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We build successful and profitable companies

SmartUp Academy

SmartUp was founded in 2019 by serial entrepreneur Yonatan Stern with the goal of changing how new companies get built. Based on principles that Yonatan developed over 3 decades of experience, SmartUp teaches entrepreneurs how to build successful and profitable companies with modest investment and a clear set of guiding principles.

"Building a successful company is a career that requires mastery, just like any other profession. Learning how to do the job is the first step, but true mastery comes from years of practice and experience."
Yonatan Stern
Founder
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SmartUp Methodology Principles

Profitability first

The infinite game, not the exit

Brand and sales before product

Jobs to be done. Build only what already has a buyer

Niche, cheap experiments, and small fixes

Profitability first

We build companies that reach profitability as early as possible, on as little capital as possible. Positive cash flow is the measure of success, not fundraising, not a paper valuation.
That shapes how we treat capital: raise little and deliberately, keep burn rate low and the team lean, and structure ownership so it resists VC pressure to scale too early. Excess capital is a risk. It hides mistakes instead of forcing you to fix them.

The infinite game, not the exit

A company is built to endure and grow, not to be sold. An exit-driven strategy distorts priorities and pushes the founder toward decisions that hurt the company long-term.
Once the company is profitable, the founder has real freedom to choose, including the freedom not to sell.

Brand and sales before product

Branding is the first step, not the one after development. A brand can be built before a product exists, through mockups, demos, videos, and a sharp vision story.
The CEO is the first salesperson, and selling starts on day one. Sales isn't just revenue. It's the strongest research tool there is, because it's the only thing that proves real demand.

Jobs to be done. Build only what already has a buyer

Talk to potential customers before the product exists, understand the job they actually need done, identify the one thing they'll pay for, and only then build.
A sharp ICP and messaging that hits their pain comes before a single line of code.

Niche, cheap experiments, and small fixes

Pick a beachhead you can dominate and be profitable in, instead of chasing a huge market. Test every assumption cheaply and quickly, and correct course with small pivots based on early feedback.
A pivot made after burning millions isn't a pivot. It's an expensive failure that could have been avoided. In the same spirit, evolution beats revolution, and the meaningful innovation is usually in the business model and the path to the customer, not the technology.

Profitability first

We build companies that reach profitability as early as possible, on as little capital as possible. Positive cash flow is the measure of success, not fundraising, not a paper valuation.
That shapes how we treat capital: raise little and deliberately, keep burn rate low and the team lean, and structure ownership so it resists VC pressure to scale too early. Excess capital is a risk. It hides mistakes instead of forcing you to fix them.

The infinite game, not the exit

A company is built to endure and grow, not to be sold. An exit-driven strategy distorts priorities and pushes the founder toward decisions that hurt the company long-term.
Once the company is profitable, the founder has real freedom to choose, including the freedom not to sell.

Brand and sales before product

Branding is the first step, not the one after development. A brand can be built before a product exists, through mockups, demos, videos, and a sharp vision story.
The CEO is the first salesperson, and selling starts on day one. Sales isn't just revenue. It's the strongest research tool there is, because it's the only thing that proves real demand.

Jobs to be done. Build only what already has a buyer

Talk to potential customers before the product exists, understand the job they actually need done, identify the one thing they'll pay for, and only then build.
A sharp ICP and messaging that hits their pain comes before a single line of code.

Niche, cheap experiments, and small fixes

Pick a beachhead you can dominate and be profitable in, instead of chasing a huge market. Test every assumption cheaply and quickly, and correct course with small pivots based on early feedback.
A pivot made after burning millions isn't a pivot. It's an expensive failure that could have been avoided. In the same spirit, evolution beats revolution, and the meaningful innovation is usually in the business model and the path to the customer, not the technology.

The Team

Yonatan Stern

Founder

Libby Molad

Co-Founder & COO

Ayala Turgeman

Co-Founder & CFO

Eyal Lewinsohn

Mentor

Daniel Itzhaki

Software Developer

Matias Brenman

Marketing Manager

Maor Nave

AI & Data Specialist

Yair Fradkin

Recruitment Manager

Oren Cohen

Product Designer

Want to learn more?