There has been lots of discussions on what YC is and how to emulate YC. I don't think these discussions are wrong or misguided. I just think they are missing

There has been lots of discussions on what YC is and how to emulate YC. I don't think these discussions are wrong or misguided. I just think they are missing an important point which is that we are in the midst of a great generational change of consumer pattern (both for hard goods and for information). And the only way to catch this wave is if you are part of this wave. Being an older entrepreneur (much older than the typical YC'er), I speak for myself when I say that I can only be a spectator and watch everything at awe. But it would be very difficult for me to lead any startup opportunities that exploit this change (at least not by myself). So I think the key to success for YC is not the incubation aspect nor the micro-loan aspect (both of which exist outside of YC). I think the key here is that the YC'er are encouraged to view themselves as the ultimate "surrogate" customers, that they should lead the charge and they have the right to because they are both technologists (i.e, hackers) and representative of their generation.