OMS2 is a nonprofit helping aspiring founders learn to use AI, software and modern startup tools to turn ideas into working businesses.
OMS2 is a launch-stage 501(c)(3) nonprofit currently preparing its first Chicagoland pilot. No cohort has run yet.
The first program in one view
Why this, why now
AI is changing both how companies are built and the skills people need to participate in the modern economy. OMS2 helps aspiring founders become builders, creators and entrepreneurs.
OMS2 helps people move from consumers of technology to builders of businesses. Someone with a good idea and no technical background can now prototype, test and launch work that used to require a team and a budget.
AI lowers the technical barrier to entrepreneurship, but successful businesses still require problem selection, customer understanding, execution, discipline and market validation.
What founders will learn
The Founder Builder curriculum is built around what it actually takes to get from an idea to a working business.
Use current AI tools for research, planning, writing, analysis and everyday operating work.
Build and change working software with AI coding assistants, starting from a nontechnical baseline.
Assemble sites, apps, automations and internal tools without writing everything from scratch.
Turn an idea into something a real customer can open, use and react to.
Interview prospective customers and separate real problems from assumed ones.
Define the customer, the value proposition, pricing and how the business actually makes money.
Test demand with evidence before committing time and money to the wrong build.
Work through simple costs, pricing, runway and unit-economics literacy.
Reach first customers through channels, messaging, landing pages and direct outreach.
Now, next and long-term
OMS2 keeps three things clearly separate: what is being prepared today, what is planned for later and what the mission aims at over decades.
What OMS2 is doing now
Developing curriculum, recruiting mentors and instructors, building Chicagoland partnerships and raising the funding required to deliver a free first cohort.
See the programWhat comes next
Founders who validate a business deserve deeper support. The OMS2 accelerator is a future program under development, followed by regional partnerships that founders can rely on.
See the accelerator planLong-term mission
One million is a long-term ambition that shapes how OMS2 builds—not a current operating target, projection or counter. The immediate work is one pilot, done well.
See the five phasesThe progression
Phase 1
In development
Teach aspiring entrepreneurs modern startup-building skills and help them develop working businesses.
Phase 2
Future
Provide deeper support to promising startups and validated founders.
Phase 3
Future
Develop partnerships across the region that founders can rely on.
Phase 4
Future
Expand successful programming beyond Chicagoland through remote participation.
Phase 5
Long-term
Replicate the model in additional cities and regions in pursuit of the long-term One Million Small Startups mission.
Why Chicagoland
Chicagoland gives OMS2 access to founders across technology, food, retail, professional services, real estate, manufacturing, media and other industries, plus proximity to corporate, philanthropic, university and community partners. The pilot can run through donated, sponsored or affordable partner space rather than a costly permanent facility.
Explore the Chicagoland pilotRemote participation is being designed for founders outside the pilot region where it is operationally practical. Broader remote and regional programming comes after the first cohort produces evidence worth replicating—not before.
How expansion is sequencedHow to help
The pilot needs money, people and places. Every contribution goes toward getting a first group of founders from idea to working business.
Fund curriculum, instructors, software, participant support, venue and evaluation costs.
DonateTeach a session, mentor founders, contribute curriculum or help run the program.
Mentor or VolunteerSponsor a cohort, provide space or software, supply instructors or refer founders.
Become a PartnerOMS2 publishes what it operates, what it is preparing and what it has not yet launched. Review our transparency information.
Need help building now?
A separate paid development service for founders who need hands-on help turning an idea into a working digital product.
Explore Build StudioBuild Studio is separate from the planned OMS2 accelerator. Purchasing services does not affect accelerator eligibility or selection, and payments for development services are commercial service revenue rather than tax-deductible charitable donations.