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"Iseman says his departure was purely about his desire to get back into the founder's role and build something new. He's already been accepted into the winter 2

"Iseman says his departure was purely about his desire to get back into the founder's role and build something new. He's already been accepted into the winter 2017 YC cohort with his new housing startup." Doesn't sound very acrimonious.

Cyph0n 10y ago
Isn't that the definition of a conflict of interest? Or am I reading this wrong?
- deleted 10y ago
  [deleted]
- hawkice 10y ago
  An allegation that there is favoritism among the closed off society of YC elites? I'm astonished, astonished, I say!
  - mej10 10y ago
    Favoritism? It is a lot easier to vet someone you have worked with extensively, or if someone you trust gives a recommendation. It isn't like there is some secret society -- it is simply the way the world works. Those are extra bits of information that go into the equation and they happen to count for a lot. I don't really see a problem with it. Why wouldn't they give extra weight to those bits of information? Also, this happens all of the time with positions across the board in startups/companies. If I am a senior engineer somewhere, and we are hiring and the company thinks I have good judgement... of course they are going to take my recommendations of candidates more seriously than someone off the street.
- Mango_Diesel 10y ago
  What is the conflict of interest? Being a partner at YC is certainly a unique qualifier that would basically guarantee acceptance. There is nothing wrong with that. It is awesome, in fact.
  - Cyph0n 10y ago
    Well, it could also mean that someone else who isn't a YC partner was rejected to let him in. Of course, I don't know whether or not that is the case, but this is where a conflict of interest could potentially arise from.
    - the_watcher 10y ago
      He was a YC partner. He no longer is. And there's a difference between an equity partner and other types of partners. But again, YC is incentivized to let in companies they believe will deliver the most total value to the YC portfolio, so admitting Luke at the expense of another founder who was better qualified is directly contrary to their interests. Also, the YC batch sizes aren't fixed, and they have wiggle room. To avoid the conflict, they could just admit one additional startup who would have otherwise been cut.
      - Cyph0n 10y ago
        That would make sense. Again, I'm not familiar with how the YC selection process works, so it's just speculation. But it still seems kind of strange to be honest.
    - gus_massa 10y ago
      IIRC the exact number of startup that are founded is not fixed, they have some approximate idea but they found whatever they think is promising enough. So they didn't fill an slot in a fixed amount of startups.
    - justin 10y ago
      We don't fund a fixed number of startups.
    - ryporter 10y ago
      You are alleging bias, not a conflict of interest. YC accepted into their program as a founder someone who was a partner. Does that really sound like bias to you? If a former professor at a university applied to be a grad student, would you accuse the university of a conflict of interest?
- samstave 10y ago
  Well, at this level, no not really... However, you could make a stretch connection between this and Dick Cheney if you were trying: 1. take a job that allows you to setup infra and policy for a certain type of relationship 2. foster the field for companies to take advantage of said infra and policies 3. leave to work at company to benefit from said setup... I doubt thats what is going on here - but it has precedence in politics quite often.
- the_watcher 10y ago
  Why? YC partners go on to start companies. And it's not uncommon for a founder to raise money from a VC firm they worked at in the past.
  - jklinger410 10y ago
    Ycombinator insists that being part of their in-crowd does not warrant special treatment. It would have been more appropriate to find funding elsewhere.
    - the_watcher 10y ago
      No, it wouldn't. It's exceedingly common for companies to raise money from places that have invested in the founder before. What YC's policy is saying is that you do not get a bonus over a better qualified founder by being in the YC network. Again, the incentives for YC align with choosing the best investments. What does YC get by inappropriately giving someone money who doesn't deserve it? Nothing.
- pavlov 10y ago
  YC is a private corporation, they can fund anyone they want. It's not like a public office. The mistake you're making is similar to the one where right-wing conspiracy theorists argue that getting censored by Twitter is a First Amendment violation. It isn't because Twitter is not part of the government.
  - saghm 10y ago
    Not saying you're wrong about this specific case, but I don't think the term "conflict of interest" is exclusive to the government. For (a somewhat vague) example, if I recommended my friend to a position at the company I worked for, "conflict of interest" would be an accurate descriptor for me being the one who interviews him for the position.
- mej10 10y ago
  How is it a conflict of interest? They are all interested in making money... It isn't like he was a public official and decided he was going to give himself tax money. It is also a private company and can do what it wants in this regard.
- huangc10 10y ago
  Sounds more to me like an agreement of interest ;-)
nerfhammer 10y ago
The headline is clickbait, you say?
danieltillett 10y ago
I am more surprised that he wanted to go through YC. I can understand the appeal of YC for the inexperienced and unconnected, but this is like Sam or Jessica deciding to start a new startup and then joining a YC cohort. Edit. Anyone want to explain why he would want to be part of YC? What can he possibly get out of YC for the equity expended?

Cyph0n 10y ago

Isn't that the definition of a conflict of interest? Or am I reading this wrong?

deleted 10y ago
[deleted]
hawkice 10y ago
An allegation that there is favoritism among the closed off society of YC elites? I'm astonished, astonished, I say!
- mej10 10y ago
  Favoritism? It is a lot easier to vet someone you have worked with extensively, or if someone you trust gives a recommendation. It isn't like there is some secret society -- it is simply the way the world works. Those are extra bits of information that go into the equation and they happen to count for a lot. I don't really see a problem with it. Why wouldn't they give extra weight to those bits of information? Also, this happens all of the time with positions across the board in startups/companies. If I am a senior engineer somewhere, and we are hiring and the company thinks I have good judgement... of course they are going to take my recommendations of candidates more seriously than someone off the street.
Mango_Diesel 10y ago
What is the conflict of interest? Being a partner at YC is certainly a unique qualifier that would basically guarantee acceptance. There is nothing wrong with that. It is awesome, in fact.
- Cyph0n 10y ago
  Well, it could also mean that someone else who isn't a YC partner was rejected to let him in. Of course, I don't know whether or not that is the case, but this is where a conflict of interest could potentially arise from.
  - the_watcher 10y ago
    He was a YC partner. He no longer is. And there's a difference between an equity partner and other types of partners. But again, YC is incentivized to let in companies they believe will deliver the most total value to the YC portfolio, so admitting Luke at the expense of another founder who was better qualified is directly contrary to their interests. Also, the YC batch sizes aren't fixed, and they have wiggle room. To avoid the conflict, they could just admit one additional startup who would have otherwise been cut.
    - Cyph0n 10y ago
      That would make sense. Again, I'm not familiar with how the YC selection process works, so it's just speculation. But it still seems kind of strange to be honest.
  - gus_massa 10y ago
    IIRC the exact number of startup that are founded is not fixed, they have some approximate idea but they found whatever they think is promising enough. So they didn't fill an slot in a fixed amount of startups.
  - justin 10y ago
    We don't fund a fixed number of startups.
  - ryporter 10y ago
    You are alleging bias, not a conflict of interest. YC accepted into their program as a founder someone who was a partner. Does that really sound like bias to you? If a former professor at a university applied to be a grad student, would you accuse the university of a conflict of interest?
samstave 10y ago
Well, at this level, no not really... However, you could make a stretch connection between this and Dick Cheney if you were trying: 1. take a job that allows you to setup infra and policy for a certain type of relationship 2. foster the field for companies to take advantage of said infra and policies 3. leave to work at company to benefit from said setup... I doubt thats what is going on here - but it has precedence in politics quite often.
the_watcher 10y ago
Why? YC partners go on to start companies. And it's not uncommon for a founder to raise money from a VC firm they worked at in the past.
- jklinger410 10y ago
  Ycombinator insists that being part of their in-crowd does not warrant special treatment. It would have been more appropriate to find funding elsewhere.
  - the_watcher 10y ago
    No, it wouldn't. It's exceedingly common for companies to raise money from places that have invested in the founder before. What YC's policy is saying is that you do not get a bonus over a better qualified founder by being in the YC network. Again, the incentives for YC align with choosing the best investments. What does YC get by inappropriately giving someone money who doesn't deserve it? Nothing.
pavlov 10y ago
YC is a private corporation, they can fund anyone they want. It's not like a public office. The mistake you're making is similar to the one where right-wing conspiracy theorists argue that getting censored by Twitter is a First Amendment violation. It isn't because Twitter is not part of the government.
- saghm 10y ago
  Not saying you're wrong about this specific case, but I don't think the term "conflict of interest" is exclusive to the government. For (a somewhat vague) example, if I recommended my friend to a position at the company I worked for, "conflict of interest" would be an accurate descriptor for me being the one who interviews him for the position.
mej10 10y ago
How is it a conflict of interest? They are all interested in making money... It isn't like he was a public official and decided he was going to give himself tax money. It is also a private company and can do what it wants in this regard.
huangc10 10y ago
Sounds more to me like an agreement of interest ;-)

nerfhammer 10y ago

The headline is clickbait, you say?

danieltillett 10y ago

I am more surprised that he wanted to go through YC. I can understand the appeal of YC for the inexperienced and unconnected, but this is like Sam or Jessica deciding to start a new startup and then joining a YC cohort. Edit. Anyone want to explain why he would want to be part of YC? What can he possibly get out of YC for the equity expended?