---
title: From the Floundry to the Hatchery
date: 2021-10-12T05:30:00-04:00
author: University of Maryland
canonical_url: "https://today.umd.edu/from-the-floundry-to-the-hatchery"
section: Articles
---
# From the Floundry to the Hatchery

*October 12, 2021* — by [Leslie Miller](/author/leslie-miller)


> Mokhtarzada Brothers’ Startup Success Story Comes Home With New Student Venture Incubator at UMD

*I Stock 1016779444 1920x1080 — This fall, brothers Idris '10, Zeki '01 and Haroon Mokhtarzada (below, left to right) founded the Mokhtarzada Hatchery in the Department of Computer Science. Each year it will provide up to four teams of student entrepreneurs with seed funding of as much as $10,000, plus working space and mentoring and networking opportunities.*

Idris Mokhtarzada ’10 took his first computer science class at the University of Maryland before he even started high school.

“His feet didn’t even touch the floor when he sat down in the chair,” recalls his older brother, Haroon ’01. “He was that tiny.”

Tiny, maybe. But Idris’ experience made a big impression: “That really jump-started my knowledge about programming.”

In the years since, Idris, Haroon and their brothers, Zeki ’01 and Yahya ’06, have become startup superstars. Their latest venture, the finance management app Truebill, just hit a million customers. And as angel investors in more than 100 startups, the Mokhtarzadas have helped other entrepreneurs launch their businesses as well.

This fall, Haroon, Idris and Zeki returned to College Park on a different mission: They’re funding a new startup incubator in UMD’s Department of Computer Science to help students turn their entrepreneurial dreams into viable, sustainable ventures.



*Idris, Zeki and Haroon Mokhtarzada (left to right)*




**Topics:** [People](https://today.umd.edu/tags/people)


**Tags:** [Alumni](https://today.umd.edu/topic/alumni), [Computer Science](https://today.umd.edu/topic/computer-science), [Student Experience](https://today.umd.edu/topic/student-experience)


**Units:** [College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences](https://today.umd.edu/topic/college-computer-mathematical-and-natural-sciences)