When Yifan Zhang was building a tech startup in Seattle several years ago, it wasn’t easy to find fellow female founders.
Fast forward to today, and the landscape looks a lot different.
“I have been so blown away by the number and caliber of female founders here in Seattle,” said Zhang, managing director at the AI2 Incubator.
Seattle-area startups with at least one female founder raised $540 million collectively in 2023, according to PitchBook. That rose to $730 million in 2024 — and has already topped $1.2 billion this year.
With that momentum, could Seattle support its own version of a female hacker house?
The New York Times last month spotlighted FoundHer House, a co-living experiment in San Francisco that gave eight young female entrepreneurs a place to live and a chance to support one another amid the city’s AI boom. It’s part of a growing trend of newer AI-focused “hacker houses.”
Led by two students at the University of Southern California, FoundHer House quickly drew attention from investors, hosted events with venture capital firms, and capped off its run with a demo day this summer.
The concept resonated as the tech industry’s gender gap persists in the era of AI. A recent study by Russell Reynolds Associates found that 90% of CEO and top tech roles at AI companies in the U.S are held by men.
Startups led by female founders, meanwhile, continue to receive a small sliver of total venture capital invested.
FoundHer House wrapped up this summer as its leaders head back to school. However, plans are underway to expand the initiative to San Francisco and New York City.
Miki Safronov-Yamamoto and Anantika Mannby, who launched the house, grew up in the Seattle area. They told GeekWire that Seattle is on their radar for potential expansion.
Seattle’s tech community has seen similar women-focused spaces.
“Tune House,” launched in 2015 by mobile marketing company Tune, provided free housing, mentorship, and resources for women studying computer science at the University of Washington. It ran annual cohorts for several years but is no longer active.
The Riveter launched in 2017 as a women-centric space for female founders and professionals but closed its physical spaces during the pandemic.
Seattle is also home to the Female Founders Alliance, which started in 2017 as a community supporting women and non-binary entrepreneurs, and has grown into a national organization operated by Seattle-based VC firm Graham & Walker.
Leslie Feinzaig, founder of FFA and managing director at Graham & Walker, said she’d love to see more physical startup spaces in Seattle — and more women’s spaces in particular.
Feinzaig noted that a key challenge for any space is cost and operational complexity. “Nobody should build a business off the backs of charging early-stage founders, “ she said.
It could be the right time for a new physical space with the AI boom underway.
Seattle’s new AI House startup hub has hosted meetups for groups of female founders, with dozens of women attending to connect, share advice, and support one another.
A dinner club and community have also emerged from the gatherings. “What’s really incredible is to stand in a room full of brilliant, innovative women tackling some of the hardest problems in their industries — and choosing to lean on each other as they grow,” said Audrey Yun, manager at the AI House.
AI House also partners with Ada Developers Academy, which trains underrepresented individuals in the tech industry.
GeekWire recently reported on the potential for Seattle’s startup ecosystem to blossom in the AI area.
Safronov-Yamamoto lauded the “great talent” in Seattle, though she also noted the region’s well-worn reputation as a corporate tech hub.
“It’s definitely Big Tech in Seattle, and startups in San Francisco,” said Safronov-Yamamoto. She said entrepreneurship in Seattle is “going against the grain.”
Mannby noted the energy in San Francisco, particularly with younger entrepreneurs. “It’s not that uncommon to run into a 17-year-old running a $100 million business,” she said. At the same time, she sees potential for that momentum in her hometown. “I definitely want to see Seattle, on a personal level, blossom as a startup community,” she said.
Perhaps a hacker house or two could help.
“Building a startup is extremely hard,” Feinzaig said. “And I think strong communities make the journey a lot less lonely and collectively a lot more successful.”
