Founding Partners

We're Building the Next
Generation of Founders.
Help Us Build It.

E-BYE is a 90-day venture experience that turns high school and college students into builders — in AI, entrepreneurship, financial literacy, investment, and leadership. We're assembling our founding partners now, before our first cohort begins. Be one of them.

A Different Kind
of Investment

Students are entering an economy reshaped by AI and rapid change, yet most graduate without ever building a business, leading a team, managing an investment, or turning an idea into something real. The skills that create opportunity are the ones school rarely teaches.

E-BYE exists to change that — not through another curriculum, but through real work. In 90 days, students identify a real problem, build a venture, and pitch it live to a room of leaders and investors. They leave as builders.

That's the future we're funding. The question is who helps us build it first.

"The skills that create opportunity are the ones school rarely teaches. E-BYE gives students 90 days to learn by doing — building a real venture, pitching real investors, and becoming the kind of person who creates their own path."
1 in 5
Milwaukee youth are not in school or work post-graduation
77%
of entrepreneurs had no early business mentorship
$0
investable capital most scholars have before age 18

And almost no youth program gives high schoolers hands-on experience with real agentic AI — until now.

We Haven't Launched Yet.
That's the Point.

Founding partners aren't buying a sponsorship package. They're helping bring a program into existence and shaping what it becomes. The earliest supporters of any movement are the ones who define it: their fingerprints are on the model, their names are part of the origin story, and their belief is what makes the first cohort possible.

This is a moment that doesn't come back. Once E-BYE is running, partnership becomes routine. Right now, it's foundational. A founding partner today is a co-builder — not a sponsor who showed up after the work was done.

A 90-Day Venture Experience.
Three Phases. Real Results.

Students don't just learn — they build. Each phase produces deliverables, and every cohort ends with a live Demo Day pitch to investors and community leaders.

Phase 1 — Learn

Understanding the Future  ·  Days 1–30

Students learn AI, cybersecurity, leadership, and entrepreneurship — and identify a real problem worth solving.

Phase 2 — Build

Turning Ideas into Businesses  ·  Days 31–60

Students create a business model, financial plan, and pitch deck — and learn the fundamentals of investing through a $100K virtual portfolio.

Phase 3 — Launch

Building Real Value  ·  Days 61–90

Students launch — customer discovery, marketing, sales, and revenue generation. The cohort closes with Demo Day, a live pitch to investors and community leaders.

48
High School Scholars per Cohort
12
Venture Teams per Cohort
4
College Captains per Cohort
192
Young Entrepreneurs at Full Scale (4 cohorts/year)
Platform Partner · Ordify AI

Real AI Tools for
Real Entrepreneurs

E-BYE scholars don't just learn about AI — they build with it. Through our partnership with Ordify AI, a no-code agentic AI platform, every venture team builds and deploys a working AI agent that supports their business.

What Is Ordify?

  • No-code platform to build and deploy AI agents — no programming required
  • Enables agentic workflows: AI that takes actions, not just answers questions
  • Used by businesses to reduce manual labor by up to 70%
  • Partners with the UW System — already embedded in the Wisconsin AI ecosystem
  • Built by Roger Lam, VP Engineering veteran (GMI/MBX System, AHEAD)

What Scholars Experience

  • Build their own AI agent to support their venture — no code, full power
  • Automate a real business workflow within their venture team project
  • Learn change management around AI adoption — a career-critical skill
  • Earn a portfolio artifact: a working AI agent they built themselves
  • Graduate AI-fluent — ready for a workforce that demands it
Learn
01 · AI Literacy

What AI is, how it works, ethical use, and why it matters — for every scholar.

Learn
02 · Agentic AI Basics

Agents, workflows, and automation on Ordify's no-code platform.

Build
03 · Build Your Agent

Each team builds a working AI agent that supports their business concept.

Build
04 · Change Management

Leading people through AI adoption — the human side of implementation.

Launch
05 · AI & Your Future

Workforce readiness and AI career pathways in the Midwest.

Proven momentum. Ordify's AI Works program has already scaled at UW-Parkside. E-BYE brings that same energy to 192 high schoolers a year — all tracks asynchronous, accessible, and built for learners with no coding background.

WIOA-Eligible. DOL-Aligned.
Grant Ready.

E-BYE is built to align with federal and state workforce funding — which means partner dollars are leveraged, not spent in isolation.

🏛️

WIOA Title I Youth

Elements 6, 10 & 11 — Work Experience, Financial Literacy & Entrepreneurship.

🤖

DOL AI Literacy

TEGL 03-25 & TEN 07-25 — all 5 AI content areas, including responsible AI use.

🔐

Cybersecurity Training

Named under DOL guidance — embedded in the E-BYE curriculum via REX Academy.

📋

Wisconsin Wistrain

Workforce training grant opportunity — partners can co-apply with E-BYE and Ordify, and the Ordify partnership strengthens the application.

🤝

Employ Milwaukee

Primary funding partner alignment — Youth program pathway and Governor's Reserve eligible.

Choose Your
Level of Impact

Every founding partner receives direct access to the team, visibility with our cohort, and a seat at the table as we build the model together. Each tier maps to real scholars served.

Founding Investor
$325,000
192 scholars · All 4 cohorts
  • Full-year naming rights across all four cohorts
  • Keynote or panel opportunity at every Demo Day
  • Priority access to scout scholar talent
  • Direct line to the E-BYE leadership team
  • Co-design input on program structure
🚀
Half Year Sponsor
$165,000
96 scholars · 2 cohorts
  • Named cohort sponsor for two cohorts
  • Demo Day participation — judge or panelist
  • Access to scholar portfolios and venture pitches
  • Featured in E-BYE communications
💡
Community Investor
$100,000
60 scholars · Flexible cohorts
  • Named across all cohorts
  • Invited to mentor sessions and check-ins
  • Demo Day access as attendee and networker
  • Featured in E-BYE communications
🏆
Cohort Champion
$82,000
48 scholars · 1 full cohort
  • Named cohort sponsor for one full cohort
  • Brand visible to every scholar in your cohort
  • Invitation to Demo Day
  • Early access to the E-BYE alumni network
🎓
Scholar Sponsor
$20,000
12 scholars · 1 cohort
  • Named in program materials
  • Invitation to Demo Day as a guest
  • Recognition in E-BYE communications
  • Direct contribution to the scholar experience
In-kind partnership is also welcomed — Ordify platform access, mentorship, Demo Day sponsorship, or AI curriculum support all multiply impact across every cohort.

More Than a Check.
A Seat at the Table.

A founding partnership isn't a logo placement. It's a seat at the table while the table is still being built. We're looking for a small group of partners who want to do more than write a check — who want to be part of the founding of something.

🚀

Believe First

Fund the launch and make the first cohort real. Be the reason 48 students get access to this experience.

🤝

Open Doors

Connect us to schools, students, mentors, and other partners. Your network is as valuable as your capital.

🏗️

Shape the Work

Lend expertise to the model, the curriculum, or a Demo Day. Your experience makes the program stronger.

📣

Stand With Us

Let your name signal that this is worth building. Early public support is one of the most powerful things a partner can offer.

🔭

Build Your Pipeline

Scholars pitch to your team at Demo Day. Meet AI-literate, workforce-ready young entrepreneurs before anyone else — each graduating with a working AI agent they built.

📋

Co-Apply for Grants

Partner with E-BYE and Ordify on Wisconsin Wistrain workforce grant applications — shared application, shared impact.

Ready to Build
With Us?

Schedule a 30-minute call with the E-BYE team. Whether you're ready to commit or just want to learn more — we want to hear from you.