A program by 
For founders going again.
XF will help you find conviction in the most powerful thing you could build next.
Register interest →Applications close 31 July. Rolling deadlines, monthly.
Why XF exists
Scar tissue is an unfair advantage.
You've already built. This time, put it to work.
A small number of companies built in the next three years will define the trajectory of our largest industries for the next fifty. Second-time founders are best positioned for this because they take on harder problems, move faster on real scar tissue, and raise from more ambitious investors.
Going again is a harder decision than going the first time. Your bar for co-founders is higher. Your taste in what's worth ten years of your life has changed. XF exists to make that decision easier.
The founders worth backing aren't chasing another line on a resume. They're chasing the one project that makes everything before it look like a warm-up.
How it works
8–12 weeks. Two stages, one program.
Stage 01: Weeks 1–8
London
- A small room of exited and repeat founders, experienced operators ideating alongside each other.
- $250k of activation capital, invested at any point in the program.
- Weekly office hours with EF Venture Partners, pushing the pace and potential of your business.
- Tech briefings from the frontier labs.
- A dedicated talent associate to help you hire cracked technical people from EF's network.
Stage 02: Weeks 9–12
United States
- Office space and network access in San Francisco for the length of the stage.
- Continued investment and follow-on support for companies building real momentum, up to Series B.
- Direct access to EF's network of funds, operators and technical talent on the West Coast.
- A pitch slot with Tier 1 VCs at demo day, once you're ready to raise.
Beyond the structured 8–12 weeks, founders keep access to EF's ideation, advisory, hiring and office space support.
Who we back
Founders going again, to do it even better this time.
Second ventures aren't about repeating what worked. They're about doing it with everything you've learned since: sharper instincts, higher standards, less patience for what cost you time last time.
We're looking for people with a track record of correct, contrarian calls. Extreme ambition and resilience. Experience raising from sophisticated investors. Experience hiring and keeping outstanding people. Whatever happened last time, you already know what you're capable of. XF is where you prove it again, faster.
What you get
$250K
Invested upfront as activation capital — this happens for every founder in the cohort. From there, the companies building real momentum go on to unlock up to $5M in follow-on funding, with EF's support continuing all the way to Series B.
$600K+
In credits to move at warp speed: $350K in Azure credits, plus $250K+ from OpenAI, Anthropic, GitHub, PostHog, Datadog, ElevenLabs and more.
As part of EF, we're backed by
Patrick & John Collison
Stripe
Demis Hassabis
DeepMind
Daniel Gross
Safe Superintelligence
Nat Friedman
GitHub
Reid Hoffman
Mustafa Suleyman
Microsoft AI
Eric Schmidt
Mati Staniszewski
ElevenLabs
Who leads XF
Tom Bryan: Principal. Founded OfCourse (acquired) and was on the founding team at Wowcher (acquired). EF veteran of 7+ years and 20+ cohorts. Advised some of the fastest-growing companies in EF's history from concept to exit, across all EF sites. VP to EF portfolio companies now worth a collective $1bn, backed by the likes of a16z, LocalGlobe, Creandum, Point9, Backed and Khosla. Now leading XF.
Kit Logan: Exited co-founder of Avie AI, EF Alumni (acquired by Holland & Barrett, 2023).
Vincenzo Francia: Previously founded Thirdbuy (acquired), now turned investor.
Felix Fröndhoff: Previously on the AI team at EQT Ventures, now Investor at EF.
Events
Upcoming
Register
interest.
Applications close 31 July. Rolling deadlines, monthly.