I guess everyone Garry has blocked on Twitter will not be applying to YC any time soon :)
What's the story here, did this happen a lot or something?
Welcome Home, Garry Tan
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Re: Welcome Home, Garry Tan
#52Re: Welcome Home, Garry Tan
#53Believe it or not, my journey to Y Combinator started similar to how you may experience YC — through being a regular lurker and reader on Hacker News. I went to Startup School, me and my cofounders applied, we got an interview, and we got in. I was an engineer, designer and PM. I'd built teams and products, but I'd never built a company. YC gave me a shot, a community, knowhow, and the ability to access capital, tale…
Congrats Garry! So well deserved. I feel so lucky to have had your help as a group partner when we went through W13 as Errplane (hah, good thing we figured out something to pivot to).
YC changed my life too and I can't imagine it in better or more capable hands.
Re: Welcome Home, Garry Tan
#54Congratulations, Garry! Huge fan of your work, especially the high-value YouTube material.
One question: what does this mean for Initialized Capital?
Re: Welcome Home, Garry Tan
#55[deleted]
Re: Welcome Home, Garry Tan
#56While I acknowledge business as a driving force behind tech, I think if you want to "change the world" all you really have to do is provide solid financial support to open source tech since that is where most of the "For profit" inspiration is coming from anyway.
Re: Welcome Home, Garry Tan
#57When I was in YC Garry showed me how to be a founder. After YC Garry showed me how to be a more compassionate human to myself and others. I'd recommend everyone check out the inner work Garry has also achieved beyond his external achievements.
Congrats Garry!
Re: Welcome Home, Garry Tan
#58What a great appointment!
I've had one brief interaction with Gary a long time ago, and he's been a role model ever since
I had a difference in opinion with my cofounder and wanted to leave the startup we'd founded, even if it meant leaving the YC program (which I adored), and would likely lose my visa to stay in the US. Seeing how distressed I was, Gary took me aside somehow simultaneously made me feel heard, but also told me that it's up to me to come back stronger from this moment.
It made all the difference to me, and I've thought back to that moment many times in the years to come.
Re: Welcome Home, Garry Tan
#59(Throwaway because it’s a small world)
This is disappointing.
YC needs a fresh perspective. Recycling older members is not a positive sign for continued innovation. I wouldn’t point to “HODL diamond hands” crypto hype (suddenly disappeared..) and personal brand-building content creation as the type of leadership YC needs at this stage.
Specifically in this, someone who has been running a large VC fund for the past half-decade with considerable inside deal access through YC. The conflicts of interest are sizable, and we can’t really pretend that they won’t compound now that Garry’s at the head of YC.
Lastly, to balance flood of positive reviews, there have been consistent (if quiet, again, small world) reports of pettiness and using power/influence against personal grudges. I have not worked with Garry directly, founder friends have and back channels are..not same as the public comments here. Everyone has weaknesses. This isn’t a good one for the position.
Re: Welcome Home, Garry Tan
#60“Garry Tan is a moral canary in a coal mine. When people hate on Garry Tan, they out themselves as either evil or stupid, because in fact Garry is as close to a 100% good guy as you get”. —Paul Graham https://twitter.com/paulg/status/1460931338131890180 ———— Congratulations Garry! Your blogs were my inspirations when I was running my startup. I always remember this line: “The ideal startup team involves really two ma…
I have no strong opinion of Tan, but calling a person who happily worked for (and profited from) Palantir a 'moral canary in a coal mine' seems a bit of a stretch.