Bias against older people?

I think all my life I've been trying to figure out what I love to do and even though I liked technology, I was never convinced that I loved it. Now I'm 32, but my resume is w/o any startup experience/personal ventures. At the same time, I strongly feel like I want to start a start-up (yes, I'm aware that many fail and that I have to support my wife).

Assuming I come up with a convincing idea/prototype and a co-founder, what are my chances of getting funding from Y Combinator? Will there be a bias against me because:

(negatives) 1. I'm 32 2. My experience is no start-up experience 3. My experience has mostly been in enterprise s/w, which according to PG is not software :)

(positives) 1. Determined 2. Reasonably smart :) 3. Willing to risk my career/lifestyle

I would love to get Y Combinator funding because, it will give me the connections and credibility I need for VC funding.

I know that eventually it depends all on my idea/prototype/team, but I'd love to hear your thoughts. Startup school did nothing but deepened my fear that 30s are not so welcome. At least not the ones who haven't done anything significant in their lives before.

Is it too late guys?

You shouldn't be asking. Suppose YC had an official "don't trust nobody over 30" policy. Would that stop you?

Build it on the nights and weekends. If you need to keep your day job, do so. If you've never run a business before, start at least a small one. You don't have to go whole hog in a bet the farm type situation... if your wife stays at home, a small home base business might just be the ticket (software or not...) The reason I advise this is a business, any business, will put you thru the business school of hard knocks... and it might be easier to learn those lessons on a venture that has a lower risk of failure rate.

Despite the admonition against single founder businesses, there's nothing to stop you from building something on your own. Don't wait for a co founder to show up (or build the lower risk business while you're waiting.)

I think finding a cofounder is like finding a wife- you can't order one thru the mail.

Your deterimination is a bigger factor than any of the pluses or negative you listed (well, and you can program.)

For what its worth, I'm 38, have been working for startups since 1991, started my first company (and online service that was also a franchise) in 1994, and sold it in 1997. That was my MBA. And for a programmer, dealmaking may seem weird or too "social"... but doing it helps you develop a taste for it, and doing it in any form makes it easier.

So you absolutely, positively should start a business, any business. I think you might be too late for YC this summer, so finish the year with a working prototype of a product... I'm sure that helps in your application for the next round of YC. But if not that, start something.

Gee, hope not. It's 4:13 am and I'm just finishing up for the day. I'm 45 and my team is applying. I've worked for a ton of startups and have started a couple of my own. Both my parents had great capacity to outlast their age-peers and function without sleep, so I think there's a genetic aspect to this ability. I don't believe that the ability to stay up late should be the main criterion for choosing worthy startup material. It's a marathon, not a sprint.

Point about cell regeneration is interesting. Do you recall the age group in question?