2024 – 2026 · A love letter

After two wild years, we're giving it all away.

Build IRL is wrapping up, but everything we learned at the country's first social club accelerator is now a playbook, so anyone, anywhere can build a club.

Read the playbook → Watch the farewell ↓
How to Build a Club, the Build IRL playbook
The farewell film

Two years, in five minutes.

Made with love, for everyone who showed up.

Can't watch right now? Read the story instead ↓

How to Build a Club, the Build IRL playbook. 12 hot takes.
The playbook

What’s in the playbook.

12 hot takes. A full bootcamp. The whole method for building a club that actually lasts. Open-sourced for everyone.

✦ 12 hot takes✦ Full bootcamp✦ Open-source
The story

So… what was Build IRL?

Build IRL was the country's first social club accelerator. Three cohorts. 100+ club alums.

Over two wild years in San Francisco, builders who thought they were alone found each other, and together we threw the city's biggest club fair, its first Joiner Week, gave out $50K in microgrants, and celebrated our heroes every day.

It was magic. And it taught us something worth giving away.

Read the full story on Substack →
Cohort programming, member journey night
Cohort programmingMember journey night
Build IRL cohort, Got Vibes
The cohortGot vibes?
Showcase, irl over url
The showcaseirl > url
Build With Lab accelerator workshop
The acceleratorBuild With Lab
Relive it

2025 Club Fair & ShowcaseHighlight reel · Watch on Vimeo ↗

2024 Club Fair & ShowcaseHighlight reel · Watch on Vimeo ↗

By the numbers

What we built together.

0
cohorts, the country's first IRL club accelerator
0
club alumni · a 9.5 NPS
0
locals at 50+ events · SF's biggest club fair
0
in microgrants, with Hinge One More Hour
0
newsletters · a voice for builders nationwide
Our heroes

We celebrated clubs from all walks of life.

People cooking, playing, meditating, making, organizing, and just having dinner together. A few of the clubs of SF we were lucky to call our heroes:

🍳

SF Friend's Cookbook Club

Cookbook Club
🎾

Mission Athletic Club

Tennis Club
⚫

SF Go Club

Strategy Club
🧘

Community Village

Meditation Club
🤖

AI Salon

Philosophy Club
🧶

Interwoven

Mixed-Identity Club
🃏

SF Poker Club

Games Club
🫂

The Commons

Social Club
🛠️

Noisebridge

Hacker's Club
🌍

Climate Action Club

Changemakers
🥂

Friends of Friends

Social Club
🎙️

Golden Gate Toastmasters

Speaking Club
✨

The SF Contemplarium

Spirituality Club
🧋

Boba Buddies

Boba & Friends
📚

Hardcover Book Club

Book Club
🍳

SF Friend's Cookbook Club

Cookbook Club
🎾

Mission Athletic Club

Tennis Club
⚫

SF Go Club

Strategy Club
🧘

Community Village

Meditation Club
🤖

AI Salon

Philosophy Club
🧶

Interwoven

Mixed-Identity Club
🃏

SF Poker Club

Games Club
🫂

The Commons

Social Club
🛠️

Noisebridge

Hacker's Club
🌍

Climate Action Club

Changemakers
🥂

Friends of Friends

Social Club
🎙️

Golden Gate Toastmasters

Speaking Club
✨

The SF Contemplarium

Spirituality Club
🧋

Boba Buddies

Boba & Friends
📚

Hardcover Book Club

Book Club
Why this matters

We used to be a nation of clubs.

Then we lost them. Two in three people now belong to no local club, and the Surgeon General calls loneliness a public-health crisis.

50%of Americans feel lonely
2 in 3belong to no local group or club
15 cigsloneliness harms your health more than smoking 15 a day

And the honest truth: building IRL clubs is hard. Builders pour in invisible hours, under-valued and under-resourced. The people bringing everyone together often feel the loneliest.

But there's a method to the magic. So we wrote it down, then gave it away.

What's next

This isn't an ending. It's a handoff.

We're dissolving Build IRL as a company, but the mission is going somewhere better: everywhere. Here's where everything lives now.

How to Build a Club, the playbook For anyone who wants to build

How to Build a Club

Everything we learned. 12 hot takes, a full bootcamp, and real club stories, built in public with the community.

Go to buildaclub.org → For clubs using our tools

Our platform has a new home

Our club-funding & membership tools are now stewarded by the Relational Tech Project, which keeps the code open and Bay Area clubs supported.

Visit RTP → For staying in the loop

Keep reading

50+ newsletters of hard-won lessons and love letters to club builders. Still here.

Read the Substack →
Thank you

Build IRL was never just us.

Hundreds of Build IRL club builders and members

It was you. Every builder, joiner, and friend who showed up.

It was the club builders who trusted us with their stories, their sweat, their vulnerability.

It was everyone who showed up. Who built. Who joined. Who chipped in.

And that lives on.

“I joined to build my passion and community, and I came out inspired, my cup overflowing with knowledge and friendships that feel like they could last a lifetime. Build IRL has had a profound impact on me; it's truly an experience of a lifetime.”- Rae'ven Moon
“Build IRL was absolutely transformative for the Biopunk Community. We would not be where we are now without the support of this community.”- Elliot Roth
“This is amazing. Built by skilled, passionate community builders who care deeply about supporting other builders. If you want to build community and are struggling in any way, we are your people. Come join us!”- Caleb Tenenbaum
“I'll forever be changed by your program. I learned not just club-organizing skills, but life skills and how to be a better member of society.”- Jess Marvin
“I feel lucky to be leaving the program with a toolkit for building, and an inspirational cohort to continue learning from!”- Laura Carlson
“This course gave us the conviction to run with a nascent idea and make it a reality!”- Lynne Guey
“I joined to build my passion and community, and I came out inspired, my cup overflowing with knowledge and friendships that feel like they could last a lifetime. Build IRL has had a profound impact on me; it's truly an experience of a lifetime.”- Rae'ven Moon
“Build IRL was absolutely transformative for the Biopunk Community. We would not be where we are now without the support of this community.”- Elliot Roth
“This is amazing. Built by skilled, passionate community builders who care deeply about supporting other builders. If you want to build community and are struggling in any way, we are your people. Come join us!”- Caleb Tenenbaum
“I'll forever be changed by your program. I learned not just club-organizing skills, but life skills and how to be a better member of society.”- Jess Marvin
“I feel lucky to be leaving the program with a toolkit for building, and an inspirational cohort to continue learning from!”- Laura Carlson
“This course gave us the conviction to run with a nascent idea and make it a reality!”- Lynne Guey
“The community emerging from this is a field of goodness, connection, and support between builders.”- Nina
“My experience with Build has been invaluable. The community, resources, and modeling of culture-building has been a gift to my life. I can't thank you enough.”- Sarah Fowler
“The Build IRL accelerator was absolutely amazing, with a passionate founding team, invaluable cohort members, and guest speakers to learn and bond with.”- Minh Mai
“Everything has been superb… I wish I was in the 1st cohort, but I'm so grateful to be here now!”- Prince Boucher
“The structure and content of the program was excellent.”- Van-Anh Su
“I am thankful that you saw the need and built something to address it.”- Eric
“The community emerging from this is a field of goodness, connection, and support between builders.”- Nina
“My experience with Build has been invaluable. The community, resources, and modeling of culture-building has been a gift to my life. I can't thank you enough.”- Sarah Fowler
“The Build IRL accelerator was absolutely amazing, with a passionate founding team, invaluable cohort members, and guest speakers to learn and bond with.”- Minh Mai
“Everything has been superb… I wish I was in the 1st cohort, but I'm so grateful to be here now!”- Prince Boucher
“The structure and content of the program was excellent.”- Van-Anh Su
“I am thankful that you saw the need and built something to address it.”- Eric

Now… go build a club. 🛠️

You don't need permission. Just a few people and the willingness to start. If you've been thinking about it, start. If you've already started, keep going.

Get the playbook → buildaclub.org

With love, Saum & Colt