"Business Plan Preparation" is a line-item? In my mind the credibility of this document is already shot for this audience, and we're not even half-way in. Two

"Business Plan Preparation" is a line-item? In my mind the credibility of this document is already shot for this audience, and we're not even half-way in. Two founders? 50/50. If you find a co-founder that you see eye-to-eye with and you have non-overlapping responsibilities, you can make it work. I'm an equal partner in Wikispaces, and it works. The alternatives are worse. Get over the theoretical deadlock case, if this happens for real, you're in serious trouble regardless of the split. Three founders? Find a split that works based on background, past and future contribution, etc. Use a spreadsheet if it helps, but be prepared to really, deeply debate this. How the three of you handle this early discussion is a good indicator of how future -- possibly much more difficult -- discussions will go. Four or more founders? No idea. Probably trouble.