While some of his complaints are valid (for example the bar London Minibar uses has terrible acoustics), there's a lot of value to be gained. A lot of it is ab

While some of his complaints are valid (for example the bar London Minibar uses has terrible acoustics), there's a lot of value to be gained. A lot of it is about serendipity, you don't go out looking for solutions, but when you're there solutions have a way of finding you. I think if you go there thinking "I want xyz" you might not get a lot out of it. The author of the article says "do we really want to hear other startup’s pitches?" I'm always happy to hear other startup's pitches, indeed on a few occasions I've met up with other HNers just to hear their pitches. I enjoy learning about problems others are tackling and providing feedback where I can, and hearing other people pitch helps me understand the weaknesses in my own pitches. If you go in with the attitude that you don't care about what anyone else is doing then you're not going to make many friends. Networking isn't about how many hands you shake, it's about making deeper mutually beneficial connections, and to do that you have to have an interest in other people. Without that it's not going to work.