Why 12%? — Already Studio

The Principle

Old saying: you've found the sweet spot when everybody is equally unhappy but willing to move forward.

We didn't pick 12% to extract the most we could. We asked: what's fair for founders, the studio, future investors, and the operators and builders we need to hire?

The Venn Diagram Test

The right number works for four groups at once:

Founders — low enough to feel like real owners. At 12%, the founder keeps 88%. That's their company.
Studio — high enough to justify ~$20K of risk and ongoing support. If the venture fails, the studio eats the cost.
Investors — high enough that the studio's portfolio has real value. Fund investors need meaningful stakes across ventures.
Team — the studio needs equity to compensate operators and builders. Too small a stake means nothing to share with the people doing the work.

How It Compares

Model	Equity	Cash from Founder	What You Get
Traditional venture studio Atomic, eFounders, High Alpha	30-50%	$0	Studio originates the idea, builds the product, recruits the CEO. Probably won't take your call — market too small.
Accelerator YC, Techstars	7-10%	$0 (they invest $125-500K)	Cash + program + network. They don't build the product. You still need a CTO.
Dev shop	0%	$30-100K	Code. Usually needs rewriting within a year. No ongoing relationship.
Fractional CTO	0-5%	$150-250/hr	Technical guidance. Part-time. Doesn't build the product.
Full-time CTO co-founder	20-50%	$0 (but salary expected)	If you can find one. Average search: 6-12 months. Most want salary + equity. Many lose interest by month 3.
Vibe code it yourself	0%	$0 (your time)	You keep everything. But you're coding instead of selling. Breaks at 50 users. Needs rewriting to raise.
Offshore development	0%	$15-50K	Cheaper than domestic. Timezone gaps, communication gaps, code you can't read, no ownership of outcome.
Already Studio	~12%	$0	Production MVP on a proven platform. Ongoing support. Cohort access. Incorporation help. Code is yours. Buyout option anytime.

Traditional studios won't take a small-market idea. Accelerators don't build the product. Dev shops charge $30-100K cash. 12% sits in the space between — more involved than an accelerator, less extractive than a studio, no cash required.

What 12% Actually Means

If your company does...	The studio's 12% is worth...	The founder's 88% is worth...
$100K ARR	$12K/year	$88K/year
$300K ARR	$36K/year	$264K/year
$500K ARR	$60K/year	$440K/year
Raises at $2M valuation	$240K on paper	$1.76M on paper

At $300K ARR, the studio's 12% earns $36K/year — roughly what the studio invested to get started. The founder's 88% earns $264K/year. The founder built the business. The studio built the foundation it runs on.

What If 12% Feels Wrong?

Let's talk about it. The number matters less than both sides feeling the deal is fair. We'd rather adjust and work with you than hold the line and lose you.