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Is Y Combinator worth the money?

news.ycombinator.com

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Re: Is Y Combinator worth the money?

#271

Post by joshxyz »

dang wrote: post #144

It's true that YC will tell you over and over to (1) work on your product and (2) talk to users. Those are the "make" and "people" in "make something people want". If you want to focus on marketing tricks / media hype / "content" / that kind of thing, you're going to hear the above repeatedly, since those are neither (1) nor (2). For my part this reflects well on YC. In fact it's a little reassuring to hear that this…

this to me is very appealing. while i dont know if ill get into this upcoming batch, all i know is i can just keep watching and reading yc's free content and i know i'll still be on the right track.

most of it is boring and repetitive, but effective.

Re: Is Y Combinator worth the money?

#272

Post by rvba »

Thought experiment: if you had a successfull bootstrapped company that didnt need external financing.. how much would it cost to get Y combinator advice?

Basically how much should you pay to get their package?

They have 200 companies with 125k investment? So 25 per year?

Would they offer their "service" for 100k usd?

Re: Is Y Combinator worth the money?

#273

Post by iab »

itsoktocry wrote: post #36
hassy wrote: post #25

Did YC S21 which was an all remote batch. my 2c. YC is 100% what you make of it. It's not a lean back experience. I did not meet most of the companies in my batch but I've gotten to know many founders through YC that I would not have otherwise. Founders that have been source of advice and support. Network of clients - yep don't go into YC expecting to sell to other YC cos. It is easier to get warm intros through the…

> Some of the advice I did not take and did the opposite and it was the right decision. And some advice that I did not take was exactly right, but I only saw it in retrospect months later. Sometimes their advice is right, and sometimes it's wrong? That doesn't sound particularly valuable. > Fundraising - being a YC company definitely opens doors, and also helps protects you from bad actors who have to think twice bef…

This is the nature of all advice. If there was a surefire playbook to do X and get Y result, then everyone would do it surely?

Re: Is Y Combinator worth the money?

#274

Post by rvnx »

alexashka wrote: post #162
rvnx wrote: post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

According to the contract, in exchange of 375K USD (+/- salary for 1.5 developer) you agree to this when you sign the MFN: == If the Company issues any Subsequent Convertible Securities with terms more favorable than those of this Safe (including, without limitation, a valuation cap and/or discount) prior to termination of this Safe, the Company will promptly provide YCombinator with written notice thereof, together…

Can someone explain this like I'm 5? What does this mean in practice?

Imagine you have a toy store, and you want to make it bigger and better.

To do that, you need more money, so you ask your friend YCombinator to help you.

In return, you promise to give them a special kind of toy money that you created (like monopoly money) that they can trade for real toys later when your store becomes bigger and better.

But for now, there are no real toys to exchange yet because the shop is still small and not opened yet.

Now, if you ask other friends for help and give them even better toy money (with better chances to get more toys), you need to tell YCombinator about it.

If YCombinator thinks the new toy money is better, they can ask you to change the toy money you gave them earlier to match the better one.

You have to do this quickly after YCombinator tells you they want the better toy money.

Re: Is Y Combinator worth the money?

#275

Post by acecreamu »

jimnotgym wrote: post #267

Doesn't this miss the point. If you need 150k to start your company it is difficult to find other options. You have a booking dollar idea, the drive and knowledge to set it through, but no cash. You need an early stage investor. What you are paying for is the massive risk that they are tipping that money down the drain. The other stuff is just value-add

The uncomfortable truth is that YC is a highly competitive program, the best teams invest a lot into preparation to get there. If you have nothing and need 150k to start your company, than you have better ways to find it, than the most prestigious accelerator in the world.

Re: Is Y Combinator worth the money?

#276

Post by acecreamu »

gist wrote: post #109
xwdv wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It’s not like an Ivy League, it’s more like joining a frat, but for startups. Except, it used to be more fun, when all companies worked at the same location and you could bump into people in halls and then go do keg stands after work or sleep on couches, etc. Now it’s just remote webinar garbage, talk to some people on Zoom, etc.

> It’s not like an Ivy League The Ivy League is talked about and well known all over and public knowledge your neighbor your aunt, your wife, your mother, the guy who owns the local bakery etc. It's an international brand. YC known in the startup community. Most likely the guy who runs the local 200 person wholesale operation wouldn't even know about it unless he read about it in the WSJ he reads print edition. Go to…

double that, most of the people in the e-commmerce don't have any idea what is YC

Re: Is Y Combinator worth the money?

#277

Post by 77pt77 »

hassy wrote: post #25

Did YC S21 which was an all remote batch. my 2c. YC is 100% what you make of it. It's not a lean back experience. I did not meet most of the companies in my batch but I've gotten to know many founders through YC that I would not have otherwise. Founders that have been source of advice and support. Network of clients - yep don't go into YC expecting to sell to other YC cos. It is easier to get warm intros through the…

>helps protects you from bad actors who have to think twice before fucking with a YC co

Probably the best thing they get out of this.

Re: Is Y Combinator worth the money?

#278

Post by gamblor956 »

satvikpendem wrote: post #257
gamblor956 wrote: post #101

At least from the perspective of a potential customer, I now view Y Combinator as a red flag for a service provider, for a variety of reasons. The two big ones: YC companies try to "grow" too fast without any concern to the dynamics of how their market is supposed to work after they've achieved their targeted scale. The basic playbook seems to be: give stuff away for free until you kill the incumbents, then jack up p…

I don't see how this is specific to YC and not to other VCs too, unless you do mean to include other VCs too in your viewpoint.

YC at one point went out of its way to encourage regulatory arbitrage as a viable business plan.

It's great for investors, it sucks for everyone else, and it's a huge part of why tech is so hated right now.

Re: Is Y Combinator worth the money?

#279

Post by acecreamu »

satvikpendem wrote: post #264
acecreamu wrote: post #263

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The dilution at that point would be unbearable

I saw your other comment, makes sense. Are you working on a new startup then?

Yes sir, slise.xyz - new market, new team, much larger and more painful problem to tackle. Lessons learned.

Re: Is Y Combinator worth the money?

#280

Post by acecreamu »

jongjong wrote: post #256
trevmckendrick wrote: post #251

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can I please recommend w/ no ill intent that you take news courses of action if you've unable to achieve raising a relatively low amount of capital after 10 year?

I already met many investors and millionaire founders. I even met 2 founders who are now billionaires and many others who went on to become multimillionaires. Nowadays most of them won't even answer my emails. One of the founders I met before they were successful (and who sold their startup for millions) won't even give me a $2000 per year support contract though they continue to use my open source project and ask me…

Don't try to blame others, see what works for you and where you can improve. Some people can make other run for them and send donations without even trying. It's not about them or cruel word. Your problems are about you, and you need to either solve them or to switch to something that works for you, or you will be suffering the rest of life.
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