Two South Asian American Harvard University students have launched Boston Square Ventures, a founder-support platform aimed at helping student entrepreneurs gain access to venture capital, computing resources, mentorship and startup networks.
Soneesh Kothagundla and Hadi Abdul said they created Boston Square Ventures after seeing talented young founders struggle to access the connections and resources needed to turn ideas into companies.
The platform’s first cohort is now accepting applications, with Cohort 1 scheduled to begin Oct. 15. According to the initiative, participants will receive access to $100,000 in compute credits, connections to venture capital investors, mentors, weekly check-ins, pitch preparation and a Demo Day.
The founders said a major problem in the student startup ecosystem is not necessarily a shortage of ideas, but unequal access to the resources required to execute them.
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Abdul said some prospective founders have strong ideas and expertise but do not know how to connect with the people who can help them move forward.
“I think what’s currently missing in the startup ecosystem is the fact that we have so many people that are very interested in the field of building and they want to make a difference to the communities around them,” Abdul told The American Bazaar. He pointed to a conversation with a North Carolina-based person working in public policy who had developed a product but lacked the connections needed to reach potential users.
Kothagundla said first-time founders also face barriers involving computing resources and venture capital. He said fundraising frequently depends on warm introductions, which can be difficult for founders without established networks.
The idea for Boston Square Ventures emerged from one such introduction.
Abdul said Kothagundla contacted him after meeting a venture capitalist at Link Ventures who wanted introductions to Harvard students building startups. What began as a single connection eventually became an idea for a broader platform.
The pair later met at Ten One Tea House and continued working at Harvard Innovation Labs, where they filled several whiteboards while developing the concept.
Kothagundla said the name Boston Square Ventures was eventually chosen partly because of Boston’s many well-known squares, including Harvard Square, Kendall Square, Kenmore Square, Porter Square and Central Square.
The founders also see their own partnership as an important part of the venture.
Kothagundla said building a company can be lonely and argued that having a strong co-founder can help entrepreneurs maintain momentum and think more ambitiously.
The two students also want to challenge what they see as misconceptions about young founders.
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In an email exchange with The American Bazaar, Abdul said student entrepreneurs are sometimes dismissed because their early products are viewed as low-quality or “AI slop.” He argued that many talented founders simply lack access to institutional support that can help them move from ideation to execution.
Kothagundla shed light on another misconception that young founders need completely novel ideas before starting a company. “Honestly in 2026, it’s not about novelty. It’s about the speed and distribution of your idea,” he said.
He cited Uber and Lyft as examples of companies that succeeded despite operating in the same broad market, arguing that execution and distribution can be more important than having a completely original concept.
Boston Square Ventures says its goal is eventually to help a million founders. While the initiative is beginning in Boston, the founders said they are open to applicants of any age, from any country and at any experience level.
Boston Square Ventures describes the program as open-ended, with the organization continuing to support founders until they raise capital. Its first Demo Day is scheduled for Nov. 20, followed by additional Demo Days every six weeks.
Kothagundla said the broader objective is to encourage more students to experiment with entrepreneurship and learn through the process of building companies. “I think everyone should be a founder. Now is the time,” he said.
The founders said their first LinkedIn post about Boston Square Ventures generated about 50,000 impressions and that Cohort 1 is now open for applications.
As Boston Square Ventures begins its first cohort, Kothagundla and Abdul are betting that better access to capital, compute and networks can help more student founders move from ideas to execution.