The careers
fair of the
AI economy.

Founding members · Waitlist open · Ages 14–22

Explore the frontier of tech and AI by stepping inside real startups and doing the work the experts in the field do. A new one every month. Real challenges, led by real practitioners, with real stakes. Proof, not papers.

Join the waitlist → See the experience →
Format · Part AI academy × part careers fair

Do the job.
Don't just hear about it.

Virtual weekly sessions.

Live online every Wednesday, plus an open livestream. Join from anywhere.

Live practical challenges.

One host company, one real brief and four focused weeks of hands-on live sessions.

AI-native skills.

Learn the skills and tools of the AI economy and frontier tech by actually using them.

Careers fair of the future.

Real exposure to the companies, roles and people shaping the future of work.

A portfolio of proof.

Every edition ends in judged work you keep, so you're seen for what you've shown, not your papers.

Every month opens a new door: a different company, a different brief, different roles to try. Editions are limited and each one runs once, which is why SydeDoor is a membership. The value is in the exploring.

Step 1

Enter the world

Hear from the founder and diagnose a live company problem.

Step 2

Work the problem

Prototype with AI, test with users and work 2–3 hours a week between sessions.

Step 3

Make the proof

Finish with a 48-hour sprint, pitch to a panel and keep a portfolio piece.

City editions · Pre-launch

London first.
Europe next.

London is our first launch priority. Other cities are expressions of interest, not announced launches. Hosts and dates are still to be confirmed.

Waitlist open↗
First launch priorityLondonAges 14–22 · Host & dates TBCJoin the waitlist
Interest only↗
Future city interestParisAges 14–22 · Host & dates TBCRegister interest
Interest only↗
Future city interestLisbonAges 14–22 · Host & dates TBCRegister interest
Interest only↗
Future city interestBerlinAges 14–22 · Host & dates TBCRegister interest
Interest only↗
Future city interestWarsawAges 14–22 · Host & dates TBCRegister interest
Interest only↗
Future city interestViennaAges 14–22 · Host & dates TBCRegister interest
Interest only↗
Future city interestTallinnAges 14–22 · Host & dates TBCRegister interest
Future cities
Where next?Suggest your city · Register interest
Two tracks

Built for where
you are now.

Same live format and the same real briefs, pitched at the right level. You join the track that matches your age, and work alongside people at your stage.

Explore
SydeDoor Explore
14–18

Find out what you're good at before you pick a subject, a degree or a path. Try real roles, learn the AI tools, and build your first portfolio project.

  • Try a different role every week: founder, product, growth, design
  • Learn AI tools safely, with clear guardrails
  • After-school timing, parental consent, safeguarding lead
  • A portfolio piece for applications and personal statements
Join the 14–18 waitlist →
Launch
SydeDoor Launch
18–22

For students, gap-years and early careers. Go deeper on building with AI, ship real work for real companies, and get seen by the people who hire.

  • Deeper builds: agents, automations, products, content engines
  • Briefs pitched at junior-hire level
  • Prizes: cash, a day inside the startup, Fellowship places
  • A body of work that beats a CV
Join the 18–22 waitlist →
Inside an edition

Frame by frame.
Four weeks to proof.

A preview of the planned format. Footage is illustrative, not past SydeDoor editions.

A team of young people working on laptops and an electronics kit01
Week 1 · Founder

Get the brief

Step inside a frontier-tech company, hear from the founder and diagnose a live problem.

A real problem, not a worksheet.
Two young men reviewing code on a laptop02
Week 2 · Product / Ops

Prototype with AI

See how the team builds, then turn your response into a working prototype.

Make something you can show.
Two young adults setting up a camera to film content03
Week 3 · Growth / Marketing

Test with real users

Challenge your assumptions, gather feedback and improve what you made.

Evidence over assumptions.
A young woman pitching to an audience with a microphone04
Week 4 · Founder + judging panel

Pitch under stakes

Finish with a 48-hour sprint and defend your work against a public scoring rubric.

Merit-judged work to keep.
What you get

Six things school
wasn't built to give you.

Everything at SydeDoor is built around what the AI economy actually rewards: what you can do, show and explain.

01

AI-native education

Every task is done with AI, the way the best teams work now. Not a module about AI: a new way of working.

02

A curriculum at the speed of progress

Updated weekly and monthly, plus the side-door knowledge practitioners only share in the room.

03

Real-world guidance and stakes

Live briefs from real companies, honest feedback from the people doing the work, and prizes that matter.

04

Explore roles and team cultures

Founder, product, growth, design, engineering, across different companies. Try them before you choose.

05

A real network in the field

Build relationships with founders and operators by working alongside them, not by sending connection requests.

06

True meritocracy

A portfolio of proof, judged on what you made. Not your papers, your postcode or who you know.

The stack

The tools the AI economy
actually runs on.

You'll use the same tools working teams use today, on real problems, with someone who uses them daily showing you how. The list changes as the field does.

Think & research
ChatGPTClaudeGeminiGrokPerplexityNotion
Build & automate
LovableCursorReplitn8nZapier
Design & present
FigmaCanvaGamma
Create: image, video, voice
MidjourneySoraHiggsfieldRunwayElevenLabsSynthesiaSuno

Logos belong to their owners and are shown to describe what students learn. SydeDoor is not affiliated with these companies. Some tools have age limits; under-18s use age-appropriate alternatives or supervised access.

AI safety & responsibility

Use it well. Use it safely.

Spotting hallucinationsFact-checking & sourcesPrivacy & personal dataDeepfakes & misinformationBias & fairnessCopyright & IPWhen not to use AIWellbeing & screen habits
Skills of the future

What still matters when AI does the rest.

Problem framingJudgement & tasteSystems thinkingWorking with AI agentsCommunication & pitchingTeamworkAgency & ownershipLearning how to learn
How we're different

A unique experience.
Built differently.

School, courses and work experience all have their place. SydeDoor fills the gap between them: a different way to learn, explore and prove yourself.

The usual route
SydeDoor
Learning AI
A course about the tools
AI-native: every task done with AI, on real work
What you learn
A syllabus set years ahead
Updated weekly, with side-door knowledge from the field
Guidance & stakes
Marked practice exercises
Live company briefs, judged by practitioners
Career exploration
One placement, one role
Several roles and team cultures, every season
Network
Careers fairs and cold messages
Working alongside founders and operators
How you're judged
Grades and credentials
A portfolio of proof
Community
Who it's for

Sound like you?
You'll fit right in.

SydeDoor is a community of young people who would rather explore than wait. If a few of these ring true, you're exactly who we built it for.

01

Proof, not papers

You'd rather show what you can do than list what you've studied.

02

Frontier tech and AI

You want to understand where AI and frontier tech are taking work, and get there early.

03

Big dreams, optimistic

You believe the future can be better, and you want a hand in building it.

04

Committed

You turn up, do the work and don't leave your team hanging.

05

Collaborative, here to make an impact

You share what you learn, lift others up and want your work to matter.

Questions

Quick
answers.

All FAQs →
What is SydeDoor? +

A membership for 14–22 year olds: part AI academy, part careers fair of the future. Every month you step inside a different AI or frontier-tech company, work on one of its real challenges with the people who do the job, and pitch your answer to a judging panel.

How is it different from a course or work experience? +

A course teaches you about the tools. Work experience is usually one placement, often through who you know. SydeDoor is live, hands-on and new every month: you do real work with AI, for a real company, and you're judged on what you make, not on your grades.

How does it work? +

Each edition runs for four weeks, with one live session every Wednesday and 2–3 hours of team work in between. Week 1 you get the brief, week 2 you build with AI, week 3 you test with real users, and week 4 ends with a 48-hour sprint and a judged pitch.

Who is it for? +

Curious, committed 14–22 year olds who want to explore the future of work. Explore is for 14–18s and Launch is for 18–22s. If you're 18 and still at school, you can choose either. No grades or CV needed.

Do I need to know how to code or use AI already? +

No. You'll learn the tools by using them, with practitioners showing you how. Curiosity and showing up for your team matter more than experience.

Will it fit around school or university? +

Yes. Sessions are on Wednesdays, 12–1pm or 5–7pm, GMT and CET, and the team work fits around your week. It's virtual-first, so you can join from anywhere.

When does it start? +

We're forming the founding membership now. Join the waitlist and you'll hear first when dates and the first host are confirmed.

Founding members

Proof,
not papers.

Join the waitlist to become a founding member. You'll hear first about dates, hosts and places, and help shape what we build.

Join the waitlist →

Takes two minutes. Under 18? We'll ask a parent or guardian to confirm before you take part.