Applications open

One-to-one mentorship for moving into AI, starting a first company, or applying to study abroad — from someone who has done all three.

ApplySee the tracks
Thomas Gabriel Chung in a black sweater.

Three tracks

  • Into AIFrom nothing to a deployed project
  • First companyTo a first paying customer
  • Studying abroadProgrammes, scholarships, applications
2.5 yrsone-to-one mentoringRiseStrong

Tracks

Three tracks.Pick where you actually are.

Not where you would like to be. Each card opens the application with that track chosen.

  • Open · Track 1

    Into AI

    You can code a bit, you have read about machine learning, and you have never shipped a model that someone else depended on.

    • A single project taken from nothing to deployed
    • Reading and problem sets matched to what you are actually missing
    • Code review on your work, not on toy exercises
    • Help choosing between the ten things you could learn next
    Pricing on application

  • Open · Track 2

    First company

    You have an idea and possibly a prototype, and no idea whether anyone will pay for it.

    • Getting to a first paying customer, not to a pitch deck
    • Pricing, positioning and the first sales conversations
    • Grant and funding routes that are actually open to you
    • Honest assessment of whether to keep going
    Pricing on application

  • Open · Track 3

    Studying abroad

    You are applying from West Africa to a technical programme in Russia or Europe and the process is opaque.

    • Programme selection and honest odds
    • Scholarship routes, including bilateral agreements
    • Application material and personal statement review
    • What the first year is actually like
    Pricing on application

Fit

Who this is for.And who it is not for.

Saying the second out loud is the fastest way for the right people to recognise themselves.

This is for you if

  • Into AIYou can code a bit, you have read about machine learning, and you have never shipped a model that someone else depended on.
  • First companyYou have an idea and possibly a prototype, and no idea whether anyone will pay for it.
  • Studying abroadYou are applying from West Africa to a technical programme in Russia or Europe and the process is opaque.

This is not for you if

  • You want someone to build it for you. This is mentorship, not contracting — for that, the studio is the right door.
  • You want a job referral. I will not recommend someone whose work I have not seen.
  • You are looking for a certificate. Nothing here issues one.
  • You cannot commit consistent hours between sessions. The work happens between the calls, not on them.

Method

How it works.Four rules, every session.

The work happens between the sessions, not on them.

  1. One thing at a time

    Most people trying to move into AI, or start a company, are working on nine things badly. We pick one, finish it, and let the rest wait.

  2. Ship, then learn

    Reading about a subject and building in it produce different kinds of understanding. The second one is the one employers and customers can see.

  3. The real constraint is rarely technical

    It is usually a decision you are avoiding — about scope, about money, or about whether you actually want the thing you say you want.

  4. Honest odds

    If a plan is unlikely to work, you will hear that early, with a reason. That is the most valuable thing an outside view can offer.

Questions

Common questions.Answered plainly.

  • Cadence is set per track and confirmed on the intro call, so it matches what you are actually building rather than a fixed schedule.

  • No. Sessions run online, in English. The studying-abroad track is specifically shaped around applying from West Africa to Russia and Europe, but the AI and first-company tracks are open to anyone.

  • Your code gets reviewed and we work through the hard parts together, but you write it. Mentorship is not contracting — if you need someone to build it, the studio is the right door.

  • We work out whether this is worth your money. If the honest answer is no, you will hear that on the call rather than after three paid sessions.

  • Pricing is confirmed per track on application, because the right shape differs a lot between someone preparing a university application and someone trying to reach a first paying customer.

Apply

Tell me what you are building.

A short application, then an intro call to work out whether this is worth your money. If it is not, you will hear that on the call.

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