Vibestarter began at a vibeathon. Someone paid for a seat we couldn't afford at the time, the project we built there shipped, and over the months that followed it grew into this company. Running one of our own felt like the natural next step, and the prize is the thing we're built to deliver: getting builders funded.

The Vibeathon is an online build competition for vibe coders, and it runs in three phases. Applications are open for one week. From there you have two weeks to build something real, with your project due before the build window closes. A panel of judges then reviews the field. If you finish near the top, you launch on Vibestarter as a Wave 1 founder, with a live raise and a real route to funding.

The timeline

The competition moves through three phases:

• Applications are open for one week.
• The build phase runs for two weeks, and your project has to be submitted before it ends.
• Judging comes last, once the build window has closed.

Applications open on Monday 29 June and run for one week. The shape of the competition is fixed.

How it works

Build something you genuinely intend to launch on Vibestarter. By the end of the two-week build window you need a working MVP, something people can actually use. A small panel of judges reviews the field, and the builders who stand out move straight into the Wave 1 founder pipeline.

Funding on Vibestarter is released over time rather than gated behind milestones. Part of it unlocks when your raise closes, and the rest is paid out on a fixed schedule across the following months. The reward is runway rather than a single payout, and that runway is what the strongest projects walk away with.

Anyone can enter

We want to be clear on this point. Entry is open to everyone. You don't have to hold $VIBES, and you don't need a Starter Card. If you want to build, you're in, and anyone who enters can win.

What's limited is sponsorship. We're funding 50 seats, and each sponsored builder gets a month of Claude Pro and the tooling that comes with it, covered by Vibestarter. It's the same kind of support that got Vibestarter off the ground, and there are only 50 to go around.

Sponsored seats go first to people who already have some skin in the game. There are two ways to qualify. You can hold at least 100,000 $VIBES, or you can reach Starter Card Level 3, which most people can get to by working through the social tasks. Either route puts you in line for a seat. Neither is required to compete, and neither buys you a placement, since the building decides that.

What you can win

Three places, each with its own prize:

• First place: $500 plus a funded launch on Vibestarter.
• Second place: $250 plus a funded launch on Vibestarter.
• Third place: $100 plus Starter Card points.

Beyond the podium, the strongest builders in the field move into the Wave 1 founder pipeline regardless of where they place. The core idea holds the whole way down the list: the best builders here go on to become founders here.

What's expected of entrants

A few conditions apply to everyone who takes part:

• If you're selected, you commit to launching your project on Vibestarter.
• A sponsored Claude Pro seat is for the Vibeathon. Anything you build with it must be for the project you're entering.
• If you don't submit a project by the deadline, we may revoke the sponsored seat.

Apply

Applications are open from Monday 29 June to Monday 6 July. Tell us who you are and what you want to build, and you're entered.

Apply to the Vibeathon →

To line up for one of the 50 sponsored Claude Pro seats, hold at least 100,000 $VIBES or reach Starter Card Level 3 before you apply. Neither is required to enter, and anyone who enters can win.

Build something worth launching, and we'll back the people who do.

Follow X / Twitter and the Discord for updates. $VIBES is not a security. Participation is speculative and carries risk, and nothing here is financial advice.