39 ms·

YC Summer 2017 Invites/Rejections

92 points by sureshkumarsjv 9y ago

Has anyone received an invite/rejection email for the Summer 2017 batch yet?

syedabrar 9y ago
We haven't received an invite or rejection yet. (eagerly waiting). When will the invites/rejections be sent out anyway?
- sureshkumarsjv 9y ago
  It's mentioned in their website that they'll be sending the invitations by April 18,2017.
  - syedabrar 9y ago
    Yes but at what time? I think they send it out around afternoon or evening.
    - op2ed 9y ago
      Historically, in the evening.
      - railgun2space 9y ago
        Evening SF time?
GlennJoe 9y ago
It is 5:06 Am 18 April 2017
- sureshkumarsjv 9y ago
  It's 5.37 PM IST here in India :)
  - op2ed 9y ago
    Good point :), but I think they are likely working on Pacific time
  - Ashu_14 9y ago
    May i ask your email address?
demetriusg 9y ago
We haven't received anything either and we're on the east coast in U.S. We're guessing it will be very late tonight.
aayushjaiswal07 9y ago
Not yet.
sameerrj 9y ago
How many startups, do you guys think will get invited for interview this time?
- jainaayush05 9y ago
  ~450 Source: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13951136 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13951136
  - sameerrj 9y ago
    Edit: The whole comment was wrong, so I am removing it
    - ratneshray 9y ago
      you mean 5%? Btw what's the source for 10,000 applications?
      - sameerrj 9y ago
        You know what. Ignore whatever I wrote. I was watching match and don't know where I came up with the numbers, lol.
        cathyttrn 9y ago
        Last batch had around 7,000 applications-I found the number on Quora so 10,000 actually makes sense.
        sameerrj 9y ago
        Yeah, I remember someone projecting it to be 10,000 for this year but I can't find it now.
        Lordarminius 9y ago
romshark 9y ago
South Germany (9 hours ahead) - not yet so far... awaiting
rudob 9y ago
Denmark 18:00 right now and still nothing
- cathyttrn 9y ago
  It's almost mid-night from South East Asia - we're 14 hours ahead of SF. I think they won't be sent for another 6 hours.
manujbahl 9y ago
Congrats to all who received their invites. We are still waiting for a response.
- shatez 9y ago
  same...
- blhack 9y ago
  Still waiting too! Suspense is killing us!
- rachitgold 9y ago
  still waiting....
mconnolly 9y ago
Received an invite last year at 8:15 pm est so looks like we have around seven hours to go if we're judging by that.
- Lordarminius 9y ago
  >... we have around 7 hours to go.... ! Surely, they have made their decisions long ago. Why not just create a script to run at 00.00hrs and automatically send the results ? Can't speak for anyone else, but the waiting is killing me :)
  - mconnolly 9y ago
    Maybe..but I'd bet a fair number of final reviews take place today
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
BarbGrofe11 9y ago
No, I started searching at midnight.
koushikjay66 9y ago
did all the international founders were called for a pre-interview ?
- Lordarminius 9y ago
  second time I'm reading this. Where did this rumour originate?
- jeff97 9y ago
  Was this a video call? Our team isn't international but we had a video call scheduled a few days ago. We were also wondering what that signified, if anything.
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
  - tanu 9y ago
    same here. We are not international and we had a video call last week.
mrx500 9y ago
Didn't receive anything yet, South East Asia passed midnight here but only 11am in Mountain View.
- vikas_carnanny 9y ago
  whats the historic time they reply ?
  - albertomr3 9y ago
    In my experience they sent invites/rejections emails about 12AM UTC (global time gmt) which is 17h/5PM San Francisco local time
mohsenElgendy 9y ago
We haven't received anything yet as well. Egypt/Cairo is 9 hours ahead of Mountain View.
decharms 9y ago
Just got an invite for an interview. Great news! Can anyone swap interview slots who has one booked for the week of May 1, which is now full? I'm at TED for the prior week. Thanks...
- siddharthgdas 9y ago
  Congrats!
- smondal90 9y ago
  Congrats!
- amirkabbara 9y ago
  when's your interview? Did you already schedule it?
- mayowaolurin 9y ago
  Congrats! did you have a pre-interview before today?
alex_lubinsky 9y ago
Check your YC accounts...it changed.
- mlibazisi 9y ago
  Hey, not seeing any changes. What changed for you?
  - alex_lubinsky 9y ago
    It moved the application to "previous applications" and removed ability to "edit" founders profile and application
    - simon_acca 9y ago
      That happened just after the application deadline, I think.
  - alex_lubinsky 9y ago
    Do you have the same or is it just my account?
    - mlibazisi 9y ago
      The change for us happened the instant we submitted our application a few weeks ago.
      - mconnolly 9y ago
        Same for us
        wyg 9y ago
        same for us. The moment the deadline for the application was over, editing was disabled and it moved to previous aplications
- 9y ago
sontek 9y ago
Just got our invite! wooooo
- siddharthgdas 9y ago
  Awesome! Congrats!
mlibazisi 9y ago
This is the slowest day ever, lol
- suhailameen46 9y ago
  tell me about it :P
vikas_carnanny 9y ago
yes it is the slowest day ever. Havent received anything so far 12.14 AM India
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
flendeborg 9y ago
Guys - As I impatiently wait as well, I just want to say whatever happens today won't define your success. Whatever the outcome is, I want to encourage everyone to continue to build a great company.
- mtbeauchamp 9y ago
  Agree
- baironlondono 9y ago
  Going with an incubator should be one of the plans we must have, not the only one.
  - ajpikul 9y ago
    I feel like an incubator increases responsibilities and risks, and potential rewards, but some people see it as the "where they want to end up".
    - denissevera 9y ago
      I'm fully agree!
- abovechange 9y ago
  Totally agree
- katm 9y ago
  Well said.
baironlondono 9y ago
I will make my company the most successful with YC or without YC, you decide YC :D
- Lordarminius 9y ago
  I agree with you. I've come a long way in my entrepreneurial journey, and one thing I've come to realize is that elements like YC are just factors for success. They are nice to have but ultimately won't determine the fate of my plan. It was a milestone in my personal development to reach this insight and very liberating.
suhailameen46 9y ago
I wonder how many international companies are getting invites for the interview!
- wyg 9y ago
  Don't know how many but this one from Colombia will..........:-)))
  - AndresSRG 9y ago
    We are from Medellin and are also waiting :) Which city are you at?
- hlena1988 9y ago
  We are in South Africa/Lesotho and so keen to be part of YC
wyg 9y ago
For some reason i thought answers would be given yesterday. So this is the 2nd day I'm biting my nails (not much left from yesterday)
- mlibazisi 9y ago
  lol
  - wyg 9y ago
    If we don't get called for the interview at least I saved on the manicure...:-)
- cathyttrn 9y ago
  You're hilarious!
- sameerrj 9y ago
  Similar story here. Due to the time difference, 18th has come and gone for me and even though I knew it's not gonna come, I was still anxious the whole day.
wyg 9y ago
For some reason i thought answers would be given yesterday. So this is the 2nd day I'm biting my nails (not much left from yesterday)
lloydYC 9y ago
They should be responding to everyone by evening today. Till then have your lunch, breathe, work on your product and check your emails later this evening. :)
blhack 9y ago
Sounds like the emails come in later this evening. That's not going to stop me checking my email every 5 seconds until then. Anybody else in Phoenix? My cofounder and I are going to hang out and get some beers/lunch together while we try to wear out the refresh buttons on our laptops if anybody wants to join us.
- bridget2185 9y ago
  Not in Phoenix but this made me lol.
pedramsheraf 9y ago
I'm pacing and my dog is just staring at me
nurkhz 9y ago
time is not ticking at all.
krishnanvs 9y ago
Just got the invite! Best of luck guys!!
- GlennJoe 9y ago
  Congrats
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- hlena1988 9y ago
  congrats!!!
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- itay-clippy 9y ago
  Mind if i asked when you applied?
- justengw 9y ago
  congratulations!
- bridget2185 9y ago
  Heck yeah! Celebrating for you down here in San Diego!
- acurti 9y ago
  Congrats!!
GlennJoe 9y ago
It is 1200 noon in Mountain view. No email yet.
romshark 9y ago
Live conversation just started, everyone's invited! https://t.me/yc_summer_2017 https://t.me/yc_summer_2017
ilolis 9y ago
Am I the only one who checks the emails every 1 minute?
Yug04 9y ago
Got invite just now, they started sending invites. From india.
- GlennJoe 9y ago
  Congrats
- flendeborg 9y ago
  Congrats! Go and kill it at the interview.
- ilolis 9y ago
  Congratulations good job!!
  - Yug04 9y ago
    Thanks :)
- m7 9y ago
  congrats!
- anorsich 9y ago
  Well done! Time to prepare for an interview :)
  - Yug04 9y ago
    Thanks :)
- itay-clippy 9y ago
  When did you send the application?
  - Yug04 9y ago
    Feb 1
- 9y ago
romshark 9y ago
live conversation: https://t.me/yc_summer_2017 https://t.me/yc_summer_2017 for all those who click the button every single minute :D
- dang 9y ago
  We detached this comment from https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14142444 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14142444 and marked it off-topic.
yoloceo 9y ago
So when do we get the rejections? so we can move on.
DonaldMcRonald 9y ago
Slowest day of my life
instadeal 9y ago
This is my third application with the same company. We got investors and launched our product since the first time we applied. Even though it would be amazing being selected, life will continue even though YCOMBINATOR rejects your idea. ;) Keep building an awesome product! Good Luck to everyone.
- newera2016 9y ago
  Same with me. I build a startup and submitted the ideas for a couple of times but YC continued rejecting us. Even though the first time we got interview request but weren't selected. I pursued and raised funding in multiple rounds. So life continues. Now in 3 years, we dominate the car rental market in ride sharing. Keep building :)
GlennJoe 9y ago
Appears they are starting to send invites based on date of applications.
romshark 9y ago
Share your thoughs with us, even if you were rejected! https://t.me/yc_summer_2017 https://t.me/yc_summer_2017
- dang 9y ago
  We detached this comment from https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14142628 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14142628 and marked it off-topic.
nurkhz 9y ago
got an invite now. happy to get it. still cant believe btw! :) time to prepare.
- msmoll91 9y ago
  Way to go! Congratulations!
  - nurkhz 9y ago
    thanks! :))
- Cenk 9y ago
  Tebrikler!
  - nurkhz 9y ago
    tesekkurler! thanks!
- dsandeepd 9y ago
  congrats!!
  - nurkhz 9y ago
    thanks
- siddharthgdas 9y ago
  Congrats!
  - nurkhz 9y ago
    thanks!
- flendeborg 9y ago
  congrats.
mzg92 9y ago
Has anyone applied just a few days late in the past? Any idea how long your application decision is delayed by?
- DonaldMcRonald 9y ago
  No idea but you can check last years threads for some historical information
- xie_alan 9y ago
  Last year, we applied the week after final decisions for S16 were made. 10 days after, a partner messaged us via HN with some follow-up questions. A week later, we had a Skype call with another partner. We were ultimately rejected 3 days after that call via their standard email template.
sanket0501 9y ago
anyone else? Rejects or Interviews?
hakki 9y ago
Guys, do you get the invites to your mails or is there a way to see it within the hacker news?
- sureshkumarsjv 9y ago
  You'll get the mail for both invitation as well as rejection.
  - hakki 9y ago
    Thanks. I see a (1) sign next to my user name in hacker news but can't see what that is since there is no link there.
    - vanbosse 9y ago
      That's your karma count. It has nothing to do with your YC application.
      - hakki 9y ago
        thanks.
  - hakki 9y ago
    Do the invited get the mail before the rejected? Any idea about the sending order?
- siddharthgdas 9y ago
  You'll get an email
  - hakki 9y ago
    Thanks!
asadjmalik 9y ago
Anyone here applying as a single founder?
- ilolis 9y ago
  Yep
  - ParameterOne 9y ago
    Did you get rejection letter? If yes come here ShowYC.com
- vitaclick 9y ago
  yes, welcome in club
  - ParameterOne 9y ago
    Please single founders come to this event ShowYC.COM
- justengw 9y ago
  I am a solo founder
  - ParameterOne 9y ago
    Come out anyways! solo founders to come out to our demo day ShowYC.com
- nooshinz 9y ago
  yes
  - ParameterOne 9y ago
    SINGLE FOUNDER MINGLE? ShowYC.com
bridget2185 9y ago
Nothing yet! I'm super interested to hear when/if any single founders get interview invites though. Let me know, pals!
acirinelli 9y ago
We received an invite earlier this afternoon! This came after a pre-interview earlier in the week. So stoked! This is our 5th or 6th time applying.
- kirishl 9y ago
  when did you send your application? and when did invite come if i may ask?
  - acirinelli 9y ago
    We submitted on March 23rd, the day before the deadline. The invite came today (as the 18th is the day they were supposed to send invites/rejection emails).
- justengw 9y ago
  congratulations!
- yanjinlong 9y ago
  Congrats! Do you mind sharing what was the 'pre-interview'? I was not aware that this was a step in the process.
  - andrewoons 9y ago
    They did video interviews (10 min) with some companies at the end of last week, but no telling yet whether that's a good or bad sign.
    - yanjinlong 9y ago
      Thank you!
      - acirinelli 9y ago
        Yea, it was mostly clarifying questions about our application. And a chance for them to talk to us live via video. I'm assuming a lot of the pre-interview video calls were teams on the cusp of getting an invite and they were filtering teams out.
instadeal 9y ago
Does anyone know if all the people who got invited so far were pre-interviewed before?
- xie_alan 9y ago
  We were pre-interviewed on Thursday and so far have not heard anything. We submitted our app an hour or two before the deadline, if you give any credence to the rumor that invites are being sent according to the date of app submission.
  - instadeal 9y ago
    No pre-interview for me so I guess I can start working on application number 4 ;)
    - xie_alan 9y ago
      I wouldn't necessarily say that! I think pre-interviews are simply an indication that a partner wanted more information about the startup. That might be because the information was omitted or because it wasn't within the scope of the application. I suppose the only certain conclusion you can draw is that prior to the pre-interview you hadn't yet been rejected. But seeing as each application is read by at least one other reviewer, and the 450 highest weighted applications are sent invitations, I don't believe that a single pre-interview has an extremely positive or negative bearing on your chances of being invited to final interviews.
  - DonaldMcRonald 9y ago
    What is a pre-interview?
    - xie_alan 9y ago
      We were sent an email and asked to pick a set of times. It was a ten minute conversation with a partner. I imagine each partner has the ability to set up a certain number of pre-interviews at their discretion if they want to gather more information on a particular startup - it's neither a positive nor negative signal, but simply an indication that they wanted to find out more information that's not in your application.
dilarakececi 9y ago
Are they sending the rejection mail as well today? Or if we are not getting an e-mail,does it mean that we are rejected?
- jtansley 9y ago
  They will send rejection emails today as well.
rachitgold 9y ago
No news till now....is anyone else still waiting?
- DonaldMcRonald 9y ago
  me lol
  - rachitgold 9y ago
    btw did you get an acknowledgment mail on submitting the application ?
    - wasd 9y ago
      Still waiting and got an acknowledgement email. Submitted a few hours before deadline.
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
romshark 9y ago
Quick reminder on the live conversation, feel free to join us and share your thoughts and experiences! https://t.me/yc_summer_2017 https://t.me/yc_summer_2017
- dang 9y ago
  Come on you guys, one link is probably ok but at 5 you're well into spamming.
snowmaker 9y ago
Hey everyone - I work at YC. I'll keep you updated on the status here. We're now sending the rest of the response emails. You should get yours by 7PM.
- mzg92 9y ago
  Hi Jared, thank you for the update. Do you have any insight into general decision timeline for late applications?
- vedicbrands 9y ago
  thanks for letting us all know
- openmaze 9y ago
  Thank you!
- rachitgold 9y ago
  Thanks
- rachitgold 9y ago
  Thanks
- sontek 9y ago
  Thanks for the update! We are all waiting patiently but we'd rather have it done right than rushed!
- MishievR 9y ago
  Thank you!
- siddharthgdas 9y ago
  Thanks!
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- aayushjaiswal07 9y ago
albertomr3 9y ago
thanks Jared!!! we are all waiting for you here and on https://t.me/yc_summer_2017 https://t.me/yc_summer_2017
- sontek 9y ago
  Hopefully this doesn't come off too rude but you've linked this 5 times now in this thread and to me this has passed the point of promotion and reached spam. Any chance this can be the last one?
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
  - albertomr3 9y ago
    this is just a group on telegram!!! you get updates and chat with mates faster...
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
- albertomr3 9y ago
  do you know what I like more than a down vote? To know you exists ;)
- dang 9y ago
  We detached this subthread from https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14143769 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14143769 and marked it off-topic.
oscargs 9y ago
It's 6:11 here in Birmingham, AL. I have also been patiently waiting! Best of luck for the ones who have already received an invitation!
- sontek 9y ago
  What are you building? I'm 4 hours south of you in Niceville, FL!
dregray 9y ago
Thanks for the update cheers!!
GlennJoe 9y ago
Do you know what time you will re start sending invitations and rejections
RBBronson123 9y ago
Just got our invite
- siddharthgdas 9y ago
  Congrats!
mlibazisi 9y ago
Just got our invite! Good luck to everyone else!
- Shane325 9y ago
  Congrats! Good luck in the interview.
- hooplaa 9y ago
  Congrats!
- siddharthgdas 9y ago
  Congrats!
manujbahl 9y ago
Does anyone know if they send in one big batch or smaller batches. Also has anyone received rejections yet or rejections get sent out last/later.
- RBBronson123 9y ago
  I spoke to a friend who hasn't received either. We got ours
  - manujbahl 9y ago
    Yea or neh ?
    - RBBronson123 9y ago
      we have an interview It was sent 8:24pm ET
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
  - DonaldMcRonald 9y ago
    Were you accepted or rejected? If so when'd you get the email?
- amandala3 9y ago
  My thinking is they send the rejections all at once...last 2 times I applied it was around 6:30-7 pst.
- 90002 9y ago
  I also have a friend who is waiting to hear back, though he did apply late. We received our email a little over an hour ago.
obaid 9y ago
Does everyone get an email? Even those who have not been selected?
- smondal90 9y ago
  Yes
  - instadeal 9y ago
    Sorry for asking but did you receive an invitation or a rejection?
- AlirezaBeig 9y ago
  We have not received ours yet!
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
vardhankoshal 9y ago
Got invite!
- kalemayank 9y ago
  Congratulations!
- mconnolly 9y ago
  Do you know when exactly you got the invite?
- mariafg 9y ago
  Nice!
vedicbrands 9y ago
Anyone still waiting? Do they save the rejection emails for the end?
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- amandala3 9y ago
  I think it's just rejections now :/
spencer-matonis 9y ago
Anyone receive a rejection yet? :/ I think we're toast ;-;
- mariafg 9y ago
  nope..
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- spencer-matonis 9y ago
  Yup, "We're sorry to say that your startup was not selected to interview for the upcoming Y Combinator batch. Please don't take it personally." TRICKSY HOBBITZES! :( Thank you for opportunity! You're darn right we're applying W18!
instadeal 9y ago
just received mine. rejected! Well, good luck for the interview guys!
- elizabeth8890 9y ago
  Keep going, you can do it next time!
  - instadeal 9y ago
    Thanks!
rzkeller22 9y ago
Just received my rejection.
- elizabeth8890 9y ago
  Keep going!
  - rzkeller22 9y ago
    Thanks! Mine is not a technology business at all, not sure how much that weighs on the decision.
    - elizabeth8890 9y ago
      What is your business?
jwtnb 9y ago
we just received our rejection. Good luck guys!
DrBobDengler 9y ago
Just received rejection.
- elizabeth8890 9y ago
  Keep going! Next time!
bookbild 9y ago
Rejection mail just hit the inbox.
blhack 9y ago
Rejected. Sad :(
- elizabeth8890 9y ago
  Cheer up! You totally got this next time!
pauliotre 9y ago
Rejected. Thanks everybody. Congrats to invites and good luck to all!
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
DevelopSmith 9y ago
I just received my rejection. I'm NOT sad at all. I will keep going. However, I'm happy that I have received an answer from Y Combinator even if it is a rejection. Good Luck everybody!
samulloa 9y ago
Rejected as well. I will keep making progress regardless.
instadeal 9y ago
For all the "rejected" : “There are always two choices. Two paths to take. One is easy. And its only reward is that it’s easy.” Let's keep going guys,even after 1000 rejections. At the end, the difference between an unsuccessful person and a successful one is that the latter never gave up.
entrepreneurSF 9y ago
I guess a successful exit in my last startup and revenue in our first 6 weeks for this startup weren't good enough, LOL. Kick some ass everyone! :)
wilton 9y ago
We're not selected to interview. We were invited to the pre-interview (video call) last week. Solo founder. Good luck everyone!!
- ganeshkrishnan 9y ago
  We got pre-interview video call too and then finally got rejected. I thought pre-interview would be a foot in the door but apparently not
- xyzqwerty 9y ago
  Same boat. How did your pre-interview go?
  - wilton 9y ago
    It wasn't different than what I expected: intense and bold. In the end, we spent more time talking about the characteristics of an enterprise business (my case) rather than my team, product or growth, so it felt superficial. I think that's what you can get in 10 min. And you?
elizabeth8890 9y ago
Congratulations to everyone for applying, and giving it a shot, whether or not you got an interview! Go get 'em! :)
evanbrinkbit 9y ago
Got our rejection. I guess it'll be Winter 2018 for us.
disu 9y ago
YC just missed me ;)
- DevelopSmith 9y ago
  I'm sure they did. Good luck with your startup.
reviewmon 9y ago
This is our 3rd time applying. S15 - Rejected. S16 - Invited then rejected after the interview. S17 - Rejected (we grew to a much higher MRR since S16 with a stronger product). YC's decisions can be unpredictable and I believe you have to get lucky with the batch (your startup showing more promise than others in the pool).
lzimble 9y ago
Has anyone pitching a non profit heard back?
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
jaymeh13 9y ago
Just got the glorious rejection email :) https://mail.mixmax.com/m/kWxSBXQlxWO9sN6AC https://mail.mixmax.com/m/kWxSBXQlxWO9sN6AC We interviewed in-person for W17 in October and got rejected because we didn't articulate a good plan for growth. - we grew 4,000% since October - launched huge features for both sides of our marketplace - received acquisition interest in < 3 months of being live - most importantly, made something that people are loving and using on a daily basis. It's a bummer for sure but not the end of the world. To anyone who got an interview, Figure out your biggest weakness and a plan for how you overcome it. Your interviewers will exploit it. Here's some notes on our experience going through the interview https://paper.dropbox.com/doc/YC-Interview-Experience-L45KzTpfufdiYSHmvhsiw https://paper.dropbox.com/doc/YC-Interview-Experience-L45KzT... Good luck all
- patwalls 9y ago
  Hey this is awesome. Thanks!
- KevinJ90825 9y ago
  Working with @jaymeh13 and interviewed with him for W17. To those who got an interview: congratulations! Keep trying to prove yourself wrong and you'll expose any of the weaknesses that they will try to find in the interview. To those who didn't: Congratulations anyways! The YC application process itself makes you think deeply about your business and you should keep that with you and take it as a learning experience. Best of luck to everybody!
- mzg92 9y ago
  Holy cow if that doesn't get you in I don't know what would...
- elizabeth8890 9y ago
  That's really helpful! And funny! Thank you!
- sontek 9y ago
  Can you provide any tips on how you reached out to other alum in preparation (you said you prepared with AlphaFlow and Snapdocs for example). Also, are you allowed to share any of the questions you had that you found surprising?
preetsahil 9y ago
rejected :(
ParameterOne 9y ago
Want to launch anyways? https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14144922 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14144922
mariafg 9y ago
I haven't received any answer yet. Is anyone still waiting?
apsec112 9y ago
I was turned down after an interview last batch. I think I probably won't apply again. YC's standards now seem so high that, by the time I expect to meet them, there won't be much point in YC anymore. If I have 2,000 users, which is pretty tiny, that's $40K a month at $20 per person. If I get 50 signups a week, that's a 10% per month growth rate. If I have $40K in high-margin monthly revenue with a 10% per month growth rate, why sell stock at a $1.7M valuation, in the hope of getting some connections to sell more stock at a $5M valuation? It just doesn't make business sense. All you'd have to do is wait a few years, and you'd have more profits in the bank, in cash, than the "valuation" you'd get from California VCs.
- shatez 9y ago
  I agree with this....and I think it is a reflection of the diminishing value that accelerators bring to the table for software startups. Teams great enough to get into YC are great enough to build a product, take it to market, generate revenue and grow just fine without an accelerator.
  - shatez 9y ago
    There's a good article on SaaStr...that the only value fundraising and accelerators bring is to speed up the growth a bit, but good SaaS co's are good without outside help. Accelerators and outside capital are neither sufficient nor necessary. The YC model has been in place for awhile, eventually even it will be disrupted...
- xyzqwerty 9y ago
  Are those your actual numbers?
  - apsec112 9y ago
    No, that's based off https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VCfpzLhSSxM/V0tbZAPvRTI/AAAAAAAAAeM/Y8RcMQS2H9cCSZLzNcU0gn9g5Aekn1pwACLcB/s1600/SaaSFunding2016On_a_napkin.png https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VCfpzLhSSxM/V0tbZAPvRTI/AAAAAAAAA... by venture capitalist Christoph Janz, plus a guesstimate (based on conversations with many YC applicants, both successful and not, and on the fundraising track records of YC cos) that the YC admission bar is about equal to the bar for a large seed round.
spencer-matonis 9y ago
Planning a possible YC "reject" event. Post here if interested: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14144922 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14144922 Would have our own presentation day, pitch feedback, try out each other's products, etc. I think it would be great! :)
- elizabeth8890 9y ago
  This is brilliant!
Ashu_14 9y ago
Received my 2nd rejection mail from YC. had applied for W17 as a hardware startup.
- ParameterOne 9y ago
  Doing anything with routers/modems?
  - Ashu_14 9y ago
    Nope. Pure hardware model with some embedded stuff
    - ParameterOne 9y ago
      Do you want to come to the yc rejection demo day and show your stuff?
      - Ashu_14 9y ago
        Would love to. However, i'm based out in India. Let me know how can i connect?
        ParameterOne 9y ago
        ShowYC.com for a demo/pitch party day
ljmason 9y ago
Are a lot still waiting to hear?? Its 11pm MST, and no news...
Ashu_14 9y ago
A rejected application the second time in a row. Had applied to YC W17 batch wherein got rejected after interview. I really doubt if I'm going to apply again in future. As someone marked in the previous comments, YC is now all about high standards and the companies they sign would anyways had done great without them as well. Since the last time we applied, we experienced quite a good growth in terms of revenues and customers. plus we introduced some unique engagement model which previously was not at place and was hypothetically roaming around in our minds. I thought YC support could help us gain networks over in different sectors with experts and that's where we have been seeking support since long. Even in the application we clearly mentioned our "ask" and what we expect from YC. I think they don't deal with hardware startups or even if they do, those startups are the ones who already might be enjoying millions of dollars of revenue.
- lordvon 9y ago
  To your last point, not true. I think I fit the category of hardware and got an interview with a prototype.
  - Ashu_14 9y ago
    I'm happy to hear that! I think it's more off a personal luck with the same. How YC partners take in you is totally dependent upon the partners only. Good luck with the interview.
Ashu_14 9y ago
Anyone with hardware concept applied for this batch?
blhack 9y ago
I have to be honest, this is an emotion I'm not entirely familiar with. I totally get rejection, I've been rejected for all sorts of things, but normally for rejection I can understand on some level why. This I don't get. Not only are we applying with a company that fits with an RFS, not only is our team really solid, not only is concept proven, but we have a possibility to do real social good that both makes money and helps people. Even in talking to other people, the reaction was either "why are you even doing YC" or "Sheesh I'm embarassed to by applying next to you". I know that sounds really arrogant, and Im sorry for sounding like that. I'm just...confused, I guess? I really wish that the applications came with a reason why they were rejected, even if it was one sentence. I can't honestly believe that typing a one sentence "rejection for reason" would take that much extra time. Even a drop down of "we rejected you for this one of the following 5 canned reasons" (your team was bad, your idea was bad, you have no revenue, etc.) would be helpful. Is it because my cofounder is from another country? Or because we don't live in the bay area? I seriously do not understand this. I know that sounds a little bit whiney, but it's just frustrating to have put this much emotional investment into something[1] and to get rejected for it without even a brief explanation of why. [1]: For people that don't live in the bay, applying to this program is a big deal. I skipped out on events next week because we might have to block out time for an interview, I moved things around this week specifically so that I could schedule an interview if possible, I moved things around this summer so that if I needed to be in SF I could etc. I get not counting your chickens and all of that, I don't think we did. Nothing is lost for us here, and moving events and things around isn't a big deal, obviously that is just part of doing business. It is just frustrating to get a rejection email that doesn't even include a few seconds explaining why. Forever onward, obviously. It just really sucks not having feedback on why you were rejected.
- DevelopSmith 9y ago
  What really frustrates me is that many shitty startups that one can't understand what value they add to the world get accepted. When you see your A.I. startup gets a rejection and a celebrity engagement app gets an invitation!
- 19eightyfour 9y ago
  To be honest I think a lot of the calculation goes around like this: - Here are the X Partners we have available as resources - Who do these X Partners Like and who can they Work With - How would this Team fit into our YC ecosystem, recognizing that a lot of the slots in some verticals are filled. It's a multidimensional optimization, they're not just going for rawr, they're going for "fit", too, and perhaps all of the qualities you list as reasons for your surprise at the rejection, are only part of the equation. It's the pragmatics of organizations. The system doesn't just choose the "best parts", it chooses the best of the parts that "fit the best". Paradoxically, as the system increases in size, the "open slots" become more constrained, the "fit" becomes more overdefined by the existing parts, and the likelihood of choosing based on "rawr bestness" is decreased. Take heart, Fellow Rejectee!
MarkusWunsch 9y ago
Okay, I finally got rejected once more as solo founder: www.mountwish.org Problem and solution: Most companies struggle with the high complexity and ever-increasing regulatory burdens associated with managing their FX, commodity price and interest rate risks. Not to mention that costs in financial risk management are rising fast (currently firms spend on average around 2.86% of their revenues on hedging these risk). Hence, they usually would prefer to have a simple, straight-forward insurance covering these risks rather than having to deal with derivatives and the related administrative requirements. That’s where we come in with our product called FinGuard, which is an ERP system plugin doing exactly this – measuring the exposure and automatically insuring it at a cost which is at least 40% cheaper compared to traditional hedging methods (as we can effectively match contrary risk positions of different customers). Top three customer advantages: 1. Significant EBITDA boost Savings coming from our cross-customer hedging approach can increase EBITDA by up to 11.5% p.a. which is equal to an increase of 16% in sales, while additionally saving any kind of fixed treasury expenses (e.g. treasury systems, staffing, research data, special admin processes and legal services,…). Hence customers’ EBITDA will go up sharply. 2. No compliance hassles anymore It reduces compliance burdens , just think of KYC checks, MiFID II, EMIR and the likes, which for an insurance policy from a customer’s perspective are no longer applicable 3. Convenience and more time for your core business Increased focus on your core business with automation taking all the financial risk management hassles (e.g. going global w/o worrying about FX rates) and potential human errors (e.g. no litigations with banks about the agreed on derivatives pricing) out while using big data to improve results further Status Quo and Key metrics: - A solid team is in place and shall be hired with the next funding round (or accelerator money), but until then it's just me working full-time on the project (by the way I don' understand the bias against solo founders anyway: https://techcrunch.com/2016/08/26/co-founders-optional/ https://techcrunch.com/2016/08/26/co-founders-optional/) - Validated concept (based on historical data), business processes defined, thorough business plan written (100+ pages) and software design sketch ready; first prototype shall work by end of April - Currently discussing cooperation with other financial services providers as they can help us to drive sales significantly (attracted leading players including bulge bracket banks and household names in the insurance industry among others) - 300+ sales leads each with more than 100m in revenues (our own pricing is derived as a percentage of their revenues); currently reaching out to them to get signed LoIs - 2.97tn USD total market size; expecting USD 546m in pre-payments in year 1 - positive VC feedback in general
deleted 9y ago
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gibsonj 9y ago
We received our second rejection for an interview yesterday, but luckily for us YC was just a nice to have and not end all. As I read through the comments, I believe many businesses forget the fact that business is ran by the numbers. Yes, can YC help you get attractive numbers for investors, but you can do the exact same thing on your own if you build something people need (love). I find it hard to believe that any investor that YC can introduce you to will turn down your meeting if you have built a business that has attractive numbers. That's what they look for anyway...YC funded or not. For those that got an interview, congrats. For those that didn't, keep going and be great in what you are doing.
- Ashu_14 9y ago
  You are absolutely right and for a founder whose truly committed to his/her business should only consider these rejections as a bump on the road. However i still disagree with how YC select the startup for the interview. I mean the founders who really needs their support are mostly rejected by them while founders who already has raised a million dollar round (or enjoying revenues) are welcomed and signed by the YC team. I think YC has now become more of a Standard tool for businesses rather providing actual support to founders who need them badly. I'm from India and i personally know at least 10 founders here who already had raised so much of amount before getting into YC. This doesn't makes sense to me as to why the heck would someone get into an incubator/accelerator who's already enjoying the business with healthy unit economics. Startup incubators have now lost their vision and are now more into what i think has just restricted to the investment game.
  - AnthonyHooper 9y ago
    You make a good point; perhaps YC should switch to a tiered system?
    - Ashu_14 9y ago
      I can't comment upon that. However that's my personal experience which spoke.
    - 9y ago
paytheos 9y ago
Congratulations to those of you invited an interview! If unfortunately you don't get in, check out a group which is getting together to set up a Demo Day for rejects after the YC demo day: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14144922 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14144922
DrBobDengler 9y ago
Dear Fellow Rejects - did any of you go back and take a look at your application and find questions added that were not on the application that you submitted? I was ultra scrupulous in double checking before I submitted. Look in 'Progress' section. There is a forced choice question 'Which of the following best describes your progress?' which offered a couple of answer options. My post rejection application review shows the next question as 'When will you have a prototype or beta? that is not completed because I do not remember it being on the application template. Just a little further down, there is a question 'Do you have revenue?' to which I answered 'No'. But then there are 6 additional questions that I do not remember seeing on the pre-submission application. The first is 'What was your revenue last month? (Please use USD. If none, enter '0'). If that question was there on my pre submission application I certainly would have entered '0', but it appears empty on the post rejection review. Worse, if the application processor could not find a '0' in that space, it might have rejected the whole application as 'incomplete'. Even worse, the next 5 questions 'Your revenue 2,3,4,5,6 months ago?' would have also registered incomplete. But I don't think these questions were on the my pre-submission application form. Also take a look in the equity section. The first question is 'have you incorporated....' which I answered 'No'. I did not answer nor remember seeing the next 3 questions:'What kind of entity and in what state...', 'Please describe the breakdown of the equity ownership...', 'List any investments your company has received..." Please check your post rejection applications - do you see these questions? Did you answer these questions, or does it look like they were added after submission? If I am wrong or misunderstand, I apologize. I submitted my application on 3/22.
- GlennJoe 9y ago
  I also noticed the same. I answered 0. Same for incorporation . New questions prop up now.
- Ashu_14 9y ago
  You are write, these questions were added somewhere in the first week of march. I was casually checking my application (it was editable then) and there i found these 6-7 questions which were sort 'newly added' to the application. I however, answered them later on. I wonder YC guys didn't released any notification regarding the update.
mittermayr 9y ago
It's a lot of work that goes into these applications, and I absolutely don't sweat the rejection (hurts a little, but that's all right, we're not in the business of passing the YC application), but as a future suggestion maybe — and I absolutely understand YC gets a ton of applications — if there was a way to just get a short comment on why an application was rejected, it would be so incredibly helpful. One sentence, perhaps even just a standard tick-box canned-response the reviewer hits at the end of reading it ("market-fit not clear", "worried about team", etc.). No interest to argue about it, but the value given back to startups would be tremendous, with very little time required (ticking the final rejection-reason box, even if it just says, "not really something I'd be interested in"). I would even pay for it. I know that's absolutely not within YC's context and mindset, but I'd pay to just read one short line that helps us see what you saw (or hoped to see but didn't).
- DrBobDengler 9y ago
  Also a Summer17 reject. I support and would pay if required. YC encourages me to resubmit (50% of recent batches have applied multiple times), yet I have no clue what to clarify or resolve. It makes no sense to me or YC for me to keep submitting applications if there is some glaring flaw. If they don't like my idea, so be it. But if there is a hint that might make the next application better than a crap shoot, I want to know about it. If they would consider me a stronger candidate if I had more progress, have more users, be less serious on my video, have revenue, have a longer runway, have a tech founder, didn't understand something, thought my forecasts were unrealistic, needed a fact that I failed to include, etc. that would help immensely. You are right, they have the money, so they can decide on whatever basis they choose, but if there is something that they expected to see but didn't or didn't expect to see but did, or wanted to see less/more of, or more proof of, that would really go a long way to increasing my confidence that I did all I could in my application and the decision was truly beyond my control - I could live easier with that, and move on. Thanks.
shameikachan 9y ago
Good Afternoon All Today is Monday, April 24th. I'm super ancy. I applied with a late application 12 days ago and haven't heard anything. Did anyone else apply late recently? Have you heard anything? I keep checking my email and junk box obsessively, scared I might miss something from YC.

Has anyone received an invite/rejection email for the Summer 2017 batch yet?

syedabrar 9y ago

We haven't received an invite or rejection yet. (eagerly waiting). When will the invites/rejections be sent out anyway?

sureshkumarsjv 9y ago
It's mentioned in their website that they'll be sending the invitations by April 18,2017.
- syedabrar 9y ago
  Yes but at what time? I think they send it out around afternoon or evening.
  - op2ed 9y ago
    Historically, in the evening.
    - railgun2space 9y ago
      Evening SF time?

GlennJoe 9y ago

It is 5:06 Am 18 April 2017

sureshkumarsjv 9y ago
It's 5.37 PM IST here in India :)
- op2ed 9y ago
  Good point :), but I think they are likely working on Pacific time
- Ashu_14 9y ago
  May i ask your email address?

demetriusg 9y ago

We haven't received anything either and we're on the east coast in U.S. We're guessing it will be very late tonight.

aayushjaiswal07 9y ago

Not yet.

sameerrj 9y ago

How many startups, do you guys think will get invited for interview this time?

jainaayush05 9y ago
~450 Source: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13951136 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13951136
- sameerrj 9y ago
  Edit: The whole comment was wrong, so I am removing it
  - ratneshray 9y ago
    you mean 5%? Btw what's the source for 10,000 applications?
    - sameerrj 9y ago
      You know what. Ignore whatever I wrote. I was watching match and don't know where I came up with the numbers, lol.
      - cathyttrn 9y ago
        Last batch had around 7,000 applications-I found the number on Quora so 10,000 actually makes sense.
        sameerrj 9y ago
        Yeah, I remember someone projecting it to be 10,000 for this year but I can't find it now.
        Lordarminius 9y ago

romshark 9y ago

South Germany (9 hours ahead) - not yet so far... awaiting

rudob 9y ago

Denmark 18:00 right now and still nothing

cathyttrn 9y ago
It's almost mid-night from South East Asia - we're 14 hours ahead of SF. I think they won't be sent for another 6 hours.

manujbahl 9y ago

Congrats to all who received their invites. We are still waiting for a response.

shatez 9y ago
same...
blhack 9y ago
Still waiting too! Suspense is killing us!
rachitgold 9y ago
still waiting....

mconnolly 9y ago

Received an invite last year at 8:15 pm est so looks like we have around seven hours to go if we're judging by that.

Lordarminius 9y ago
>... we have around 7 hours to go.... ! Surely, they have made their decisions long ago. Why not just create a script to run at 00.00hrs and automatically send the results ? Can't speak for anyone else, but the waiting is killing me :)
- mconnolly 9y ago
  Maybe..but I'd bet a fair number of final reviews take place today
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]

BarbGrofe11 9y ago

No, I started searching at midnight.

koushikjay66 9y ago

did all the international founders were called for a pre-interview ?

Lordarminius 9y ago
second time I'm reading this. Where did this rumour originate?
jeff97 9y ago
Was this a video call? Our team isn't international but we had a video call scheduled a few days ago. We were also wondering what that signified, if anything.
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- tanu 9y ago
  same here. We are not international and we had a video call last week.

mrx500 9y ago

Didn't receive anything yet, South East Asia passed midnight here but only 11am in Mountain View.

vikas_carnanny 9y ago
whats the historic time they reply ?
- albertomr3 9y ago
  In my experience they sent invites/rejections emails about 12AM UTC (global time gmt) which is 17h/5PM San Francisco local time

mohsenElgendy 9y ago

We haven't received anything yet as well. Egypt/Cairo is 9 hours ahead of Mountain View.

decharms 9y ago

Just got an invite for an interview. Great news! Can anyone swap interview slots who has one booked for the week of May 1, which is now full? I'm at TED for the prior week. Thanks...

siddharthgdas 9y ago
Congrats!
smondal90 9y ago
Congrats!
amirkabbara 9y ago
when's your interview? Did you already schedule it?
mayowaolurin 9y ago
Congrats! did you have a pre-interview before today?

alex_lubinsky 9y ago

Check your YC accounts...it changed.

mlibazisi 9y ago
Hey, not seeing any changes. What changed for you?
- alex_lubinsky 9y ago
  It moved the application to "previous applications" and removed ability to "edit" founders profile and application
  - simon_acca 9y ago
    That happened just after the application deadline, I think.
- alex_lubinsky 9y ago
  Do you have the same or is it just my account?
  - mlibazisi 9y ago
    The change for us happened the instant we submitted our application a few weeks ago.
    - mconnolly 9y ago
      Same for us
      - wyg 9y ago
        same for us. The moment the deadline for the application was over, editing was disabled and it moved to previous aplications
9y ago

sontek 9y ago

Just got our invite! wooooo

siddharthgdas 9y ago
Awesome! Congrats!

mlibazisi 9y ago

This is the slowest day ever, lol

suhailameen46 9y ago
tell me about it :P

vikas_carnanny 9y ago

yes it is the slowest day ever. Havent received anything so far 12.14 AM India

deleted 9y ago
[deleted]

flendeborg 9y ago

Guys - As I impatiently wait as well, I just want to say whatever happens today won't define your success. Whatever the outcome is, I want to encourage everyone to continue to build a great company.

mtbeauchamp 9y ago
Agree
baironlondono 9y ago
Going with an incubator should be one of the plans we must have, not the only one.
- ajpikul 9y ago
  I feel like an incubator increases responsibilities and risks, and potential rewards, but some people see it as the "where they want to end up".
  - denissevera 9y ago
    I'm fully agree!
abovechange 9y ago
Totally agree
katm 9y ago
Well said.

baironlondono 9y ago

I will make my company the most successful with YC or without YC, you decide YC :D

Lordarminius 9y ago
I agree with you. I've come a long way in my entrepreneurial journey, and one thing I've come to realize is that elements like YC are just factors for success. They are nice to have but ultimately won't determine the fate of my plan. It was a milestone in my personal development to reach this insight and very liberating.

suhailameen46 9y ago

I wonder how many international companies are getting invites for the interview!

wyg 9y ago
Don't know how many but this one from Colombia will..........:-)))
- AndresSRG 9y ago
  We are from Medellin and are also waiting :) Which city are you at?
hlena1988 9y ago
We are in South Africa/Lesotho and so keen to be part of YC

wyg 9y ago

For some reason i thought answers would be given yesterday. So this is the 2nd day I'm biting my nails (not much left from yesterday)

mlibazisi 9y ago
lol
- wyg 9y ago
  If we don't get called for the interview at least I saved on the manicure...:-)
cathyttrn 9y ago
You're hilarious!
sameerrj 9y ago
Similar story here. Due to the time difference, 18th has come and gone for me and even though I knew it's not gonna come, I was still anxious the whole day.

wyg 9y ago

For some reason i thought answers would be given yesterday. So this is the 2nd day I'm biting my nails (not much left from yesterday)

lloydYC 9y ago

They should be responding to everyone by evening today. Till then have your lunch, breathe, work on your product and check your emails later this evening. :)

blhack 9y ago

Sounds like the emails come in later this evening. That's not going to stop me checking my email every 5 seconds until then. Anybody else in Phoenix? My cofounder and I are going to hang out and get some beers/lunch together while we try to wear out the refresh buttons on our laptops if anybody wants to join us.

bridget2185 9y ago
Not in Phoenix but this made me lol.

pedramsheraf 9y ago

I'm pacing and my dog is just staring at me

nurkhz 9y ago

time is not ticking at all.

krishnanvs 9y ago

Just got the invite! Best of luck guys!!

GlennJoe 9y ago
Congrats
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
hlena1988 9y ago
congrats!!!
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
itay-clippy 9y ago
Mind if i asked when you applied?
justengw 9y ago
congratulations!
bridget2185 9y ago
Heck yeah! Celebrating for you down here in San Diego!
acurti 9y ago
Congrats!!

GlennJoe 9y ago

It is 1200 noon in Mountain view. No email yet.

romshark 9y ago

Live conversation just started, everyone's invited! https://t.me/yc_summer_2017 https://t.me/yc_summer_2017

ilolis 9y ago

Am I the only one who checks the emails every 1 minute?

Yug04 9y ago

Got invite just now, they started sending invites. From india.

GlennJoe 9y ago
Congrats
flendeborg 9y ago
Congrats! Go and kill it at the interview.
ilolis 9y ago
Congratulations good job!!
- Yug04 9y ago
  Thanks :)
m7 9y ago
congrats!
anorsich 9y ago
Well done! Time to prepare for an interview :)
- Yug04 9y ago
  Thanks :)
itay-clippy 9y ago
When did you send the application?
- Yug04 9y ago
  Feb 1
9y ago

romshark 9y ago

live conversation: https://t.me/yc_summer_2017 https://t.me/yc_summer_2017 for all those who click the button every single minute :D

dang 9y ago
We detached this comment from https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14142444 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14142444 and marked it off-topic.

yoloceo 9y ago

So when do we get the rejections? so we can move on.

DonaldMcRonald 9y ago

Slowest day of my life

instadeal 9y ago

This is my third application with the same company. We got investors and launched our product since the first time we applied. Even though it would be amazing being selected, life will continue even though YCOMBINATOR rejects your idea. ;) Keep building an awesome product! Good Luck to everyone.

newera2016 9y ago
Same with me. I build a startup and submitted the ideas for a couple of times but YC continued rejecting us. Even though the first time we got interview request but weren't selected. I pursued and raised funding in multiple rounds. So life continues. Now in 3 years, we dominate the car rental market in ride sharing. Keep building :)

GlennJoe 9y ago

Appears they are starting to send invites based on date of applications.

romshark 9y ago

Share your thoughs with us, even if you were rejected! https://t.me/yc_summer_2017 https://t.me/yc_summer_2017

dang 9y ago
We detached this comment from https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14142628 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14142628 and marked it off-topic.

nurkhz 9y ago

got an invite now. happy to get it. still cant believe btw! :) time to prepare.

msmoll91 9y ago
Way to go! Congratulations!
- nurkhz 9y ago
  thanks! :))
Cenk 9y ago
Tebrikler!
- nurkhz 9y ago
  tesekkurler! thanks!
dsandeepd 9y ago
congrats!!
- nurkhz 9y ago
  thanks
siddharthgdas 9y ago
Congrats!
- nurkhz 9y ago
  thanks!
flendeborg 9y ago
congrats.

mzg92 9y ago

Has anyone applied just a few days late in the past? Any idea how long your application decision is delayed by?

DonaldMcRonald 9y ago
No idea but you can check last years threads for some historical information
xie_alan 9y ago
Last year, we applied the week after final decisions for S16 were made. 10 days after, a partner messaged us via HN with some follow-up questions. A week later, we had a Skype call with another partner. We were ultimately rejected 3 days after that call via their standard email template.

sanket0501 9y ago

anyone else? Rejects or Interviews?

hakki 9y ago

Guys, do you get the invites to your mails or is there a way to see it within the hacker news?

sureshkumarsjv 9y ago
You'll get the mail for both invitation as well as rejection.
- hakki 9y ago
  Thanks. I see a (1) sign next to my user name in hacker news but can't see what that is since there is no link there.
  - vanbosse 9y ago
    That's your karma count. It has nothing to do with your YC application.
    - hakki 9y ago
      thanks.
- hakki 9y ago
  Do the invited get the mail before the rejected? Any idea about the sending order?
siddharthgdas 9y ago
You'll get an email
- hakki 9y ago
  Thanks!

asadjmalik 9y ago

Anyone here applying as a single founder?

ilolis 9y ago
Yep
- ParameterOne 9y ago
  Did you get rejection letter? If yes come here ShowYC.com
vitaclick 9y ago
yes, welcome in club
- ParameterOne 9y ago
  Please single founders come to this event ShowYC.COM
justengw 9y ago
I am a solo founder
- ParameterOne 9y ago
  Come out anyways! solo founders to come out to our demo day ShowYC.com
nooshinz 9y ago
yes
- ParameterOne 9y ago
  SINGLE FOUNDER MINGLE? ShowYC.com

bridget2185 9y ago

Nothing yet! I'm super interested to hear when/if any single founders get interview invites though. Let me know, pals!

acirinelli 9y ago

We received an invite earlier this afternoon! This came after a pre-interview earlier in the week. So stoked! This is our 5th or 6th time applying.

kirishl 9y ago
when did you send your application? and when did invite come if i may ask?
- acirinelli 9y ago
  We submitted on March 23rd, the day before the deadline. The invite came today (as the 18th is the day they were supposed to send invites/rejection emails).
justengw 9y ago
congratulations!
yanjinlong 9y ago
Congrats! Do you mind sharing what was the 'pre-interview'? I was not aware that this was a step in the process.
- andrewoons 9y ago
  They did video interviews (10 min) with some companies at the end of last week, but no telling yet whether that's a good or bad sign.
  - yanjinlong 9y ago
    Thank you!
    - acirinelli 9y ago
      Yea, it was mostly clarifying questions about our application. And a chance for them to talk to us live via video. I'm assuming a lot of the pre-interview video calls were teams on the cusp of getting an invite and they were filtering teams out.

instadeal 9y ago

Does anyone know if all the people who got invited so far were pre-interviewed before?

xie_alan 9y ago
We were pre-interviewed on Thursday and so far have not heard anything. We submitted our app an hour or two before the deadline, if you give any credence to the rumor that invites are being sent according to the date of app submission.
- instadeal 9y ago
  No pre-interview for me so I guess I can start working on application number 4 ;)
  - xie_alan 9y ago
    I wouldn't necessarily say that! I think pre-interviews are simply an indication that a partner wanted more information about the startup. That might be because the information was omitted or because it wasn't within the scope of the application. I suppose the only certain conclusion you can draw is that prior to the pre-interview you hadn't yet been rejected. But seeing as each application is read by at least one other reviewer, and the 450 highest weighted applications are sent invitations, I don't believe that a single pre-interview has an extremely positive or negative bearing on your chances of being invited to final interviews.
- DonaldMcRonald 9y ago
  What is a pre-interview?
  - xie_alan 9y ago
    We were sent an email and asked to pick a set of times. It was a ten minute conversation with a partner. I imagine each partner has the ability to set up a certain number of pre-interviews at their discretion if they want to gather more information on a particular startup - it's neither a positive nor negative signal, but simply an indication that they wanted to find out more information that's not in your application.

dilarakececi 9y ago

Are they sending the rejection mail as well today? Or if we are not getting an e-mail,does it mean that we are rejected?

jtansley 9y ago
They will send rejection emails today as well.

rachitgold 9y ago

No news till now....is anyone else still waiting?

DonaldMcRonald 9y ago
me lol
- rachitgold 9y ago
  btw did you get an acknowledgment mail on submitting the application ?
  - wasd 9y ago
    Still waiting and got an acknowledgement email. Submitted a few hours before deadline.
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]

romshark 9y ago

Quick reminder on the live conversation, feel free to join us and share your thoughts and experiences! https://t.me/yc_summer_2017 https://t.me/yc_summer_2017

dang 9y ago
Come on you guys, one link is probably ok but at 5 you're well into spamming.

snowmaker 9y ago

Hey everyone - I work at YC. I'll keep you updated on the status here. We're now sending the rest of the response emails. You should get yours by 7PM.

mzg92 9y ago
Hi Jared, thank you for the update. Do you have any insight into general decision timeline for late applications?
vedicbrands 9y ago
thanks for letting us all know
openmaze 9y ago
Thank you!
rachitgold 9y ago
Thanks
rachitgold 9y ago
Thanks
sontek 9y ago
Thanks for the update! We are all waiting patiently but we'd rather have it done right than rushed!
MishievR 9y ago
Thank you!
siddharthgdas 9y ago
Thanks!
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
aayushjaiswal07 9y ago

albertomr3 9y ago

thanks Jared!!! we are all waiting for you here and on https://t.me/yc_summer_2017 https://t.me/yc_summer_2017

sontek 9y ago
Hopefully this doesn't come off too rude but you've linked this 5 times now in this thread and to me this has passed the point of promotion and reached spam. Any chance this can be the last one?
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- albertomr3 9y ago
  this is just a group on telegram!!! you get updates and chat with mates faster...
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
albertomr3 9y ago
do you know what I like more than a down vote? To know you exists ;)
dang 9y ago
We detached this subthread from https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14143769 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14143769 and marked it off-topic.

oscargs 9y ago

It's 6:11 here in Birmingham, AL. I have also been patiently waiting! Best of luck for the ones who have already received an invitation!

sontek 9y ago
What are you building? I'm 4 hours south of you in Niceville, FL!

dregray 9y ago

Thanks for the update cheers!!

GlennJoe 9y ago

Do you know what time you will re start sending invitations and rejections

RBBronson123 9y ago

Just got our invite

siddharthgdas 9y ago
Congrats!

mlibazisi 9y ago

Just got our invite! Good luck to everyone else!

Shane325 9y ago
Congrats! Good luck in the interview.
hooplaa 9y ago
Congrats!
siddharthgdas 9y ago
Congrats!

manujbahl 9y ago

Does anyone know if they send in one big batch or smaller batches. Also has anyone received rejections yet or rejections get sent out last/later.

RBBronson123 9y ago
I spoke to a friend who hasn't received either. We got ours
- manujbahl 9y ago
  Yea or neh ?
  - RBBronson123 9y ago
    we have an interview It was sent 8:24pm ET
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- DonaldMcRonald 9y ago
  Were you accepted or rejected? If so when'd you get the email?
amandala3 9y ago
My thinking is they send the rejections all at once...last 2 times I applied it was around 6:30-7 pst.
90002 9y ago
I also have a friend who is waiting to hear back, though he did apply late. We received our email a little over an hour ago.

obaid 9y ago

Does everyone get an email? Even those who have not been selected?

smondal90 9y ago
Yes
- instadeal 9y ago
  Sorry for asking but did you receive an invitation or a rejection?
AlirezaBeig 9y ago
We have not received ours yet!

deleted 9y ago

[deleted]

deleted 9y ago

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deleted 9y ago

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vardhankoshal 9y ago

Got invite!

kalemayank 9y ago
Congratulations!
mconnolly 9y ago
Do you know when exactly you got the invite?
mariafg 9y ago
Nice!

vedicbrands 9y ago

Anyone still waiting? Do they save the rejection emails for the end?

deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
amandala3 9y ago
I think it's just rejections now :/

spencer-matonis 9y ago

Anyone receive a rejection yet? :/ I think we're toast ;-;

mariafg 9y ago
nope..
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
spencer-matonis 9y ago
Yup, "We're sorry to say that your startup was not selected to interview for the upcoming Y Combinator batch. Please don't take it personally." TRICKSY HOBBITZES! :( Thank you for opportunity! You're darn right we're applying W18!

instadeal 9y ago

just received mine. rejected! Well, good luck for the interview guys!

elizabeth8890 9y ago
Keep going, you can do it next time!
- instadeal 9y ago
  Thanks!

rzkeller22 9y ago

Just received my rejection.

elizabeth8890 9y ago
Keep going!
- rzkeller22 9y ago
  Thanks! Mine is not a technology business at all, not sure how much that weighs on the decision.
  - elizabeth8890 9y ago
    What is your business?

jwtnb 9y ago

we just received our rejection. Good luck guys!

DrBobDengler 9y ago

Just received rejection.

elizabeth8890 9y ago
Keep going! Next time!

bookbild 9y ago

Rejection mail just hit the inbox.

blhack 9y ago

Rejected. Sad :(

elizabeth8890 9y ago
Cheer up! You totally got this next time!

pauliotre 9y ago

Rejected. Thanks everybody. Congrats to invites and good luck to all!

deleted 9y ago

[deleted]

DevelopSmith 9y ago

I just received my rejection. I'm NOT sad at all. I will keep going. However, I'm happy that I have received an answer from Y Combinator even if it is a rejection. Good Luck everybody!

samulloa 9y ago

Rejected as well. I will keep making progress regardless.

instadeal 9y ago

For all the "rejected" : “There are always two choices. Two paths to take. One is easy. And its only reward is that it’s easy.” Let's keep going guys,even after 1000 rejections. At the end, the difference between an unsuccessful person and a successful one is that the latter never gave up.

entrepreneurSF 9y ago

I guess a successful exit in my last startup and revenue in our first 6 weeks for this startup weren't good enough, LOL. Kick some ass everyone! :)

wilton 9y ago

We're not selected to interview. We were invited to the pre-interview (video call) last week. Solo founder. Good luck everyone!!

ganeshkrishnan 9y ago
We got pre-interview video call too and then finally got rejected. I thought pre-interview would be a foot in the door but apparently not
xyzqwerty 9y ago
Same boat. How did your pre-interview go?
- wilton 9y ago
  It wasn't different than what I expected: intense and bold. In the end, we spent more time talking about the characteristics of an enterprise business (my case) rather than my team, product or growth, so it felt superficial. I think that's what you can get in 10 min. And you?

elizabeth8890 9y ago

Congratulations to everyone for applying, and giving it a shot, whether or not you got an interview! Go get 'em! :)

evanbrinkbit 9y ago

Got our rejection. I guess it'll be Winter 2018 for us.

disu 9y ago

YC just missed me ;)

DevelopSmith 9y ago
I'm sure they did. Good luck with your startup.

reviewmon 9y ago

This is our 3rd time applying. S15 - Rejected. S16 - Invited then rejected after the interview. S17 - Rejected (we grew to a much higher MRR since S16 with a stronger product). YC's decisions can be unpredictable and I believe you have to get lucky with the batch (your startup showing more promise than others in the pool).

lzimble 9y ago

Has anyone pitching a non profit heard back?

deleted 9y ago

[deleted]

jaymeh13 9y ago

Just got the glorious rejection email :) https://mail.mixmax.com/m/kWxSBXQlxWO9sN6AC https://mail.mixmax.com/m/kWxSBXQlxWO9sN6AC We interviewed in-person for W17 in October and got rejected because we didn't articulate a good plan for growth. - we grew 4,000% since October - launched huge features for both sides of our marketplace - received acquisition interest in < 3 months of being live - most importantly, made something that people are loving and using on a daily basis. It's a bummer for sure but not the end of the world. To anyone who got an interview, Figure out your biggest weakness and a plan for how you overcome it. Your interviewers will exploit it. Here's some notes on our experience going through the interview https://paper.dropbox.com/doc/YC-Interview-Experience-L45KzTpfufdiYSHmvhsiw https://paper.dropbox.com/doc/YC-Interview-Experience-L45KzT... Good luck all

patwalls 9y ago
Hey this is awesome. Thanks!
KevinJ90825 9y ago
Working with @jaymeh13 and interviewed with him for W17. To those who got an interview: congratulations! Keep trying to prove yourself wrong and you'll expose any of the weaknesses that they will try to find in the interview. To those who didn't: Congratulations anyways! The YC application process itself makes you think deeply about your business and you should keep that with you and take it as a learning experience. Best of luck to everybody!
mzg92 9y ago
Holy cow if that doesn't get you in I don't know what would...
elizabeth8890 9y ago
That's really helpful! And funny! Thank you!
sontek 9y ago
Can you provide any tips on how you reached out to other alum in preparation (you said you prepared with AlphaFlow and Snapdocs for example). Also, are you allowed to share any of the questions you had that you found surprising?

preetsahil 9y ago

rejected :(

ParameterOne 9y ago

Want to launch anyways? https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14144922 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14144922

mariafg 9y ago

I haven't received any answer yet. Is anyone still waiting?

apsec112 9y ago

I was turned down after an interview last batch. I think I probably won't apply again. YC's standards now seem so high that, by the time I expect to meet them, there won't be much point in YC anymore. If I have 2,000 users, which is pretty tiny, that's $40K a month at $20 per person. If I get 50 signups a week, that's a 10% per month growth rate. If I have $40K in high-margin monthly revenue with a 10% per month growth rate, why sell stock at a $1.7M valuation, in the hope of getting some connections to sell more stock at a $5M valuation? It just doesn't make business sense. All you'd have to do is wait a few years, and you'd have more profits in the bank, in cash, than the "valuation" you'd get from California VCs.

shatez 9y ago
I agree with this....and I think it is a reflection of the diminishing value that accelerators bring to the table for software startups. Teams great enough to get into YC are great enough to build a product, take it to market, generate revenue and grow just fine without an accelerator.
- shatez 9y ago
  There's a good article on SaaStr...that the only value fundraising and accelerators bring is to speed up the growth a bit, but good SaaS co's are good without outside help. Accelerators and outside capital are neither sufficient nor necessary. The YC model has been in place for awhile, eventually even it will be disrupted...
xyzqwerty 9y ago
Are those your actual numbers?
- apsec112 9y ago
  No, that's based off https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VCfpzLhSSxM/V0tbZAPvRTI/AAAAAAAAAeM/Y8RcMQS2H9cCSZLzNcU0gn9g5Aekn1pwACLcB/s1600/SaaSFunding2016On_a_napkin.png https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VCfpzLhSSxM/V0tbZAPvRTI/AAAAAAAAA... by venture capitalist Christoph Janz, plus a guesstimate (based on conversations with many YC applicants, both successful and not, and on the fundraising track records of YC cos) that the YC admission bar is about equal to the bar for a large seed round.

spencer-matonis 9y ago

Planning a possible YC "reject" event. Post here if interested: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14144922 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14144922 Would have our own presentation day, pitch feedback, try out each other's products, etc. I think it would be great! :)

elizabeth8890 9y ago
This is brilliant!

Ashu_14 9y ago

Received my 2nd rejection mail from YC. had applied for W17 as a hardware startup.

ParameterOne 9y ago
Doing anything with routers/modems?
- Ashu_14 9y ago
  Nope. Pure hardware model with some embedded stuff
  - ParameterOne 9y ago
    Do you want to come to the yc rejection demo day and show your stuff?
    - Ashu_14 9y ago
      Would love to. However, i'm based out in India. Let me know how can i connect?
      - ParameterOne 9y ago
        ShowYC.com for a demo/pitch party day

ljmason 9y ago

Are a lot still waiting to hear?? Its 11pm MST, and no news...

Ashu_14 9y ago

A rejected application the second time in a row. Had applied to YC W17 batch wherein got rejected after interview. I really doubt if I'm going to apply again in future. As someone marked in the previous comments, YC is now all about high standards and the companies they sign would anyways had done great without them as well. Since the last time we applied, we experienced quite a good growth in terms of revenues and customers. plus we introduced some unique engagement model which previously was not at place and was hypothetically roaming around in our minds. I thought YC support could help us gain networks over in different sectors with experts and that's where we have been seeking support since long. Even in the application we clearly mentioned our "ask" and what we expect from YC. I think they don't deal with hardware startups or even if they do, those startups are the ones who already might be enjoying millions of dollars of revenue.

lordvon 9y ago
To your last point, not true. I think I fit the category of hardware and got an interview with a prototype.
- Ashu_14 9y ago
  I'm happy to hear that! I think it's more off a personal luck with the same. How YC partners take in you is totally dependent upon the partners only. Good luck with the interview.

Ashu_14 9y ago

Anyone with hardware concept applied for this batch?

blhack 9y ago

I have to be honest, this is an emotion I'm not entirely familiar with. I totally get rejection, I've been rejected for all sorts of things, but normally for rejection I can understand on some level why. This I don't get. Not only are we applying with a company that fits with an RFS, not only is our team really solid, not only is concept proven, but we have a possibility to do real social good that both makes money and helps people. Even in talking to other people, the reaction was either "why are you even doing YC" or "Sheesh I'm embarassed to by applying next to you". I know that sounds really arrogant, and Im sorry for sounding like that. I'm just...confused, I guess? I really wish that the applications came with a reason why they were rejected, even if it was one sentence. I can't honestly believe that typing a one sentence "rejection for reason" would take that much extra time. Even a drop down of "we rejected you for this one of the following 5 canned reasons" (your team was bad, your idea was bad, you have no revenue, etc.) would be helpful. Is it because my cofounder is from another country? Or because we don't live in the bay area? I seriously do not understand this. I know that sounds a little bit whiney, but it's just frustrating to have put this much emotional investment into something[1] and to get rejected for it without even a brief explanation of why. [1]: For people that don't live in the bay, applying to this program is a big deal. I skipped out on events next week because we might have to block out time for an interview, I moved things around this week specifically so that I could schedule an interview if possible, I moved things around this summer so that if I needed to be in SF I could etc. I get not counting your chickens and all of that, I don't think we did. Nothing is lost for us here, and moving events and things around isn't a big deal, obviously that is just part of doing business. It is just frustrating to get a rejection email that doesn't even include a few seconds explaining why. Forever onward, obviously. It just really sucks not having feedback on why you were rejected.

DevelopSmith 9y ago
What really frustrates me is that many shitty startups that one can't understand what value they add to the world get accepted. When you see your A.I. startup gets a rejection and a celebrity engagement app gets an invitation!
19eightyfour 9y ago
To be honest I think a lot of the calculation goes around like this: - Here are the X Partners we have available as resources - Who do these X Partners Like and who can they Work With - How would this Team fit into our YC ecosystem, recognizing that a lot of the slots in some verticals are filled. It's a multidimensional optimization, they're not just going for rawr, they're going for "fit", too, and perhaps all of the qualities you list as reasons for your surprise at the rejection, are only part of the equation. It's the pragmatics of organizations. The system doesn't just choose the "best parts", it chooses the best of the parts that "fit the best". Paradoxically, as the system increases in size, the "open slots" become more constrained, the "fit" becomes more overdefined by the existing parts, and the likelihood of choosing based on "rawr bestness" is decreased. Take heart, Fellow Rejectee!

MarkusWunsch 9y ago

Okay, I finally got rejected once more as solo founder: www.mountwish.org Problem and solution: Most companies struggle with the high complexity and ever-increasing regulatory burdens associated with managing their FX, commodity price and interest rate risks. Not to mention that costs in financial risk management are rising fast (currently firms spend on average around 2.86% of their revenues on hedging these risk). Hence, they usually would prefer to have a simple, straight-forward insurance covering these risks rather than having to deal with derivatives and the related administrative requirements. That’s where we come in with our product called FinGuard, which is an ERP system plugin doing exactly this – measuring the exposure and automatically insuring it at a cost which is at least 40% cheaper compared to traditional hedging methods (as we can effectively match contrary risk positions of different customers). Top three customer advantages: 1. Significant EBITDA boost Savings coming from our cross-customer hedging approach can increase EBITDA by up to 11.5% p.a. which is equal to an increase of 16% in sales, while additionally saving any kind of fixed treasury expenses (e.g. treasury systems, staffing, research data, special admin processes and legal services,…). Hence customers’ EBITDA will go up sharply. 2. No compliance hassles anymore It reduces compliance burdens , just think of KYC checks, MiFID II, EMIR and the likes, which for an insurance policy from a customer’s perspective are no longer applicable 3. Convenience and more time for your core business Increased focus on your core business with automation taking all the financial risk management hassles (e.g. going global w/o worrying about FX rates) and potential human errors (e.g. no litigations with banks about the agreed on derivatives pricing) out while using big data to improve results further Status Quo and Key metrics: - A solid team is in place and shall be hired with the next funding round (or accelerator money), but until then it's just me working full-time on the project (by the way I don' understand the bias against solo founders anyway: https://techcrunch.com/2016/08/26/co-founders-optional/ https://techcrunch.com/2016/08/26/co-founders-optional/) - Validated concept (based on historical data), business processes defined, thorough business plan written (100+ pages) and software design sketch ready; first prototype shall work by end of April - Currently discussing cooperation with other financial services providers as they can help us to drive sales significantly (attracted leading players including bulge bracket banks and household names in the insurance industry among others) - 300+ sales leads each with more than 100m in revenues (our own pricing is derived as a percentage of their revenues); currently reaching out to them to get signed LoIs - 2.97tn USD total market size; expecting USD 546m in pre-payments in year 1 - positive VC feedback in general

deleted 9y ago

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gibsonj 9y ago

We received our second rejection for an interview yesterday, but luckily for us YC was just a nice to have and not end all. As I read through the comments, I believe many businesses forget the fact that business is ran by the numbers. Yes, can YC help you get attractive numbers for investors, but you can do the exact same thing on your own if you build something people need (love). I find it hard to believe that any investor that YC can introduce you to will turn down your meeting if you have built a business that has attractive numbers. That's what they look for anyway...YC funded or not. For those that got an interview, congrats. For those that didn't, keep going and be great in what you are doing.

Ashu_14 9y ago
You are absolutely right and for a founder whose truly committed to his/her business should only consider these rejections as a bump on the road. However i still disagree with how YC select the startup for the interview. I mean the founders who really needs their support are mostly rejected by them while founders who already has raised a million dollar round (or enjoying revenues) are welcomed and signed by the YC team. I think YC has now become more of a Standard tool for businesses rather providing actual support to founders who need them badly. I'm from India and i personally know at least 10 founders here who already had raised so much of amount before getting into YC. This doesn't makes sense to me as to why the heck would someone get into an incubator/accelerator who's already enjoying the business with healthy unit economics. Startup incubators have now lost their vision and are now more into what i think has just restricted to the investment game.
- AnthonyHooper 9y ago
  You make a good point; perhaps YC should switch to a tiered system?
  - Ashu_14 9y ago
    I can't comment upon that. However that's my personal experience which spoke.
  - 9y ago

paytheos 9y ago

Congratulations to those of you invited an interview! If unfortunately you don't get in, check out a group which is getting together to set up a Demo Day for rejects after the YC demo day: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14144922 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14144922

DrBobDengler 9y ago

Dear Fellow Rejects - did any of you go back and take a look at your application and find questions added that were not on the application that you submitted? I was ultra scrupulous in double checking before I submitted. Look in 'Progress' section. There is a forced choice question 'Which of the following best describes your progress?' which offered a couple of answer options. My post rejection application review shows the next question as 'When will you have a prototype or beta? that is not completed because I do not remember it being on the application template. Just a little further down, there is a question 'Do you have revenue?' to which I answered 'No'. But then there are 6 additional questions that I do not remember seeing on the pre-submission application. The first is 'What was your revenue last month? (Please use USD. If none, enter '0'). If that question was there on my pre submission application I certainly would have entered '0', but it appears empty on the post rejection review. Worse, if the application processor could not find a '0' in that space, it might have rejected the whole application as 'incomplete'. Even worse, the next 5 questions 'Your revenue 2,3,4,5,6 months ago?' would have also registered incomplete. But I don't think these questions were on the my pre-submission application form. Also take a look in the equity section. The first question is 'have you incorporated....' which I answered 'No'. I did not answer nor remember seeing the next 3 questions:'What kind of entity and in what state...', 'Please describe the breakdown of the equity ownership...', 'List any investments your company has received..." Please check your post rejection applications - do you see these questions? Did you answer these questions, or does it look like they were added after submission? If I am wrong or misunderstand, I apologize. I submitted my application on 3/22.

GlennJoe 9y ago
I also noticed the same. I answered 0. Same for incorporation . New questions prop up now.
Ashu_14 9y ago
You are write, these questions were added somewhere in the first week of march. I was casually checking my application (it was editable then) and there i found these 6-7 questions which were sort 'newly added' to the application. I however, answered them later on. I wonder YC guys didn't released any notification regarding the update.

mittermayr 9y ago

It's a lot of work that goes into these applications, and I absolutely don't sweat the rejection (hurts a little, but that's all right, we're not in the business of passing the YC application), but as a future suggestion maybe — and I absolutely understand YC gets a ton of applications — if there was a way to just get a short comment on why an application was rejected, it would be so incredibly helpful. One sentence, perhaps even just a standard tick-box canned-response the reviewer hits at the end of reading it ("market-fit not clear", "worried about team", etc.). No interest to argue about it, but the value given back to startups would be tremendous, with very little time required (ticking the final rejection-reason box, even if it just says, "not really something I'd be interested in"). I would even pay for it. I know that's absolutely not within YC's context and mindset, but I'd pay to just read one short line that helps us see what you saw (or hoped to see but didn't).

DrBobDengler 9y ago
Also a Summer17 reject. I support and would pay if required. YC encourages me to resubmit (50% of recent batches have applied multiple times), yet I have no clue what to clarify or resolve. It makes no sense to me or YC for me to keep submitting applications if there is some glaring flaw. If they don't like my idea, so be it. But if there is a hint that might make the next application better than a crap shoot, I want to know about it. If they would consider me a stronger candidate if I had more progress, have more users, be less serious on my video, have revenue, have a longer runway, have a tech founder, didn't understand something, thought my forecasts were unrealistic, needed a fact that I failed to include, etc. that would help immensely. You are right, they have the money, so they can decide on whatever basis they choose, but if there is something that they expected to see but didn't or didn't expect to see but did, or wanted to see less/more of, or more proof of, that would really go a long way to increasing my confidence that I did all I could in my application and the decision was truly beyond my control - I could live easier with that, and move on. Thanks.

shameikachan 9y ago

Good Afternoon All Today is Monday, April 24th. I'm super ancy. I applied with a late application 12 days ago and haven't heard anything. Did anyone else apply late recently? Have you heard anything? I keep checking my email and junk box obsessively, scared I might miss something from YC.