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YC will attract an even larger following and the signal/noise ratio of applicants will become a problem in itself. The benefits of YC are clear so people will

by albahk 16y ago

YC will attract an even larger following and the signal/noise ratio of applicants will become a problem in itself. The benefits of YC are clear so people will start to make it their goal to get into YC rather than build a great company. This is outside the control of YC. Its a side-effect of becoming too successful. I don't think we are too far off seeing "How to get into YC" ebooks or even discrete coaching on how to do well in YC-interviews. Please forgive the pessimism but its my honest feeling.

jasonlynes 16y ago
im wondering what the signal/noise ratio is like now, the first batch after the start fund. will be interesting to see how big and how awesome this next batch is.
- JonathanWCurd 16y ago
  I think unfortunately for YC the noise level will rise significantly. Before the start fund YC wasn't about money but rather building great products around strong individuals / teams. The funded believed in what they were doing and YC believed in them and together they walked a path toward success. While that won't change going forward, I think there will be a lot more people who apply and aren't as passionate or haven't thought about their ideas in as much depth but see money at the start of the rainbow as a way to figure it out.
rabble 16y ago
I think this is a good point. Right now YC avoids using social proof as an evaluation tool. They look at the team's ability to work together, that they can ship, and their idea. As YC grows they need to make sure they don't look at who recommends them, how much influence they have, if they're famous. They can get a %50 success rate, because they have developed a model of evaluating. As the value of getting in to YC increases, the ability to game the model does as well. Every blog post which tells you how to apply, shifts the companies accepted towards those who are able to win at that game. Every applicant who goes in to that interview knowing it's not a presentation, but a demo followed by 10 minutes of rapid fire questions / brainstorming, has a big advantage. Every applicant who can get current or former YC founders to review their application has an advantage. Every applicant who spends time reading each and every 'applying to YC' blog post, has an advantage. The big question is, are those advantages things which correlate with being a good startup founder. In some cases yes, in some no. This is the real signal to noise problem that YC faces. Not that there might be 2000 startups applying each cycle, but that applicants learn how the theater works. They know the game, and are actors which present the perfect YC application. Then YC has to figure out, are these guys and gals really good at what they do, or are they telling me the story I want to hear. That said, i bet even with the noise, YC has a better way of evaluating the potential future of startups than the 'who else invested, who's the advisors' model many angels use.

by albahk 16y ago

jasonlynes 16y ago

im wondering what the signal/noise ratio is like now, the first batch after the start fund. will be interesting to see how big and how awesome this next batch is.

JonathanWCurd 16y ago
I think unfortunately for YC the noise level will rise significantly. Before the start fund YC wasn't about money but rather building great products around strong individuals / teams. The funded believed in what they were doing and YC believed in them and together they walked a path toward success. While that won't change going forward, I think there will be a lot more people who apply and aren't as passionate or haven't thought about their ideas in as much depth but see money at the start of the rainbow as a way to figure it out.

rabble 16y ago

I think this is a good point. Right now YC avoids using social proof as an evaluation tool. They look at the team's ability to work together, that they can ship, and their idea. As YC grows they need to make sure they don't look at who recommends them, how much influence they have, if they're famous. They can get a %50 success rate, because they have developed a model of evaluating. As the value of getting in to YC increases, the ability to game the model does as well. Every blog post which tells you how to apply, shifts the companies accepted towards those who are able to win at that game. Every applicant who goes in to that interview knowing it's not a presentation, but a demo followed by 10 minutes of rapid fire questions / brainstorming, has a big advantage. Every applicant who can get current or former YC founders to review their application has an advantage. Every applicant who spends time reading each and every 'applying to YC' blog post, has an advantage. The big question is, are those advantages things which correlate with being a good startup founder. In some cases yes, in some no. This is the real signal to noise problem that YC faces. Not that there might be 2000 startups applying each cycle, but that applicants learn how the theater works. They know the game, and are actors which present the perfect YC application. Then YC has to figure out, are these guys and gals really good at what they do, or are they telling me the story I want to hear. That said, i bet even with the noise, YC has a better way of evaluating the potential future of startups than the 'who else invested, who's the advisors' model many angels use.