This is an excellent essay that speaks to the financial calculus of startup investing. In addition, I think YC partners also have a non-financial desire (e.g.

This is an excellent essay that speaks to the financial calculus of startup investing. In addition, I think YC partners also have a non-financial desire (e.g. first footnote in that same essay) to encourage entrepreneurship more broadly. Hence the larger YC batches and experiments like YC Fellowship [1] and online Startup School [2]. [1]: https://blog.ycombinator.com/yc-fellowship/ https://blog.ycombinator.com/yc-fellowship/ [2]: https://blog.ycombinator.com/onlineclass/ https://blog.ycombinator.com/onlineclass/