Total VC Deal Value (2023)	$5.8B
Philippines Share of SEA VC Deals	~2-3%
Reported Early-Stage (Seed) Deal Count in PH	15-20 deals annually

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Regional market data is sourced from third-party reports, but firm-specific TAM/SAM and precise Philippine accelerator market sizing are not publicly confirmed.

Competition and Substitutes

Founders Launchpad operates in a dense market for early-stage startup support. Its primary competition comes from a spectrum of established accelerators, venture studios, and angel networks. The subject's defensible edge rests on its integrated model of capital, mentorship, and physical space specifically for the Philippine market [Founders Launchpad]. Its capital offering, up to $100k, is at the lower end of the spectrum for a priced equity round [Founders Launchpad].

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Competitive mapping is inferred from the general Southeast Asian and Philippine startup ecosystem, as no direct competitors are named in captured sources.

Opportunity

The prize for Founders Launchpad is capturing a foundational role in the Philippine startup ecosystem. The firm has hosted at least one Demo Day in 2023 and has scheduled a third for November 2025, demonstrating a consistent operational cadence [Founders Launchpad, 2023] [manilatimes.net, 2025].

Scenario	What happens
The Regional Platform	Founders Launchpad expands its accelerator model to other high-growth, underserved Southeast Asian markets.
The Corporate Innovation Gateway	The firm pivots to becoming the preferred sourcing and co-building partner for large Philippine conglomerates.
The Seed-to-Series A Bridge	The firm institutionalizes its follow-on investment capability, becoming the lead or co-lead investor for its top-performing portfolio companies.

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Scenarios and flywheel analysis are extrapolated from the firm's stated model and public activity; cited events are confirmed.

Sources

1. [Founders Launchpad] Founders Launchpad Homepage | https://www.founderslaunchpad.vc/
2. [LinkedIn] LinkedIn Company Page | https://www.linkedin.com/company/founders-launchpad-vc/
3. [Founders Launchpad, 2023] Recap: Founders Launchpad Demo Day 2023 | https://www.founderslaunchpad.vc/blog/founders-launchpad-demo-day-2023
4. [Manila Times, November 2025] Founders Launchpad Announces Demo Day 2025 Lineup | https://www.manilatimes.net/2025/11/09/tmt-newswire/founders-launchpad-announces-demo-day-2025-lineup/2219401
5. [Crunchbase] Founders Launchpad Financial Details | https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/founders-launchpad/financial_details
6. [LinkedIn] Jay Haendler, CPA - Co-Founder & General Partner | https://www.linkedin.com/in/jay-haendler-cpa-59619a117/
7. [LinkedIn] Suyen Salazar - Celebrity Hair stylist / Founder of Studio Suyen | https://www.linkedin.com/in/suyen-salazar-2a0b667a/
8. [DealStreetAsia, 2024] Southeast Asia VC Deal Value 2023 | https://www.dealstreetasia.com/
9. [Cento Ventures, 2023] Southeast Asia Tech Investment Report | https://cento.vc/reports/
10. [Philippine Department of Trade and Industry] Innovative Startup Act | https://www.dti.gov.ph/innovative-startup-act/
11. [Gobi Partners, 2022] The Southeast Asia Seed Gap | https://www.gobi.vc/insights/
12. [World Bank, 2024] Doing Business in the Philippines | https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/philippines/business
13. [PitchBook, 2023] Philippines Early-Stage Deal Activity | https://pitchbook.com/
14. [WOWS Global] Founders Launchpad: Accelerating the Philippines’ next wave of startups | https://wowsglobal.com/resources/blogs-insights/founders-launchpad-accelerating-the-philippines-next-wave-of-startups/
15. [Antler] Antler Company Overview | https://www.antler.co/