I'm curious if the offer of a guaranteed investment of $150K would convince people who wouldn't otherwise be interested to try YC, or if the amount of money YC startups are getting is largely irrelevant.
Poll HN: Are you more likely to apply to YC now that you could get $150K?
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Re: Poll HN: Are you more likely to apply to YC now that you could get $150K?
#2My co-founder and I have been planning on applying since we started working on our prototype. The announcement of the 150K definitely helped my wife rest easier about the decision. Either way we want to do YC not for the money, but for the mentorship and growth that is difficult to attain here in the Midwest.
Re: Poll HN: Are you more likely to apply to YC now that you could get $150K?
#3I think a better question should be "Are you applying to YC with a non-web idea now that there is 150k on the table?" YC has experience with some hardware projects, but most are web-based companies that have low overhead. The previous 17k was barely enough to fund web development, let alone non-web software.
I'd expect to see much more Wattvisions and Wakemates in the future, and more B2B software with a longer, difficult selling curve. The founders will likely be drawing the same thin salaries at first in these situations, and the extra cash will go to product and customer development.
Re: Poll HN: Are you more likely to apply to YC now that you could get $150K?
#4I don't feel like funding is the main problem I face. If I really felt my business was a 100% winner, I could raise that cash. What YC and other accelerators/incubators do that I see is most helpful is help slash down the product into something that is marketable. I have a tendency to come up with "cool" ideas, but lately (as a part of an incubator) I've seen that the least sexy ideas are the ones that have an accessible market. That perspective is the real value from accelerators.
Re: Poll HN: Are you more likely to apply to YC now that you could get $150K?
#5Personally I'm less likely to apply to YC now - if there's one thing I hate it's giant heaps of money.
Re: Poll HN: Are you more likely to apply to YC now that you could get $150K?
#6Where are the options for never wanting to apply before and continue to not want to apply now? "Other" option doesn't fit.
Re: Poll HN: Are you more likely to apply to YC now that you could get $150K?
#7Personally I'm less likely to apply to YC now - if there's one thing I hate it's giant heaps of money.
Doesn't matter, awesome Harry Potter fanfiction is where the real money is. You need to get a book deal.
Re: Poll HN: Are you more likely to apply to YC now that you could get $150K?
#8After working in several previous startups founded by other people who were based around VC money, my next project will be personal, small, and focused on long term maintainable growth, rather then a huge payday. I enjoy working in a startup environment, the exploration, the many-hats, and the freedom, but I'm personally sick of the risks of growing big fast, especially when you rely on outside financing that could dry up without warning. (Happened to 2 of the 4 startups)
Edit: Of course without outside funding, I'm currently 4 years away from that attempt. Which may seem like an eternity to some people.
Re: Poll HN: Are you more likely to apply to YC now that you could get $150K?
#9Where are the options for never wanting to apply before and continue to not want to apply now? "Other" option doesn't fit.
Why doesn't other fit? How can there be anything that isn't covered by other?
Re: Poll HN: Are you more likely to apply to YC now that you could get $150K?
#10Personally I'm less likely to apply to YC now - if there's one thing I hate it's giant heaps of money.
150k is anything but heaps of money.