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YC Fellowship

blog.ycombinator.com

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211–220 of 399 posts

Re: YC Fellowship

#211

Post by hna0002 »

omouse wrote: post #115

Definitely will be applying to this; I was going to apply for the regular funding cycle as well (still will apply because I want a few more months of my own time to work on an idea). Glad to see YC experimenting with new ideas :D

I am in a similar boat, I need some time to work on my project and introspect on the actual product before I can even think about growth not to mentioned growth on steroids is months/a year away. I was targeting for YC16 or later, but I still applied thinking YC community may help with the feedback and vendors (its a hardware project/startup), and overall pointing me in the correct direction.

Re: YC Fellowship

#212

Post by chaostheory »

wiseleo wrote: post #180
bicknergseng wrote: post #172

Earlier quoted context omitted.

http://www.sfchronicle.com/business/networth/article/Average... 12k is a small sum of money in SF. Assuming the founders don't want to live together in a studio, looking at >5k month in just rent. Other costs of living are also high. This leaves almost nothing for any actual start up costs. Makes some sense if you're 22 and have no dependents, but 12k wouldn't be persuasive for a Bay Area founder with a family.

There is plenty of less expensive real estate along BART. Take a look at San Leandro, for example. Other costs can be reduced as well. I consider living in SF as an unnecessary luxury.

Yes there's Fremont, Hayward, Oakland, South SF, Daly City, and even more as well. Renting a room instead of an apartment helps a lot. It's $600-800 with utilities.

Re: YC Fellowship

#213

Post by mattkrisiloff »

adamwintle wrote: post #154
drsim wrote: post #110

I started my first business (web design) at 15 with a £1,000 grant from The Prince's Scottish Youth Business Trust. It was a very significant amount for me. Without it I wouldn't have been able to start. My family were on income support so the money went straight on a PC, internet, phone line, business cards and public transport to reach my clients to pitch them. Thankfully I still lived with my parents: no rent unti…

I find this an interesting point to bring up. My family were also on income support when I was younger, and I also applied for the Youth Opportunity Funding grant in the UK and was awarded £1,250. Similar to drsim I intended to start my own media business using the money, so I purchased a cheap PC, a camera, business cards, etc In order to apply for the money I had to go through what was quite a lengthy process, whic…

No. You're completely free to do with the money what you want, we just try you'll focus on your company.

And yes! You can apply from anywhere (and no need to move here for this program if you want to stay remote, though we still encourage that you do).

Re: YC Fellowship

#214

Post by mattkrisiloff »

qjs wrote: post #197
mattkrisiloff wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hi! Matt here -- I'll be managing YC Fellowship. I'll be answering questions here throughout the day alongside Kat and Sam.

Hi! I am a grad student working on a purely research based concept that I feel could make a good start to a company. However, I'm fully committed to the research at the university for the next year. The YCF would be used to get this project from just a thesis to an applicable concept. Would this be a good start to what YC is looking for?

It would, but not until you're ready to work on it full-time. We're not sure yet whether we'll offer YCF again (will depend how it goes), but if we do in the future it could be a good fit.

Re: YC Fellowship

#215

Post by mattkrisiloff »

zy1t wrote: post #188
katm wrote: post #2

Kat from YC here. Sam, Matt Krisiloff and I are happy to answer any questions about the Fellowship. You can also send questions to fellowship@ycombinator.com.

Hey Kat, thanks for taking questions. I noticed you said the main aim of the program is to build a prototype or acquire a first customer. Our company is still working on our prototype, but we just got our first 3 paying beta customers last week. Is that a bit too late stage?

Probably not -- that still sounds pretty early. Apply!

Re: YC Fellowship

#216

Post by mattkrisiloff »

bozoUser wrote: post #191

Hi Mat and Kat, thanks for this wonderful initiative. Two qs. 1) This line: "We’ll encourage but not require that Fellows later apply to Y Combinator." Will this lead to YC fellowship being a pre-req to get into YC in the future years? 2) Will this garner similar scrutiny of getting into YC? if not can you share a few major differences in the selection criteria?

1) Definitely not -- they're separate programs

2) It's still going to be pretty competitive, but it's primarily for earlier stage teams (idea and prototype). YC is for companies of all stages (idea to fast growth).

Re: YC Fellowship

#217

Post by mattkrisiloff »

ryanSrich wrote: post #78

Wow. I am super impressed that this is being allowed remotely. I really hope this is foreshadowing a shift in being more supportive of remote teams for the larger YC program.

It's an experiment we're eager to try with this. We'll have to see how it goes!

Re: YC Fellowship

#218

Post by usernames_suck »

This is a great idea. I would apply, as I'm actually planning on launching in the coming weeks, but I'm a solo guy. I'm also going back to college next month; which necessarily isn't a bad thing, as my startup is aimed towards college kids.

Re: YC Fellowship

#219

Post by bengali3 »

larrys wrote: post #24

12k gets them first dibs on an individual and/or a team ... a smart idea. Essentially a variation of Cialdini's "reciprocity" principle (among others..) http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/six-principles-influe... People are free to do whatever they want with the grant and not go any further with YC but it's obvious that the good will and grant will cause a large percentage of them to not do that.

I love Cialdini, thanks for linking. I recommend his book on Influence to everyone.

I did think about this reciprocity initially when I heard no equity involved, however I don't think YC & Co's problem is getting startups to agree take their money after mentoring? Their issue is likely getting enough investment opportunities to put cash into as fast as they can raise it. ( ie-pretty fast ). For that they need a bigger opportunity pipeline.

So, i basically agree that they are getting first dibs, but due little to Cialdini's rule on reciprocity. I'd point more towards 'Liking' (ie building the trust early) or 'Authority' since they are getting in the door first with founders and are likely the initial startup mentor.

What I see, is that this program is just a simple (relative) way to ignite some ideas that are on the cusp of being implemented, remove some of the founding barriers, and start a conversation with their team earlier on in the process (no one wants to be the third on the list to call to invest in a great co.). The standard YC class schedule and size limitations are likely the gating factors to their growth, especially when interest in 'startup investing' isn't declining, and YC has already made moves to make it easier for non-accredited investors to invest.

Maybe this is in line with what you were referring to.

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