Build something real. Pitch real investors.
A free, AI-native builder cohort for San Antonio. Six weeks. One demo day. A curated audience drawn from an accredited investor network plus partner capital across Texas. No equity. No tuition. We ask you to commit to the demo.
Where the cohort builds · DevSA Downtown
What you'll do
Workshop. Bridge. Demo Day. Seven weeks of focused build, mentorship, and access.
Workshop Weekend
Industry keynote opens with real pain points. Build with the AI tools you already use — Cursor, Claude, Codex, Gemini. Ship a working prototype by Sunday night.
Six-Week Bridge
Work out of DevSA's downtown coworking. Office hour with the underwriter, pitch coaching from our investor partners, peer review, investor mixer, dress rehearsal.
Demo Day
Pitch an accredited investor audience. Curated audience. Warm room. Real follow-up conversations.
Your community
You won't build alone. Digital Canvas recruits from San Antonio's builder, security, and campus communities — the same rooms you already learn in.
DevSA bridges 20+ local groups. Cohorts pull from the security community, hackathons, university orgs, and the startup ecosystem — so the cohort around you is already part of the city's builder network.
Security community
Anchor vertical. Recruited from San Antonio's actual security practitioners — not a generalist pool.
Builder funnel
Where weekend builders live — hackathons, language and framework communities across the city.
Startups + capital
Founder formation and the capital fabric the program plugs into.
Universities
Talent from across San Antonio's full pyramid — research universities to community colleges.
Access
Tied into the full talent pyramid — from kids learning to code to founders pitching investors.
Communities bridged through DevSA. Each cohort recruits from the clusters that fit its vertical.
What you get
- A working product you built and own
- Real reps with AI tooling in a production context
- A demo day in front of an accredited investor audience
- Warm intros, not cold pitches
- Space, mentors, and a cohort that's actually building in parallel
- 434 Media coverage — builder profile and demo footage you can use forever
Who this is for
- Solo builders or 2–3 person teams
- Comfortable shipping with AI tools (or eager to learn fast)
- Working in cybersecurity, military, health, science, education, or an adjacent SA-relevant vertical
- San Antonio-based or willing to be on-site for workshop + demo day
What we ask back
- Show up for the workshop weekend
- Engage with the bridge programming (it's there because it works)
- Commit to pitching on demo day
- Be coachable. Be present. Don't ghost the cohort.
Coverage that compounds
Your build, on the record. Builder profile and demo footage you can use forever — same bar as the work below.
Builder profiles + demo coverage produced by 434 Media
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How to join
Two steps. Workshop is open. Cohort is opt-in after you've experienced it.
RSVP to the workshop
Workshops are open. Light intake: name, contact, a few words on what brings you. No idea required yet — you'll get one from the keynote.
Open calls shared across DevSA + Digital Canvas social channels.
Commit to the cohort
By Monday morning after the workshop weekend, apply to continue into the six-week bridge and demo day. Three short answers:
- 01Which of the keynote painpoints are you tackling, and how?
- 02Why you, why now?
- 03What would a working demo look like in six weeks?
We review same-week and confirm cohort spots.
FAQ
The questions most builders ask. Missing something? Reach out at hello@434media.com.
Does Digital Canvas take equity?
No. Builders keep 100% of their company and IP. We don't charge tuition or take equity. The cost is your time and your commitment to demo day.
What if I'm not a technical founder?
AI tools — Cursor, Claude, Codex, Gemini — lower the bar significantly. If you can write a clear prompt, read code at a high level, and iterate against feedback, you can ship a working prototype. Prior software experience helps but isn't required.
Is the workshop weekend remote-friendly?
Workshop weekend is in-person at DevSA's downtown San Antonio coworking space. Demo day is in-person. The six-week bridge has flexible space access — the cohort works from DevSA when possible, with mentorship and milestones running on a regular schedule.
What if I commit but can't finish?
Life happens. Tell us early. A soft readiness check ahead of demo day means we can slot a builder into the next cohort if they need more time. Better that than burning audience attention with a half-ready demo.
What does the workshop weekend actually look like?
Friday evening: underwriter keynote frames the painpoints. Saturday + Sunday: open builds. Mentors circulate. Sunday evening: prototype demos to the cohort. Monday morning: those who want in submit the three-question application.