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The Lighthouse

Who is Zap

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Who is Zap

The Lighthouse

How We Work With Founders:

Our mission is to build billion-dollar tech companies in Nashville, TN- by investing early, showing up hard, and growing alongside founders from day one.

Why Founders Choose The Lighthouse

  • We go earlier than almost anyone, before traction, headlines, or hype 

  • We lead with a platform-first, give-before-we-take approach.

  • We work extremely hard for our founders- intros, customers, team, capital.

  • We know founders as people, not just companies.

Our Process

Here's exactly how we work together, from first meeting to funding and beyond.

Step 1  Meet the Community

The best introductions happen organically- through our events, community dinners, and network. Feel free to email lorenzo@lt.house for upcoming Lighthouse-only events. Best way to start is to vibe with our other founders (: 

Step 2  Determine Fit

Not every great founder is the right fit for the Lighthouse, and that's okay. We look for a few non-negotiables:

  • You're based in Nashville, TN and want to actively give and take from our founder community.

  • You have (or plan to have) both a seller cofounder and a coder cofounder.

  • You're solving a real problem in a massive market that makes sense to build in Nashville.

  • You have a strong bias for action, you move fast and figure things out.

  • You have a "why me" reason. This is your mission, not just a business idea. 

Step 3  We Get to Work

We don't just write checks and wait. We do our diligence by helping and we help across the board:

  • Surround you with founders who've been there before and triage you to the right person.

  • Find your first customers through our killer outbound capabilities.

  • Help you recruit early team members through our community and network.

  • Teach you the game of fundraising and find investors when the time is right.

  • Be in your corner as a genuine cheerleader, through the highs and the hard parts.

Step 4  First Check

If you're the right fit for our community, our thesis, and we can help in more ways than one, we write a tiny check of $5K early. Just skin in the game, so we can signal to the market “we already invested”.

Step 5  Venture Process & SPV

When you're ready to raise, we help you run a full venture process and find the right lead fund. We then follow with a $100K–$200K SPV to invest meaningfully alongside you.

Like the founders I back, I just started.

I don't come from a traditional VC background. No finance degree, or fancy pedigree job. Not a former founder, current founder. I became obsessed with startups after working at a now Series B startup in college and just... kept going.

After years of building founder community through events and education. LinkedIn virality. Network cultivation. Venture scouting. Angel investing. I always took the founder path: start with what you know, figure out the rest as you go.

The Lighthouse Origin Story

January 2025, we moved into 6,000 sq. ft. next to Centennial Park with a simple mission: help Nashville startups win.

I wanted to approach building The Lighthouse in an entrepreneurial way, just like my founders. I knew the problem I wanted to solve, but I wasn't sure exactly how I was going to solve it. Month after month: we build, test, try, iterate. Ecosystem building requires being reactive to founder needs, not prescriptive. Markets and needs change constantly in startup-land. Startups move fast. We do too.

My Process

I hilariously don't care about product just the people. I get to know you as a founder first—many come for a home cooked meal at my home. I want to understand who you are, why you're building, and whether you love the process itself. It's almost never about the check. Great founders get money anyway. My check is just a drop in the bucket. The value is everything else.

Why This Works

It's simple: I ask founders what they want and need, then I do that.

Track record speaks for itself: founders I back win. They get term sheets, hire great people, find customers, and build something meaningful. Currently supporting 33 startups, 12 pre-seed investments made, and we're just getting started.

Some of my favorite ways to genuinely help:

  1. Connecting you with someone "1 step ahead of you" - The best advice comes from founders who just survived what you're going through.

  2. Being an ear to rant to and your biggest cheerleader - Building is lonely. Having someone who genuinely believes in you changes everything.

  3. Customer introductions - I am actively and constantly building a network of early adopters who want to help you succeed. Just point me in the direction.

  4. Finding your next great team member - The best and cheapest headhunter you're going to find. Need a killer 0 to 1 engineer? A co-founder? I know how to spot startup talent a mile away.

  5. Yes, helping raise millions too - Direct access to some of the best venture funds in the country. Better yet, I will handle the back channelling to get you the critical feedback no one ever actually tells you to your face.

My Philosophy

  • Truly building something isn't about pedigree or who you know. It's about putting your head down and doing the damn thing.

  • Value creation over credentials. Help first, invest later. Quality over quantity.

  • I'm your first true believer. Before traction, headlines, or hype, I see you and I'm on your side.

Get To Know Me

I host open in-person office hours every week. I love a compelling cold email. You can apply here, or come to one of our public events.