4 ms·

A few years ago YC tried making part of it's program remote. It wasn't successful so they switched back to being fully in-person. This time they were forced to

by MarkMc 6y ago

A few years ago YC tried making part of it's program remote. It wasn't successful so they switched back to being fully in-person. This time they were forced to go 'all in' on remote and the result is, ”this will rank as one of the best batches we have ever funded" So what is the lesson here?

snowmaker 6y ago
Well, when we first tried remote companies, it was ten years ago. Remote tools have come a long way - zoom and slack didn't exist back then. Also, honestly, we didn't try hard enough before covid forced us to really invest in building a great remote experience. After covid started, we put all of YC's resources behind this, and built custom software and redesigned the whole batch experience to work well remotely. That's what it took.
- MarkMc 6y ago
  Thanks for the honest reflection. It's interesting to consider how long YC might have continued to dismiss the remote option if Covid-19 had not appeared. Maybe another decade? It's also interesting to consider other areas where the cost-benefit ratio fluctuates depending on the level of effort - and that changes over time. For example, the US Air Force would probably say that drone aircraft are becoming important, but that the war in Afghanistan shows the US still needs aircraft with a pilot in the cockpit. However, if you gave the Air Force an ultimatum and said that in 12 months it had to fight a mock battle with only unmanned aircraft - and all officers would be demoted if they lost - then the US might develop a fighting capability far in excess of its current ability.
DoreenMichele 6y ago
So what is the lesson here? "Water runs downhill"? It's vastly easier to build it and make it successful when there is sudden demand due to external market forces than to try to plead with people to try it when people aren't interested.

4 ms·

A few years ago YC tried making part of it's program remote. It wasn't successful so they switched back to being fully in-person. This time they were forced to

by MarkMc 6y ago

snowmaker 6y ago
Well, when we first tried remote companies, it was ten years ago. Remote tools have come a long way - zoom and slack didn't exist back then. Also, honestly, we didn't try hard enough before covid forced us to really invest in building a great remote experience. After covid started, we put all of YC's resources behind this, and built custom software and redesigned the whole batch experience to work well remotely. That's what it took.
- MarkMc 6y ago
  Thanks for the honest reflection. It's interesting to consider how long YC might have continued to dismiss the remote option if Covid-19 had not appeared. Maybe another decade? It's also interesting to consider other areas where the cost-benefit ratio fluctuates depending on the level of effort - and that changes over time. For example, the US Air Force would probably say that drone aircraft are becoming important, but that the war in Afghanistan shows the US still needs aircraft with a pilot in the cockpit. However, if you gave the Air Force an ultimatum and said that in 12 months it had to fight a mock battle with only unmanned aircraft - and all officers would be demoted if they lost - then the US might develop a fighting capability far in excess of its current ability.
DoreenMichele 6y ago
So what is the lesson here? "Water runs downhill"? It's vastly easier to build it and make it successful when there is sudden demand due to external market forces than to try to plead with people to try it when people aren't interested.