THE NFX SECRET WEAPON AWARDS

Behind every great company is a Secret Weapon.

The first A+ operators who take a vision and turn it into reality — from inside the trenches. Insiders know they’re what make a great company great. The world rarely does. We’re changing that.

15winners a cycle
3disciplines
1network
BEARING 000.0°
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STATUS SCANNING
RECOGNIZING THE OPERATORS BEHIND GREAT COMPANIES
01 — THE IDEA

Behind every great founder is a team of excellent operators — the handful of A+ hires who turn a vision into reality from inside the trenches. They’re what make a great company great. They’re rarely the ones on the cover.

Work has changed, and new playbooks have emerged for how the best growth, engineering, and storytelling gets done. Secret Weapons recognizes the people writing them — the growth masterminds, the engineering savants, the intuitive storytellers, the recruiters, and more. Not founders. The people who make founders possible — and who are often the ones to start the next great company. Secret weapons, if only for a little longer.

02 — THE DISCIPLINES

Three disciplines.
Five winners each.

03 — WHAT WINNERS RECEIVE

More than a plaque.

Part recognition, part access. A platform for your personal brand, a room full of your peers, and a standing seat closer to NFX.

01
Recognition
Your story, told well.
We publish your playbook to the NFX audience — one of the most-read founder and operator networks anywhere. Drafted with our editors, or written by you. Your name, your lessons, our reach.
02
The cohort
Rare company.
Fifteen operators a cycle across growth, engineering, and storytelling — the kind of people who tend to build the next thing. As a winner, they’re your peers.
03
The reception
A seat at the table.
An intimate evening with NFX partners, a special guest or two, and the rest of your cohort. Small by design, high signal. If you’re not in the Bay Area, we’ll help you get there.
04
The angel club
Invest alongside us.
A standing invitation to co-invest with NFX in select deals, including our angel allocations. The people closest to great companies should own a piece of the next ones.
04 — THE HONOREES
◉ REVEALED AT ANNOUNCEMENT
SW-001████████████GROWTH · SERIES B UNICORNNAMED
SW-002██████████████ENGINEERING · FRONTIER AINAMED
SW-003█████████STORYTELLING · CATEGORY LEADERNAMED
SW-004███████████████GROWTH · DEV TOOLSNAMED
SW-005░░░░░░░░░░░TO BE ANNOUNCED— — —

The full list isn’t public. Each honoree is announced individually, at their own discretion. If you know, you know.

Put someone forward
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NOMINATE

You know one.
We want to.

Somewhere on your team, or in your orbit, is the operator who makes it all work. Point us to them. One nomination is all it takes.

Nominate someone