We had the good fortune of connecting with Launch House Brett Goldstein, Michael Houck, Jacob Peters and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Launch House, how does your business help the community?
Spending four years and an exorbitant amount of money to receive a college education is a decision younger people are having a harder time justifying. The ROI for a college degree is at an all-time low, and there are other ways of becoming qualified for high-income employment opportunities. Built on the same foundational principles as traditional universities, Launch House was founded as a community to connect entrepreneurs during a time of extreme isolation. We wanted to bring ambitious and like-minded people together, believing that when great minds meet, even greater companies are built. The first residency revealed a deep interest in building these types of relationships between founders and the startup community. After realizing the long-term potential of expanding and growing this community, we developed formal residency programs connecting founders, creators, advisors, investors, and others powering the startup industry. The result is a multiversal program existing in both IRL and URL worlds to provide the next generation’s leaders with the skills and networks they would receive from extended and expansive college programs. Through our recent funding, we were able to start creating a community for all founders, establishing a Diversity Council to ensure that the Launch House community is inclusive and ready to welcome ideas from founders of underserved communities. Launch House has granted over $50K in scholarships to help entrepreneurs who can’t afford the program join our community and benefit from the opportunities our residencies provide to new and young founders. We’re committed to finding the best founders, builders, and creators, regardless of their backgrounds, and creating an environment designed to drive innovation and deep connection, one that can be fostered during our real-life residencies or via our virtual locations.

What should our readers know about your business?
Modeled after elite universities and other learning centers, Launch House is a multidimensional space created to bring together the world’s most ambitious entrepreneurs and creators, fostering relationships between early-stage startups and people with cultural capital looking to invest. Despite launching one year ago, we’ve hit major key milestones in a small amount of time. We raised over $3M in a Seed round of funding and recently announced our $12M Series A round. Tech Incubators, hacker houses, or networking programs are nothing new to the world of startups. Both of us spent time in big tech companies (Google, Uber, and Airbnb) and wanted to create a future of community-building for entrepreneurs and innovative companies alike. Through our residencies, Launch House has been able to establish unique connections between founders and creators. Over 200 residents have already benefited from the community and brainpower of the Launch House experience. We strive to create a new way for people to receive the values traditional educational systems used to provide in a way fit for the modern world. Some of the greatest companies were built in bunk beds and garages, and we want to put those hungry to change the world in rooms together so they can work on their ideas and turn their visions into impactful companies. The idea is that education should be ongoing as society and people continue to evolve as opposed to squeezing a pre-constructed curriculum into four years. Launch House is working hard to scale this model towards accessible educational programs for the masses as well as in the ever-expanding metaverse.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
We’d have to check out Strings of Life cafe in West Hollywood. The green dream toast is the best avocado toast I’ve ever had in my life. Stopping by Launch House LA would also be a must. It was formerly occupied by Paris Hilton and Cardi B and has some of the best views of LA!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
The people in our community for sure. Our founders, creators, advisors, investors, and others powering the startup industry have made Launch House what it is today.

Website: https://www.launchhouse.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/launchhouse/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/launch-house-inc/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/launchhouse

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutLA is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.