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There's a legit distinction, though, between startups and other businesses - startups are designed to grow fast. Are they, though? I have looked at the incomi

There's a legit distinction, though, between startups and other businesses - startups are designed to grow fast. Are they, though? I have looked at the incoming classes of various startup accelerators over the years and see lots of niche-focused products and services that can never grow to anything more than a niche-focused product or service as described in their pitch decks. I'm not putting down those types of businesses (or proto-businesses). I'm just pointing out that they don't have a high-growth profile or potential, the primary dividing line between "startups" and everything else dubbed "lifestyle" in investor circles.

robryan 8y ago
As far as YC goes, it seems that they are investing in companies they think might be able to dominate a niche in the hope that a few of them use that as a springboard to a much larger market.
taneq 8y ago
This seems to be a HN thing. Most places, a 'startup' is just someone trying to bootstrap a business into profitability so that, well, they have a profitable business. If you end up with a business that pays your wages, you win. If you end up with a business that pays your wages without you having to work full time (or at all) then you really win. On HN, a "startup" is a moonshot backed by venture capital, and is seen as a failure if it doesn't achieve a massive valuation and take over the world. You read about businesses with "mere" million-dollar-plus revenues being shut down because they're "unsuccessful". It's insane.