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> Silicon Valley doesn't care about your background This is BS. You have a much higher chance of rasing money for the same idea if you worked in FAANG than if

> Silicon Valley doesn't care about your background This is BS. You have a much higher chance of rasing money for the same idea if you worked in FAANG than if you worked in Accenture. Same goes to someone who went to Harvard vs someone who went to University of Colorado.

deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
petejames 6y ago
I think you are right if trying to raise money at the idea stage but if you have built something people want, investors don't care about your background. Growth chart will get anyone funded.
- blocked_again 6y ago
  Growth chart will get anyone funded anywhere. Not only in silicon valley.
  - barry-cotter 6y ago
    Patio11, we need you! Tell us of the atrocious funding environment in Tokyo. Tptacek, tell us of how much more conservative the funding environment is in Chicago! Patrick Collision, pc, speak of why you live in the US, not Ireland! A growth chart very much who not get you funded anywhere. Numbers that would have people writing cheques in Silicon Valley or even Boston would be lucky to get a loan, personally guaranteed from the founder, for a quarter of that amount in most of Europe. People raise in the Bakery w because it’s the best place to raise. This indie hacker, growth fund, Earnest Capital, lifestyle business to selling to PE funnel thing is distributing that and building a smoother thing between VC and small business but you cannot raise anywhere else like the Valley, except perhaps China. Even the Israelis go to the US to raise.
    - patio11 6y ago
      I endorse the above comment in my personal capacity. Valuations in Japan are below a fifth of similarly situated YC companies, where funding is available, and there are founder/business profiles trivially fundable in the Valley which would never raise a yen here.
  - TheMagicHorsey 6y ago
    Perhaps, but the terms elsewhere are atrocious compared to silicon valley. Source: I have watched angel rounds and series A in both Silicon Valley as well as in the East Coast and India. I'm in my fourth decade now and on my 8th startup. Silicon Valley has some angels that are pretty generous about modest traction if they like the team. I haven't found such people in NYC and in India (though they may exist).
- thesz 6y ago
  For that growth chart to materialize you have to be lucky. And nothing brings luck down on someone like rich parents.
bsenftner 6y ago
Silicon Valley cares about your age - young entrepreneurs get more attention than older. I think it is because the younger are more manipulable.
- learnstats2 6y ago
  Right - 17 year olds are unlikely to have enough experience of business or negotiation to know (for example) what conventions protect themselves from exploitation. But, on the other hand, can learn that as quickly as anyone else.
  - troquerre 6y ago
    The amazing thing is that Silicon Valley doesn't take advantage of young founders in this way (at least much less than in the East Coast/other environments I've seen). YC did a lot to change the culture of VC in Silicon Valley — I think almost everyone has shifted to playing infinite iterated games where screwing over a newcomer is disadvantageous because you don't know where they'll go in the future.
- kevc 6y ago
  This is a pervasive myth. Young founders get pr because it’s notable and drives clicks, but the average age of a successful founder is older. The average age of a YC founder is 30. According to a Harvard Business Review article I remember reading, the average age is 45.
macspoofing 6y ago
I think it just needs to be properly qualified. OP specifically referenced his age (which I am skeptical about as well). >You have a much higher chance of rasing money for the same idea if you worked in FAANG than if you worked in Accenture. You may be right, but do you have any evidence of this, anecdotal or otherwise?
- lhnz 6y ago
  > You may be right, but do you have any evidence of > this, anecdotal or otherwise? It's true everywhere else in the world. I think the burder of proof should be the other way around, and instead you should provide evidence this isn't the case within the YC/VC system?
  - macspoofing 6y ago
    >It's true everywhere else in the world. Sure. It's true that your background matters in general. What's not clear, and does put the burden of proof on OP, that the specific background of FAANG experience matters. >and instead you should provide evidence this isn't the case within the YC/VC system? As a general rule, it's not easy to prove a negative. What kind of evidence would you expect for YC/VC system that would answer this for you??
    - lhnz 6y ago
      > What kind of evidence would you expect for YC/VC system > that would answer this for you?? I'm not asking for a negative to be proven. You could define a set of prestigious organisations (FANG, Oxbridge, Ivy League) and you could look at the rate at which investors invest into people from these institutions over people from other institutions.
fortran77 6y ago
I agree. You can certainly do it without the "background", but we specifically had to get some well-connected "right-backgrounded" people involved before folks would answer our calls because all our principals had degrees from schools they never heard of (Ben-Gurion University of the Negev) and experience in little niche defense contractors that aren't "cool" by SV standards. (However, we did what we needed to do--get some Stanford people with ties to Sand Hill Road--and got it done.)
- R0b0t1 6y ago
  That's a little disappointing. It's still more about who you know?
  - emumoo 6y ago
    Marc Andreesen gave a talk where he frames it as one of the first hurdles in building a company. If you have a hard time finding some folks in the VC's network for initial contact, you'll probably have an even harder time reaching customers, advisors, engineers, etc.
austenallred 6y ago
It may be easier if you have credentials, but it’s certainly possible without them. I’d argue how your business is running is 10x as important as credentials. (I dropped out of a non-prestigious school and had work experience at one company, have raised $120m+ in <4 yrs).
- emit_time 6y ago
  > It may be easier if you have credentials, but it’s certainly possible without them. So they care a lot, but it’s not everything to them?
  - austenallred 6y ago
    I’d argue they care but not a lot
- disown 6y ago
  > (I dropped out of a non-prestigious school and had work experience at one company, have raised $120m+ in <4 yrs). In other words, you had connections? I'm guessing you weren't a poor single mother who dropped out of school to raise her kid. How do you drop out, have 1 job experience and raise $120m? Either you are extremely privilege and/or extraordinarily lucky. Stop making it sound so easy like everyone can do what you did. Most people, who didn't even drop out, wouldn't know where to start.
  - user5994461 6y ago
    You don't drop out and get 120M. You drop out, start a company because nobody wants you, get some seeds funding with sheer luck, grow the business progressively, hire some more people, grow some more and eventually raise 2 more rounds reaching 120M. That takes many many years. It's a massive combination of luck and being at the right place at the right time selling an okay thing. Then persevering over numerous years and executing decently. Most people won't get there not because they are incapable but because they don't have the environment and the bit of luck.
simonebrunozzi 6y ago
Not to mention it's easier if you're American, rather than... Say... Italian.

deleted 6y ago

[deleted]

petejames 6y ago

I think you are right if trying to raise money at the idea stage but if you have built something people want, investors don't care about your background. Growth chart will get anyone funded.

blocked_again 6y ago
Growth chart will get anyone funded anywhere. Not only in silicon valley.
- barry-cotter 6y ago
  Patio11, we need you! Tell us of the atrocious funding environment in Tokyo. Tptacek, tell us of how much more conservative the funding environment is in Chicago! Patrick Collision, pc, speak of why you live in the US, not Ireland! A growth chart very much who not get you funded anywhere. Numbers that would have people writing cheques in Silicon Valley or even Boston would be lucky to get a loan, personally guaranteed from the founder, for a quarter of that amount in most of Europe. People raise in the Bakery w because it’s the best place to raise. This indie hacker, growth fund, Earnest Capital, lifestyle business to selling to PE funnel thing is distributing that and building a smoother thing between VC and small business but you cannot raise anywhere else like the Valley, except perhaps China. Even the Israelis go to the US to raise.
  - patio11 6y ago
    I endorse the above comment in my personal capacity. Valuations in Japan are below a fifth of similarly situated YC companies, where funding is available, and there are founder/business profiles trivially fundable in the Valley which would never raise a yen here.
- TheMagicHorsey 6y ago
  Perhaps, but the terms elsewhere are atrocious compared to silicon valley. Source: I have watched angel rounds and series A in both Silicon Valley as well as in the East Coast and India. I'm in my fourth decade now and on my 8th startup. Silicon Valley has some angels that are pretty generous about modest traction if they like the team. I haven't found such people in NYC and in India (though they may exist).
thesz 6y ago
For that growth chart to materialize you have to be lucky. And nothing brings luck down on someone like rich parents.

bsenftner 6y ago

Silicon Valley cares about your age - young entrepreneurs get more attention than older. I think it is because the younger are more manipulable.

learnstats2 6y ago
Right - 17 year olds are unlikely to have enough experience of business or negotiation to know (for example) what conventions protect themselves from exploitation. But, on the other hand, can learn that as quickly as anyone else.
- troquerre 6y ago
  The amazing thing is that Silicon Valley doesn't take advantage of young founders in this way (at least much less than in the East Coast/other environments I've seen). YC did a lot to change the culture of VC in Silicon Valley — I think almost everyone has shifted to playing infinite iterated games where screwing over a newcomer is disadvantageous because you don't know where they'll go in the future.
kevc 6y ago
This is a pervasive myth. Young founders get pr because it’s notable and drives clicks, but the average age of a successful founder is older. The average age of a YC founder is 30. According to a Harvard Business Review article I remember reading, the average age is 45.

macspoofing 6y ago

I think it just needs to be properly qualified. OP specifically referenced his age (which I am skeptical about as well). >You have a much higher chance of rasing money for the same idea if you worked in FAANG than if you worked in Accenture. You may be right, but do you have any evidence of this, anecdotal or otherwise?

lhnz 6y ago
> You may be right, but do you have any evidence of > this, anecdotal or otherwise? It's true everywhere else in the world. I think the burder of proof should be the other way around, and instead you should provide evidence this isn't the case within the YC/VC system?
- macspoofing 6y ago
  >It's true everywhere else in the world. Sure. It's true that your background matters in general. What's not clear, and does put the burden of proof on OP, that the specific background of FAANG experience matters. >and instead you should provide evidence this isn't the case within the YC/VC system? As a general rule, it's not easy to prove a negative. What kind of evidence would you expect for YC/VC system that would answer this for you??
  - lhnz 6y ago
    > What kind of evidence would you expect for YC/VC system > that would answer this for you?? I'm not asking for a negative to be proven. You could define a set of prestigious organisations (FANG, Oxbridge, Ivy League) and you could look at the rate at which investors invest into people from these institutions over people from other institutions.

fortran77 6y ago

I agree. You can certainly do it without the "background", but we specifically had to get some well-connected "right-backgrounded" people involved before folks would answer our calls because all our principals had degrees from schools they never heard of (Ben-Gurion University of the Negev) and experience in little niche defense contractors that aren't "cool" by SV standards. (However, we did what we needed to do--get some Stanford people with ties to Sand Hill Road--and got it done.)

R0b0t1 6y ago
That's a little disappointing. It's still more about who you know?
- emumoo 6y ago
  Marc Andreesen gave a talk where he frames it as one of the first hurdles in building a company. If you have a hard time finding some folks in the VC's network for initial contact, you'll probably have an even harder time reaching customers, advisors, engineers, etc.

austenallred 6y ago

It may be easier if you have credentials, but it’s certainly possible without them. I’d argue how your business is running is 10x as important as credentials. (I dropped out of a non-prestigious school and had work experience at one company, have raised $120m+ in <4 yrs).

emit_time 6y ago
> It may be easier if you have credentials, but it’s certainly possible without them. So they care a lot, but it’s not everything to them?
- austenallred 6y ago
  I’d argue they care but not a lot
disown 6y ago
> (I dropped out of a non-prestigious school and had work experience at one company, have raised $120m+ in <4 yrs). In other words, you had connections? I'm guessing you weren't a poor single mother who dropped out of school to raise her kid. How do you drop out, have 1 job experience and raise $120m? Either you are extremely privilege and/or extraordinarily lucky. Stop making it sound so easy like everyone can do what you did. Most people, who didn't even drop out, wouldn't know where to start.
- user5994461 6y ago
  You don't drop out and get 120M. You drop out, start a company because nobody wants you, get some seeds funding with sheer luck, grow the business progressively, hire some more people, grow some more and eventually raise 2 more rounds reaching 120M. That takes many many years. It's a massive combination of luck and being at the right place at the right time selling an okay thing. Then persevering over numerous years and executing decently. Most people won't get there not because they are incapable but because they don't have the environment and the bit of luck.

simonebrunozzi 6y ago

Not to mention it's easier if you're American, rather than... Say... Italian.