One thing that made YC great was that it was started to allow the original 4 partners to learn how to be investors. The first batch wasn't intended to be profitable, it was intended to reveal what works and what doesn't. (Luckily for YC it got a lot right by accident). Sure YC could go back to small batches and small investments but they can't go back to "let's figure things out with only rough theory as a guide" because YC is no longer the startup born out of ignorance and curiosity it once was. You can't forget lessons learned and dial back your sophistication. The magic of early YC isn't lost forever but it will be refound among the next group of rich people who are willing to spend a bit to figure out if this investing thing is to their taste.
Y Combinator has lost its soul: A YC founder's perspective
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Re: Y Combinator has lost its soul: A YC founder's perspective
#22The idea that check sizes should be small so people should be forced into dire financial situations is a terrible one, and one that would absolutely hurt diversity. You're going to end up with a bunch of rich white dudes as founders (because very, very obviously the other way that people can afford to take smaller checks is if they have a lot of money in the bank). The smaller class size issue is probably fair, but r…
They are doubling down on what works. I'd be very interested to learn if Ycombinator has diversity and inclusion as a value and if they discussed what smaller checks might mean on D&I.
It's interesting how the best incubator found that smaller checks out of the gate is beneficial, but you can raise a 30-50 million series B and founders can take a few million off the table, which is also good, so they can go long.
Re: Y Combinator has lost its soul: A YC founder's perspective
#23The idea that check sizes should be small so people should be forced into dire financial situations is a terrible one, and one that would absolutely hurt diversity. You're going to end up with a bunch of rich white dudes as founders (because very, very obviously the other way that people can afford to take smaller checks is if they have a lot of money in the bank). The smaller class size issue is probably fair, but r…
The solution may be wrong, but the idea is right. If people can just casually come into YC with no particular consequences for failure, that greatly reduced drive to succeed. "I'll just go back to FAMGAN after" or "I'll be able to transition from MBA grad + YC to something high paying" I don't think is great for success drive.
you can be motivated without going hungry. not being able to afford basic things is extremely stressful and takes time away from doing whatever YC wants them to do - that time is spent making sure that food is on the table. exactly the opposite of what you intend.
Re: Y Combinator has lost its soul: A YC founder's perspective
#24Earlier quoted context omitted.
Get-rich-quick grifters, would be my guess.
Possibly that these smart young people view everything like highschool. Everything is a formula driven contest to outshine your peers for the limited spots at prestigious schools. Get the perfect grades, study nonstop for the SAT, find the perfect volunteer experience, get dad to shmooze with his senator friend for that shiny recommendation letter, get into Harvard. Same thing on loop. After the prestigious internshi…
That’s a good insight. The problem, though, is that this pattern kinda works (until it doesn’t). Get your FAANG job at 21, follow the pattern to get promoted, get promoted, make more money, compete to buy a nice house, get married, have kids, compete to get your kid into the “best” preschool, then the “best” private school. Compete to get into the “best country club”, then retire and...play golf all day?
Re: Y Combinator has lost its soul: A YC founder's perspective
#25The idea that check sizes should be small so people should be forced into dire financial situations is a terrible one, and one that would absolutely hurt diversity. You're going to end up with a bunch of rich white dudes as founders (because very, very obviously the other way that people can afford to take smaller checks is if they have a lot of money in the bank). The smaller class size issue is probably fair, but r…
It also doesn't make any sense from an investment perspective. Reddit would have been one of the most successful YC companies of all time, except for that they basically had to shut down because they couldn't raise money. This happened to lots of early YC companies that could have otherwise been successful.
Had Reddit not sold for pennies on the dollar to Conde Nast, that alone would have probably paid for the extra 100k for every YC startup since.
Re: Y Combinator has lost its soul: A YC founder's perspective
#26The idea that check sizes should be small so people should be forced into dire financial situations is a terrible one, and one that would absolutely hurt diversity. You're going to end up with a bunch of rich white dudes as founders (because very, very obviously the other way that people can afford to take smaller checks is if they have a lot of money in the bank). The smaller class size issue is probably fair, but r…
Yeah I noped out of this as soon as I saw it. The guy is suggesting investing in startup founders but not giving them enough to live while they get that company off the ground. What is the point of that? Completely self-defeating.
It is not YC’s job to support the company. That is the founders job. I’d suggest money supporting the company at seed diverts from a focus on monetary fit asap. $25k is enough to scrap by for enough months which should be the initial goal
Re: Y Combinator has lost its soul: A YC founder's perspective
#27Earlier quoted context omitted.
The solution may be wrong, but the idea is right. If people can just casually come into YC with no particular consequences for failure, that greatly reduced drive to succeed. "I'll just go back to FAMGAN after" or "I'll be able to transition from MBA grad + YC to something high paying" I don't think is great for success drive.
you can be motivated without going hungry. not being able to afford basic things is extremely stressful and takes time away from doing whatever YC wants them to do - that time is spent making sure that food is on the table. exactly the opposite of what you intend.
Well said, I don't believe it is beneficial increase a person's anxiety to extreme levels just because some people think that makes them work harder.
Re: Y Combinator has lost its soul: A YC founder's perspective
#28What exactly does he mean by "tech climber"?
Get-rich-quick grifters, would be my guess.
I don’t think it necessarily has to be negative (which being a grifter implies). I think there are just some people who think of life as a game where you need to collect as many badges of “honor” as possible. Undergrad degree, business school, graduate degree, incubator, spouse, zip code, country club, etc.
Re: Y Combinator has lost its soul: A YC founder's perspective
#29Earlier quoted context omitted.
The solution may be wrong, but the idea is right. If people can just casually come into YC with no particular consequences for failure, that greatly reduced drive to succeed. "I'll just go back to FAMGAN after" or "I'll be able to transition from MBA grad + YC to something high paying" I don't think is great for success drive.
you can be motivated without going hungry. not being able to afford basic things is extremely stressful and takes time away from doing whatever YC wants them to do - that time is spent making sure that food is on the table. exactly the opposite of what you intend.
Yes - but this is what every company does at founding. Get really lean, survive on whatever it can. Founders should expect company building to be a nervous and anxiety inducing endeavor for 7 years. It is incredibly painful - and not for those who see it closer to a paid sabbatical
Re: Y Combinator has lost its soul: A YC founder's perspective
#30He lost me with the whole "make founders take on massive personal debt to survive" tweet. Removing that particular stressor, particularly from people from poorer backgrounds who lack the access to that kind of credit is how we get a better sampling of ideas.
Yeah, he calls it a "filtering function"... yes, to filter out people without safety nets.