5 ms·

Crunchies Winners: Twitter Takes Best Startup Of 2010

47 points by EJE 16y ago

EJE 16y ago
original title was for PG/Y Combinator as "Angel Investor of the Year", but the title was changed...
- EJE 16y ago
  it changed automatically
richcollins 16y ago
Awards for startups seem silly http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzPfKI4b-dg#t=4m27s http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzPfKI4b-dg#t=4m27s
- chrischen 16y ago
  Awards in general are silly.
  - chegra 16y ago
    I don't think awards should be the end goal, but they do serve a purpose. For instance, most people on here probably wouldn't have heard about Liu Xiaobo, well atleast before he won the Nobel Peace Prize. Having the backing of prestigious award such as Nobel Prize will only bolster his cause; he's in prison. Increase financial and political support is not silly at all. For scientist, this might mean that they wouldn't have to fight as hard to get funding from people who don't understand their research. The people who don't understand research understand awards, so it can be used as a proxy to make judgement.
    - chrischen 16y ago
      You don't need an award for any of those things. The award recognizes the accomplishment only to those who cannot understand it. That's why it's silly. But there are other ways to recognize their achievements... like understanding what they did and why it's important. Yes in an ideal world it should be unnecessary...
- ericflo 16y ago
  Wow. That video was wonderful.
- btipling 16y ago
  I've been feeling down in the dumps all day, depressed about life in general, and I've just discovered thanks to you that watching videos of Richard Feynmann cheer me up. Thank you.
  - richcollins 16y ago
    I have trouble watching them because they always make me feel like I'm wasting my life :-(
- kordless 16y ago
  "And then all of a sudden some strange phenomenon occurs in a corner." That give me hope. :)
nhangen 16y ago
Well deserved. If it weren't for PG and YC, I wouldn't know half of what I've learned as a result of stumbling onto Hacker News.
- nhangen 16y ago
  Why did the title of this thread change since I've left my original comment, which was in regards to PG and YC winning Angels of the Year?
Aaronontheweb 16y ago
Doesn't it seem somewhat passe to give the award to someone as well-established as Twitter?
- dkasper 16y ago
  Well Facebook had won it for the past 3 years (which happens to be every other year the Crunchies have existed), so I wouldn't say it's that unexpected.
- lenley 16y ago
  of course ... it's called generating traffic.
- jamesteow 16y ago
  Just as much I guess as giving a Person of the Year award to a guy who's startup hit the mainstream years ago.
locusm 16y ago
and second place went to Microsoft
- whatusername 16y ago
  I hear IBM came third. (At 99 years old they squeaked in). They almost had as much revenue as Apple in 2010. Nintendo (at 123 years old) is no longer a startup and is no longer eligible.
  - ugh 16y ago
    Damn you, sir! You sent me on an awesome trip looking around for the oldest companies. Few are older than a few centuries, most are Japanese (others are European), small and restaurants, hotels or breweries. All are fascinating.
    - whatusername 16y ago
      I too have undertaken this trip in the past. A fascinating journey, albeit one to avoid while you face pressing deadlines. :)
btmorex 16y ago
These would have been far more interesting if they focused on newer, less established companies and products. Everyone already knows exactly what Twitter, Facebook, and the iPad are and no one cares if they win awards.
- electromagnetic 16y ago
  What I was thinking when I read the title "Uhh, twitter didn't start in 2010". A well established company (IE surviving the first 3 years where most companies fail miserably) is not a startup. It may behave as one, it may act as one, but if it doesn't have the massive impending doom of simply being a brand spanking new company, then it's not a start up. By the logic demonstrated here, I vote for best startup for 2011 to be Apple.
- ebaysucks 16y ago
  Maybe they use AOL's perspective of what a "startup" is.
- knowtheory 16y ago
  One wonders if General Motors qualifies as a startup or product by their definition. They've put out a cool piece of technology (the Volt) even.
- nerfhammer 16y ago
  There were separate categories for "best new startup or product" (winner: Quora) and "best overall product or startup". I personally agree that the best new startup is more interesting and would make a better headline for the announcement.
- phlux 16y ago
  Techcrunch is about fostering and nurturing the growth of Arringtons ego. If he can focus on all the people who really do technology and are already successful, then he can feel like he is important and part of the scene. Just like how he invited himself to the angelgate meetings and was greeting with a nice helping of "please god, not this fucking guy" yet referred to all of them as his "close friends" Sure Disrupt is a good platform for startups and tech to launch, but seriously looking at the quality of their hosts, and all the article after article postings on TC that are riddled with mistakes, spelling errors, grammar errors etc, one cant take them too seriously. It is ego factory, nothing more.
leftnode 16y ago
I think it's ironic 37Signals is listed under the Best Enterprise category.
- uptown 16y ago
  Agreed. Context for anyone that may have missed it: http://twitter.com/#!/dhh/status/27434483292573696 http://twitter.com/#!/dhh/status/27434483292573696
haecib 16y ago
I really think they need to define 'startup'. I don't think that word means what they think it means...
ddemchuk 16y ago
I'm sorry, but WHAT?!?! 1) They are not a startup. They're over 4 years old. They have officially passed the starting phase 2) They have not monetized since graduating into the big boy businesses phase. Riding the coattails of VC's for years with no clear plan to reach profitability is not business 3) They are instable as hell. They crash nearly everyday, with millions of dollars in the bank, hundreds of engineers working for them, and 4 years of development under their belt, and they have a frickin meme because of how instable they are 4) They've stopped innovating. Nothing new has come from twitter in the last 2+ years other than their API. 140 character messages, we get it. Blatant buzz word fanboyism is still running amok apparently.
- fredoliveira 16y ago
  I'm going to do something I dislike and play devil's advocate. You're not the only one here saying that Twitter is no startup, and while I agree with that assessment to a certain extent, you've pretty much described a startup with your points. A startup is no longer considered being a startup if they become profitable (twitter isn't), is acquired or merges into another entity (twitter hasn't) or becomes public (which twitter hasn't either). Is twitter a startup? Yes. Would giving the prize to some other company be more interesting? Definitely. These competitions are often not fair, but honestly, who are we to judge?
iam 16y ago
Kinect didn't win best device? How disappointing, since it was the only actually novel thing on there.
kordless 16y ago
Wife said to me this morning, "Wait, didn't you sign up for Twitter in like 2007? They're not a startup!"

47 points by EJE 16y ago

EJE 16y ago

original title was for PG/Y Combinator as "Angel Investor of the Year", but the title was changed...

EJE 16y ago
it changed automatically

richcollins 16y ago

Awards for startups seem silly http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzPfKI4b-dg#t=4m27s http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzPfKI4b-dg#t=4m27s

chrischen 16y ago
Awards in general are silly.
- chegra 16y ago
  I don't think awards should be the end goal, but they do serve a purpose. For instance, most people on here probably wouldn't have heard about Liu Xiaobo, well atleast before he won the Nobel Peace Prize. Having the backing of prestigious award such as Nobel Prize will only bolster his cause; he's in prison. Increase financial and political support is not silly at all. For scientist, this might mean that they wouldn't have to fight as hard to get funding from people who don't understand their research. The people who don't understand research understand awards, so it can be used as a proxy to make judgement.
  - chrischen 16y ago
    You don't need an award for any of those things. The award recognizes the accomplishment only to those who cannot understand it. That's why it's silly. But there are other ways to recognize their achievements... like understanding what they did and why it's important. Yes in an ideal world it should be unnecessary...
ericflo 16y ago
Wow. That video was wonderful.
btipling 16y ago
I've been feeling down in the dumps all day, depressed about life in general, and I've just discovered thanks to you that watching videos of Richard Feynmann cheer me up. Thank you.
- richcollins 16y ago
  I have trouble watching them because they always make me feel like I'm wasting my life :-(
kordless 16y ago
"And then all of a sudden some strange phenomenon occurs in a corner." That give me hope. :)

nhangen 16y ago

Well deserved. If it weren't for PG and YC, I wouldn't know half of what I've learned as a result of stumbling onto Hacker News.

nhangen 16y ago
Why did the title of this thread change since I've left my original comment, which was in regards to PG and YC winning Angels of the Year?

Aaronontheweb 16y ago

Doesn't it seem somewhat passe to give the award to someone as well-established as Twitter?

dkasper 16y ago
Well Facebook had won it for the past 3 years (which happens to be every other year the Crunchies have existed), so I wouldn't say it's that unexpected.
lenley 16y ago
of course ... it's called generating traffic.
jamesteow 16y ago
Just as much I guess as giving a Person of the Year award to a guy who's startup hit the mainstream years ago.

locusm 16y ago

and second place went to Microsoft

whatusername 16y ago
I hear IBM came third. (At 99 years old they squeaked in). They almost had as much revenue as Apple in 2010. Nintendo (at 123 years old) is no longer a startup and is no longer eligible.
- ugh 16y ago
  Damn you, sir! You sent me on an awesome trip looking around for the oldest companies. Few are older than a few centuries, most are Japanese (others are European), small and restaurants, hotels or breweries. All are fascinating.
  - whatusername 16y ago
    I too have undertaken this trip in the past. A fascinating journey, albeit one to avoid while you face pressing deadlines. :)

btmorex 16y ago

These would have been far more interesting if they focused on newer, less established companies and products. Everyone already knows exactly what Twitter, Facebook, and the iPad are and no one cares if they win awards.

electromagnetic 16y ago
What I was thinking when I read the title "Uhh, twitter didn't start in 2010". A well established company (IE surviving the first 3 years where most companies fail miserably) is not a startup. It may behave as one, it may act as one, but if it doesn't have the massive impending doom of simply being a brand spanking new company, then it's not a start up. By the logic demonstrated here, I vote for best startup for 2011 to be Apple.
ebaysucks 16y ago
Maybe they use AOL's perspective of what a "startup" is.
knowtheory 16y ago
One wonders if General Motors qualifies as a startup or product by their definition. They've put out a cool piece of technology (the Volt) even.
nerfhammer 16y ago
There were separate categories for "best new startup or product" (winner: Quora) and "best overall product or startup". I personally agree that the best new startup is more interesting and would make a better headline for the announcement.
phlux 16y ago
Techcrunch is about fostering and nurturing the growth of Arringtons ego. If he can focus on all the people who really do technology and are already successful, then he can feel like he is important and part of the scene. Just like how he invited himself to the angelgate meetings and was greeting with a nice helping of "please god, not this fucking guy" yet referred to all of them as his "close friends" Sure Disrupt is a good platform for startups and tech to launch, but seriously looking at the quality of their hosts, and all the article after article postings on TC that are riddled with mistakes, spelling errors, grammar errors etc, one cant take them too seriously. It is ego factory, nothing more.

leftnode 16y ago

I think it's ironic 37Signals is listed under the Best Enterprise category.

uptown 16y ago
Agreed. Context for anyone that may have missed it: http://twitter.com/#!/dhh/status/27434483292573696 http://twitter.com/#!/dhh/status/27434483292573696

haecib 16y ago

I really think they need to define 'startup'. I don't think that word means what they think it means...

ddemchuk 16y ago

I'm sorry, but WHAT?!?! 1) They are not a startup. They're over 4 years old. They have officially passed the starting phase 2) They have not monetized since graduating into the big boy businesses phase. Riding the coattails of VC's for years with no clear plan to reach profitability is not business 3) They are instable as hell. They crash nearly everyday, with millions of dollars in the bank, hundreds of engineers working for them, and 4 years of development under their belt, and they have a frickin meme because of how instable they are 4) They've stopped innovating. Nothing new has come from twitter in the last 2+ years other than their API. 140 character messages, we get it. Blatant buzz word fanboyism is still running amok apparently.

fredoliveira 16y ago
I'm going to do something I dislike and play devil's advocate. You're not the only one here saying that Twitter is no startup, and while I agree with that assessment to a certain extent, you've pretty much described a startup with your points. A startup is no longer considered being a startup if they become profitable (twitter isn't), is acquired or merges into another entity (twitter hasn't) or becomes public (which twitter hasn't either). Is twitter a startup? Yes. Would giving the prize to some other company be more interesting? Definitely. These competitions are often not fair, but honestly, who are we to judge?

iam 16y ago

Kinect didn't win best device? How disappointing, since it was the only actually novel thing on there.

kordless 16y ago

Wife said to me this morning, "Wait, didn't you sign up for Twitter in like 2007? They're not a startup!"