| Founded | 2014 |
|---|---|
| Closed | 2024 |
| Country | USA |
| Sector | Hrtech |
| Collapse type | Mass Layoff Spiral |
| Founder | Keith Ryu, Sean Behr |
Fountain
"Processed a billion applications but couldn't scale a billion-dollar business sustainably."
Cascading layoffs that accelerated the decline
Key Events Timeline
Fountain raised $228M including a $100M Series C in 2022 at over $1B valuation to automate high-volume hourly worker hiring for companies like Uber and Deliveroo.
// full analysis
Full analysis requires the Analyst plan
Documented cause · Market cycle · Competitive moat type · Verified lesson
€149/mo · or contribute your autopsy for free access →
UnicornBurn Season 0 opens July 2026. 10,000 founders competing in one world. Your startup fights for the market every Saturday. Most will end up here. Which one are you?
JOIN SEASON 0 →Fountain followed a documented pattern. Identify the same signals in any company before they reach the point of no return.
Witnessed a startup failure first-hand? Share the real story. First-hand accounts from founders and team members get prioritized for publication.
SUBMIT AN AUTOPSY →Failure intelligence for due diligence and risk analysis.
Structured dataset by collapse type, for 5031 startups. 7-day trial.
See plans →Free JSON API. No key required. 50 autopsies, 10 req/day.
Full dataset available with Intelligence plan API key. CORS enabled.
Explore API →Academic, press, or research use? Free JSON API available — no auth required →