A practical, seven-day startup build sprint bringing founders, developers, designers, and other builders together to work on startup ideas, form effective teams, and make tangible progress.
You can apply as an individual or bring an existing team. We are bringing together a focused group of builders for five teams to work toward real outcomes.
Application deadline: 11 November 2026. Applications are subject to review and selection; applying does not guarantee admission.
Nexus Forge is a practical programme from 5Point1Nexus designed to help founders and builders work together, develop startup ideas, organise execution, and make progress through structured teamwork.
Cohort 002 brings together people with complementary skills. Founders bring problems, ideas, and product direction. Developers, designers, and other participants contribute their skills as teams work toward a defined outcome.
Rather than treating startup building as theory alone, the programme creates a focused environment for collaboration, task execution, feedback, and learning by doing.
Get a glimpse of an earlier Nexus Forge participant's experience and hear directly from someone who took part.
This video features an earlier Nexus Forge experience. Cohort 002 has its own startup build sprint structure and programme dates.
You do not need to arrive with a complete team to apply. Nexus Forge Cohort 002 welcomes both individuals and existing teams, with team formation guided by the skills and needs of selected participants.
Have skills you want to put into practice? Apply on your own and tell us about your interests, strengths, experience, and the kind of work you want to contribute to.
Selected individuals may be matched with other participants to form a team, depending on programme needs and available complementary skills.
Apply as an Individual →Already working on a startup idea or product with other people? Apply together and tell us about your team, what you are building, and the skills you already have.
Existing teams may be considered for placement together. Where useful and feasible, the programme may identify missing roles or complementary contributors.
Apply With Your Team →We are looking for people who want to contribute, collaborate, learn through practical work, and help move a startup idea forward.
People with startup ideas, early-stage products, or problems they want to solve who are ready to work with a team and take practical steps forward.
Frontend, backend, full-stack, mobile, AI, and other technical builders interested in applying their skills to real product work.
UI/UX designers and other creative contributors who can help shape user experiences, interfaces, and product direction.
Organised people interested in coordinating work, clarifying responsibilities, tracking progress, and helping teams execute.
People with relevant product, research, business development, customer discovery, marketing, or growth skills.
People with useful complementary skills who can demonstrate how they would contribute to a startup team's progress.
The programme combines team formation, structured execution, practical learning, progress reviews, and a final assessment of the work completed.
Applicants are reviewed and selected participants are organised into teams based on their skills, ideas, and the programme's needs.
Teams clarify the problem they are working on, agree on priorities, and translate their immediate objectives into organised work.
Teams work through their priorities, collaborate across roles, track progress, address blockers, and adjust their approach as they learn.
Teams consolidate their work, assess what has been achieved, identify what remains, and present their progress and next steps.
The exact task sequence will depend on each team's starting point, product, and agreed sprint objectives. The programme is designed to create meaningful progress, not to guarantee that every startup will launch a complete product within seven days.
The goal is to help participants develop practical experience working with people, managing real tasks, and moving work forward.
Work with people who bring different skills and perspectives. Learn how teams coordinate, communicate, and make progress together.
Turn objectives into tasks, assign responsibilities, work through priorities, and review progress against agreed deliverables.
Experience how project planning, milestone tracking, communication, and blocker management support a team's work.
Use Nexus Pod as the workspace for organising projects, tasks, responsibilities, and team execution during the programme.
Builder teams can access demand-based implementation support during the three-month post-sprint support period.
Participants who meet the programme's completion requirements may receive a certificate recognising successful completion of the practical sprint.
Building a startup involves more than having good ideas. Teams also need to organise work, clarify ownership, manage deadlines, communicate progress, and keep track of what needs to happen next.
During Nexus Forge Cohort 002, Nexus Pod will serve as the structured workspace where teams organise and track their execution throughout the sprint.
Selected participants will receive one month of Nexus Pod access as part of the programme.
A seven-day sprint is a starting point, not the end of a startup's journey. Teams may still have implementation, coordination, and business challenges to work through.
The support period is demand-based and does not mean continuous daily mentorship or a guarantee that every product will reach a particular milestone.
Practical work can create opportunities to demonstrate what you are building, communicate your progress, and connect with the wider builder ecosystem.
Selected builders and teams may have opportunities to share their stories and showcase the products they are creating.
Produced by 5Point1Nexus, Nexus Tech Talk spotlights builders and their work. Past features have included people from organisations such as She Code Africa, Café One by Sterling Bank, and Code and Create. Selected participants may be considered for a feature shared across YouTube, LinkedIn, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and X.
Nexus Labs showcases outstanding products, helping promising teams introduce what they have built to a wider audience and gain additional visibility.
Visibility opportunities are not automatic or guaranteed for every participant or team.
Here are answers to common questions about Nexus Forge Cohort 002.
Whether you have a startup idea, a team ready to move forward, or skills you want to put into practice, this is your opportunity to apply for a focused build sprint with other builders.
Five teams. Seven days. Practical work. A structured environment for turning ideas into progress.
Application deadline: 11 November 2026 · Applications subject to selection