Start Your Own Smartup¶
Smartup Zero is the prototype. You could be next.¶
Smartup Zero is not meant to be the only Smartup. It is meant to be the proof of concept — the first one that works, so others can follow.
If you have a mission, a team, and a problem worth solving, you can build a Smartup. Not a startup. Not an NGO. Not a DAO. A Smartup — a democratically owned, SDG-locked, collectively governed organisation.
What is a Smartup?¶
A Smartup is an organisation that runs on the same structural model as Smartup Zero:
- Equal ownership — every contributor owns a piece, regardless of how much they paid
- Earned power — Social Karma determines governance weight, not money
- Transparent by default — all decisions, credits, and actions are ledger-logged
- SDG-locked — the mission is constitutionally tied to at least one UN Sustainable Development Goal
- Built on SmartupOS — the same infrastructure, the same ground rules, the same currencies
The difference is the mission. Smartup Zero's mission is ONLIFE — building the sociotechnical infrastructure for democratic collective ownership. Your Smartup's mission is yours to define — within the SDG framework.
The Smartup Hypothesis
The traditional startup concentrates ownership, compounds power, and drifts away from the people it was meant to serve. The Smartup model tests whether a different structure — equal, transparent, and mission-locked — produces better outcomes for more people.
You don't have to take our word for it. Run the experiment yourself.
The Three Requirements¶
1. A Mission Tied to at Least One SDG¶
Your Smartup must be constitutionally locked to at least one of the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals.
This is not a suggestion or a branding exercise. It is a structural constraint — the same way Smartup Zero cannot pivot away from its SDG commitment by founder decision or majority vote, neither can yours.
The SDG lock answers the question every organisation eventually faces: "Are we still doing what we said we'd do?"
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SDG 11
Sustainable Cities and Communities
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SDG 13
Climate Action
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SDG 16
Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
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SDG 9
Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
These are four examples. Any of the 17 goals qualifies. Browse all 17 SDGs →
2. An Official Smartup Business Plan (OSBP)¶
Every Smartup needs an Official Smartup Business Plan — not a traditional investor pitch deck, but a structured, living document that maps your mission across seven disciplines.
The OSBP is the blueprint your community will govern from. It defines the why, the how, and the what — and it evolves as the organisation learns.
The seven sections of the OSBP:
| # | Blueprint | What It Covers |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Executive Summary | Mission, SDG alignment, the three groundings |
| 2 | Design Blueprint | UX, product, and interface decisions |
| 3 | Development Blueprint | Technical architecture and build roadmap |
| 4 | Business Blueprint | Revenue model, ownership structure, financial flows |
| 5 | Media Blueprint | Narrative, communications, and community building |
| 6 | Science Blueprint | Research methodology and validation approach |
| 7 | Operational Blueprint | Governance cycles, ADM implementation, team structure |
You can study Smartup Zero's OSBP as a living reference:
- Executive Summary
- Design Blueprint
- Development Blueprint
- Business Blueprint
- Operational Blueprint
- Science Blueprint
The OSBP is not a document you write once
It is a living record. In Smartup Zero, the business plan is hosted in the public repo and updated through democratic proposal. Every change is logged. Every version is preserved. Read more about the OSBP structure →
3. Bootstrap With Smartup Zero¶
You don't start from scratch. You start from what Smartup Zero has already built.
The SmartupOS infrastructure — Forgejo, Engelbot, the Toolbox, the ledger architecture, the constitution — is open and replicable. Smartup Zero bootstraps new Smartups through a structured process that sets up your:
- Repository structure (your own OSOT)
- Initial constitution (forked and adapted from v2.1)
- Owner ledger and license system
- Engelbot instance connected to your workspace
- First objectives and tasks in the system
This is not a franchise. There is no ongoing fee, no profit-sharing with Smartup Zero, no reporting obligation back to us. Once your Smartup is running, it is sovereign.
How to Start¶
There is one entry point right now:
Contact Robbert.
He is the founder of Smartup Zero and the person who can walk you through the bootstrapping process — from your initial OSBP draft to your first live ledger entry.
This is a human conversation, not a form submission. Bring your mission, your SDG, and a rough idea of the team you want to build. The rest gets shaped together.
Where Your Smartup Will Live¶
Once bootstrapped, your Smartup will be listed in the Smartup Registry — the public record of all active Smartups running on the model.
We are in Pre-Validation phase
Smartup Zero itself is still in Pre-Validation — building the lab, not yet running the full experiment. The bootstrapping process for new Smartups is being defined as part of this phase. Early movers help shape the process. That is intentional.
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