Chris Dixon once observed that what the smartest people do on the weekend is what everyone else will do during the week in ten years.
That pattern runs through the origin stories of many generational companies. Read the early accounts from Jack Dorsey, Brian Armstrong, Kevin Systrom, and Tom Preston-Werner and a common thread emerges: Twitter, Coinbase, Instagram, and GitHub all grew out of curiosity pursued before there was an obvious economic reason to pursue it.
From 9-to-5, your work is often the output of someone else’s prompt. It’s outside those hours, freed from the constraints of the present, that you discover what you’re drawn to by genuine interest rather than economic necessity.
Curiosity precedes obsession, and weekends&nights was designed to give builders who haven’t yet quit their day jobs the environment and community to find out whether a side quest is just a hobby or the beginning of something that earns their full conviction.
Your spare time belongs to the future.
a founder residency for builders who haven't quit their day jobs
The space
A fully equipped house in Northern Virginia, yours on nights and weekends. Snacks, coffee, monitors, and space to jam.
The community
A cohort grinding the same hours you are, with the NQB8 team building their own projects right alongside you. Dinner is on us every night. Break bread, compare notes, then get back to building.
The timeline
A focused nine-day sprint. Long enough to build something real, short enough to leave no room for theater. Ship early, iterate fast, and build conviction through evidence.
The path
The residency is a starting point, not an endpoint. Build something real and leave with clear next steps: keep building independently, co-found with NQB8, or pursue capital through the W&N platform and network. Whatever the path, you stay part of the community.
What types of products can I build?
Anything. We’re industry agnostic.
The only constraint is time. weekends&nights is a nine-day sprint, so we’ll prioritize ideas that can be built, tested, launched, or meaningfully advanced on a compressed timeline.
Do I need to be technical?
Not necessarily. But you do need to be capable of shipping. What matters more is taste, agency, and the ability to turn an idea into something real within nine days.
I don't have an idea – can I still join?
Yes. You don’t need to arrive with an idea, but you do need to be ready to commit to one quickly.
We’ll bring ideas we’d love to see built, and you’ll be surrounded by other talented builders you can potentially collaborate with. By the end of the first weekend, everyone should have something they’re committed to shipping over the nine-day sprint.
How much does it cost to participate?
The program is free to participants.
What does NQB8 provide?
A high-talent-density environment with structure, but no script.
That means a great place to work, nightly dinners with the cohort, unlimited snacks, coffee, and enough caffeine to keep going. More importantly, you’ll be surrounded by an intentionally selected cohort, working alongside Auren Hoffman and the NQB8 team, with access to a growing community of alumni.
Will all participants receive funding?
Acceptance into the residency does not guarantee funding. But for exceptional founders and compelling ideas, it can lead to investment from NQB8 or the opportunity to co-found a company through the studio platform.
Where is the coworking space located?
The space is located outside Washington DC in northern Virginia. The exact address will be shared with participants upon acceptance.
Can students apply?
Yes! weekends&nights is designed for talented builders, including students who can commit to building over the course of the residency.
received.
Thanks for applying. We read every application and will be in touch by email.
[ back to top ]