At London Tech Week 2025, the Institute of Entrepreneurship and Private Capital (IEPC) at London Business School’s Executive Director, Jane Khedair, moderated a lively panel exploring the age-old question: does experience outweigh education for startup founders? Featuring voices from diverse entrepreneurs, the discussion unpacked what really helps founders succeed today. In the following post, Jane shares her personal reflections and key insights from the session.
London Tech Week 2025 was buzzing with energy and fresh ideas — and I had the privilege of moderating a panel that tackled one of the most debated questions in entrepreneurship: “Real Founder Formula: Experience Over Education.”
As part of London Tech Week’s founder-focused track, our panel featured three remarkable founders, each with their own unique journey and perspective:
- Toby Brown – the 16-year-old founder of Beem, focused on reimagining human–computer interaction. He raised $1 million from Silicon Valley investors last year and has since relocated to the US, choosing to pursue his venture full-time after pausing his GCSEs.
- Ryan Wang – founder of San Francisco–based Assembled, which has raised an impressive $71 million to date. The company just announced its European expansion, starting with a new office in London.
- Sam Tidswell Norrish – founder of Opus, a platform set to transform how founders interact, collaborate, and support one another.
Each founder brought a distinct perspective to the question of whether experience can trump formal education, offering real-world examples of bold decisions, rapid scaling, and the evolving paths to entrepreneurial success.
The conversation flowed naturally, diving deep into the age-old question: Does experience outweigh formal education when it comes to founding startups?
Experience vs Education: What Matters Most for Early Founders?
Toby’s journey as a teenage entrepreneur was a powerful reminder that real-world experience—learning on the job, iterating based on customer feedback—is invaluable. He made a compelling case for jumping into the “trenches” and learning by doing.
Ryan offered a thoughtful counterpoint: while hands-on experience is vital, a solid educational foundation can provide essential frameworks that can streamline decision-making early on.
Sam chimed in with a provocative but balanced view: formal education isn’t overrated; it’s often undervalued in startup circles. He emphasized that university or structured programs teach valuable strategic thinking, fundraising fluency, and leadership frameworks. Ryan added that these foundations—while less glamorous than overnight startup success stories—serve as crucial scaffolding during scale-up phases.
Can Entrepreneurship Be Taught?
Our panel reached a consensus: yes, entrepreneurship can indeed be taught—or perhaps more accurately, enabled. But it must be blended with real-world application. That’s exactly why at London Business School, we focus on experiential learning—pairing mentorship, simulations, pitch experiences, internships, and incubators—to bridge theory and practice.
What Should Aspiring Founders Study?
Recognising the role that education can play in supporting founders, we also highlighted several core subjects essential for aspiring founders:
- Business fundamentals like finance, accounting, marketing, and legal literacy
- Emerging technologies including AI, data science, and digital transformation
- Crucial soft skills such as leadership, resilience, and negotiation
- Problem-solving frameworks like design thinking and lean startup methodologies
Preparedness vs False Security
The discussion here was candid: education can pose a false sense of readiness—but when designed well, it builds long-term resilience and adaptability. Toby reflected on how real failures accelerated his learning and iterate far faster than any classroom could.
Are Academic Institutions Keeping Up?
Mixed opinions surfaced on whether academic institutions are keeping pace with technological shifts. Ryan admitted that academic curricula can lag behind fast-moving tech landscapes. However, Sam and I emphasized that institutions like London Business School continuously update their offerings, embed practitioner mentors, run incubators, and cultivate vibrant alumni networks to stay relevant.
Why Teach Entrepreneurial Thinking Early?
All panellists enthusiastically agreed on the value of introducing entrepreneurial skills at the high school level—covering financial basics, small ventures, coding, and creative problem-solving—to ignite early passion for entrepreneurship.
AI’s Impact on Education vs Experience
Looking forward, we agreed that education and hands-on experience will be more complementary than ever, especially with AI accelerating access to knowledge and learning platforms. However, judgement, leadership, and creativity will still require hands-on experience. Perhaps a hybrid model – embracing rapid AI-driven learning loops followed by immersive, applied sprints – might just be the future.
Final Thoughts
No single path guarantees success. Founders benefit most when structured learning and real-world experimentation work hand in hand. As technology evolves—especially with AI—the synergy between education and experience will shape a new generation of resilient, adaptive entrepreneurs.
In essence, educational institutions are about much more than just teaching theory. At IEPC, we complement the formal curriculum by sharing inspiring founder stories and actively fostering an entrepreneurial mindset. We create or support platforms where startups can experiment, trial, and even fail safely—through pitch sessions, competitions, and hackathons. Our goal is to enable our startup founders to test their business ideas, gain valuable feedback, and connect with the right people at every stage of their journey. By linking student and alumni founders with mentors and building a strong, supportive community, we help turn ambition into action and ideas into impact.
This mission is exemplified by London Business School’s £2m Entrepreneurship Experience, designed to equip aspiring entrepreneurs with essential tools, networks, and expertise to build and scale successful businesses.
I look forward to seeing how this conversation evolves at London Tech Week 2026 and beyond!