Sample term sheet
Founder's Path, written down.
This is the shape of a typical Founder's Path agreement, with example numbers so you can see how the money moves and who owns what at each step. Read it before the first call. Your own numbers are set after scoping and fixed in writing before anything starts.
Example numbers only. This page is an illustration of how the terms work, not an offer, and not legal advice. The signed agreement is what counts, and we expect you to have your own lawyer read it.
The example deal
Seventeen terms. Every one in plain English.
The example is a B2B subscription product with a first commercial release sized at £60,000.
| Term | Example | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Before the build | ||
| Paid discovery | £3,000, paid upfront | Sets the first-release scope, architecture, compliance notes and the Build Value. You keep the documents whatever you decide next. |
| Proof slice | £6,000 fixed, paid in full | A working slice of the hardest part of the product. It does not count toward the Build Value. It buys certainty for both sides before the full commitment. |
| Kickoff gate | 3 pilot customers with signed letters and founding fees | Real paying pilots committed before build starts. Verbal interest does not count. |
| The build | ||
| Build Value | £60,000 | The agreed price of a written scope, split into a Trial Release and a Commercial Release. Anything outside it is a change order, priced separately. Change orders never raise the equity. |
| Monthly fee | £2,500 a month for 8 months (£20,000) | Invoiced net 14 from kickoff. Every payment is credited to the Build Value. Reduced and paced, not free. |
| Balance to recover | £40,000 | The Build Value less the monthly fees already credited. This is the most the revenue share can ever collect. |
| Recovery | ||
| Revenue share | 10% of net subscription revenue, paid monthly | Net of tax and refunds. It stops the month the balance reaches zero. |
| Step-up | 15% if the balance is still open 36 months after Commercial acceptance | Keeps recovery moving on a product that is earning. The cap does not change. |
| Early settlement | Any time, for the remaining balance | Pay it off when you raise or when it suits you. Every credit carries over, so you never pay twice. |
| Optional equity | Up to 5%, fully diluted, nominal consideration | Vests in three equal tranches: Trial acceptance, Commercial acceptance, recovery. The maximum is fixed at signing and never renegotiated. Many deals have none. |
| Ownership and control | ||
| Project IP | Held by Pixelperinches until recovery and any equity is issued, or until early settlement | The deed of assignment is signed at contract signing and held in escrow, so the transfer is mechanical, not a negotiation. |
| Your licence | Operating licence while payments are current, exclusive worldwide from Commercial acceptance | You run, sell and market the product as yours throughout. Our background tools are licensed to you perpetually, non-exclusive. |
| Data and accounts | Yours from day one | Customer data and verified content stay yours. Hosting, AI usage and third-party services sit in accounts you control and are paid by you from pilot launch. |
| Control | Yours | No board seat, no veto, no roadmap by committee. |
| Protections | ||
| Walking away | Balance due in cash | Applies on abandonment, termination for convenience, or rebuilding the product elsewhere. On a sale, the balance plus the cash value of any equity is paid first. Non-circumvention for 24 months. |
| Genuine failure | Unrecovered balance reduced by an amount agreed at signing, the rest spread over an agreed period | For a product that did not work after a sustained, good-faith commercial push. We share the downside. |
| Warranty and disputes | 30-day defect warranty. SIAC arbitration, seated in Singapore | The warranty starts at trial-ready acceptance. Arbitration is neutral ground for a UK or US founder and an Indian company. |
How the money moves
The same deal, month by month.
Assume the product earns £5,000 a month net in its first year after launch, £15,000 in its second and £25,000 after that.
- Before build: £9,000 from you£3,000 discovery and £6,000 proof slice. Neither counts toward the Build Value.
- During build: £20,000 from you8 monthly fees of £2,500, all credited. £40,000 left to recover.
- Year 1 after launch: £6,000 from the product10% of £5,000 a month. £34,000 left.
- Year 2: £18,000 from the product10% of £15,000 a month. £16,000 left.
- Month 31: recoveredAbout 7 months at £2,500 closes the balance. The revenue share stops, the IP transfers from escrow, and any equity is fully vested.
£29,000
Cash from you before the product earns anything.
£40,000
Recovered from the product's own revenue, not your bank account.
£69,000
Total paid. About £9,000 more than paying the same scope upfront on Paid Build, in exchange for keeping £31,000 in the bank while the product proves itself.
Before you sign
What changes from this example.
- The Build Value, monthly fee and number of months come from your scoping, not from this page.
- The revenue share percentage depends on your pricing and margins. A product with thin margins gets a lower share over a longer period.
- Equity is optional. Where it applies, the maximum is written into the agreement at signing.
- Studio Bet uses the same IP and protection terms, with no monthly fee and an equity stake in its place.
- Have your own lawyer read the full agreement. We would rather answer their questions than yours later.
Want to see your own numbers?
Three questions give you a track recommendation. Scoping gives you the real terms, in writing.
Prefer to talk it through? Book a 30-minute call.