Robo Co-op Launches 'Co-op Lab': Refugees Become AI Startup Founders in 4 Weeks

Robo Co-op is pleased to announce the launch of Co-op Lab in solidarity with World Refugee Day 2026. On June 20th, Jintae Kim, the founder and CEO of Robo Co-op, will host a free online AI training session to activate Startup Robos for refugees around the world (details are available on the Co-op Lab Discord channel).

Co-op Lab is a cooperative startup incubator that enables refugees to launch digital startups from Day 1, supported by AI CxO agents operating 24/7.

Co-op Lab is not a traditional reskilling program designed to train people to 'work for someone else.' From day one, participants begin building three small digital businesses, supported by five dedicated AI executive agents: CEO, CFO, COO, CTO, and CMO. Over the four-week program, they learn Claude Code by applying it directly to business creation, management, and growth, with the goal of reaching an average monthly income of USD 500. From there, they can choose their own exit path: becoming the owner of three small digital businesses that continuously generate USD 50–3,000 per month or pursuing a career as an AI freelancer earning USD 20–100 per hour by leveraging their proficiency in Claude Code.

◆Startup Incubation Through Teams Groups of five form a cooperative community on Discord and launch three startups from day one, with each participant working alongside their five AI executive agents. In addition to acquiring skills, participants cultivate responsibility, teamwork, and true business ownership.

◆An AI-Native Business Playbook Powered by Startup Robos AI executive agents help participants identify business models suited to their languages, regions, and skills. These include native-language tutoring, AI translation agencies, microtasks, AI/RPA agent building, AI video editing, virtual assistance, Kindle publishing, cross-border e-commerce, and SEO media, with the goal of earning USD 50–3,000 per month.

◆Learning Claude Code Through RoboBuilder While operating their businesses, participants learn how to manage and improve agents using Claude Code through the Robo Builder development standard, gaining practical developer skills simultaneously. The entire ecosystem operates as open source. Successful graduates 'pay it forward' by contributing to shared costs, such as AI token usage, helping keep the ecosystem sustainable, scalable, and accessible to future participants.

◆Why This Matters Today, more than 120 million people worldwide have been forcibly displaced (UNHCR Global Trends 2024), and that number is projected to exceed 1.2 billion by 2050 due to conflict and the climate crisis (Institute for Economics & Peace, September 2020).