Kilo entered 2026 with a goal of attracting 10 new co-founders to its Co-Found program over the course of the year. The program enables entrepreneurs to develop their own ideas or launch new products using Kiloverse, Kilo’s business-building platform.
The company achieved this goal within the first six months of the year. In 2026, the Kiloverse platform has already tested more than 20 new business ideas, 10 of which are now being developed further. Next year, Kilo aims to welcome up to 50 co-founders into the program.
“We receive more than 50 applications to the Co-Found program every month. Our candidates include people who have already tried building a business, as well as experienced professionals and executives working at startups. We want this program to provide a clear path from an idea to a company that, if successful, participants can lead and co-own,” says Žygimantas Surintas, CEO of Kilo.
Unlike traditional investors or venture capital funds, Kilo provides more than funding. It gives entrepreneurs access to a community of business builders, extensive experience, and sector-specific expertise. According to Surintas, the Co-Found program is one of Kilo’s strategic priorities, helping the company expand its business portfolio and strengthen its Kiloverse business-building platform.
From an Idea to a Proven Business Model
Co-founders work with Kiloverse to validate ideas, build products, and identify viable business models. This helps them move more quickly from an initial concept to generating sales and expanding internationally.
“We test a wide range of business models and concepts through the program. The key requirement is that the product must be designed for consumers—whether in health, travel, education, beauty, personal development, or social solutions,” says Domantas Patinskas, Head of Business Development and the Co-Found Program at Kiloverse.
According to Patinskas, the Kiloverse platform helps Co-Found participants develop products and manage day-to-day operations by giving them access to specialists in legal affairs, technology, data, marketing, creative services, wellness, and other fields. However, decision-making and responsibility for results remain with the co-founder.
During the first six months, each co-founder must validate their idea in the market, launch a product, begin generating revenue, and use data to demonstrate its growth potential.
One example to emerge from the Co-Found program is Memowrite, a business built within Kiloverse under the leadership of a strong co-founder. Memowrite helps people document and preserve their life stories in printed books.
Today, Memowrite’s 12-person team serves more than 100,000 customers across 194 countries and has helped create over 20,000 printed books. Last month, Memowrite became an independent brand within Kilo’s portfolio of companies.
Creating More Pathways to Entrepreneurship
According to Patinskas, Lithuania has no shortage of entrepreneurial talent, but not every strong candidate is immediately ready to become a co-founder.
“Some people are held back because they do not have the right business idea. In our program, that is not an obstacle—they can also begin with an idea proposed by us. We are interested in people who have already tried building a business or a product, understand marketing or technology, or know how to use AI tools effectively. Even an unsuccessful attempt is a valuable experience: that person has already invested their own time and money, learned important lessons, and knows which mistakes not to repeat,” Patinskas says.
Those who need more experience can join teams within Kiloverse, work alongside co-founders who are already building businesses, and gain practical, hands-on experience.
The need to involve more people in building businesses is relevant to Lithuania’s entire startup ecosystem. “Unicorns Lithuania” recently highlighted that the country’s startup pipeline remains too narrow. More people are needed to join the ecosystem, form teams, and create startups, along with a clearer path to incubators, accelerators, mentors, and investors.