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This is actually the main reason I haven't applied to YC. I can think of things that would be awesome if they were 10x better, but I feel they are either too am

This is actually the main reason I haven't applied to YC. I can think of things that would be awesome if they were 10x better, but I feel they are either too ambitious (drone delivery), already being done (ai robot that packs boxes arbitrarily), or too difficult (general AI, jetpacks)

duped 5y ago
YC is one of the best ways to get funding and access to the highest tiers of investor and advisers. It's startup funding on easy mode, if you can get in. The rest of your batch doesn't really matter.
paulgb 5y ago
YC has funded a company building supersonic passenger jets (https://boomsupersonic.com/ https://boomsupersonic.com/) and underwater mining robots (https://impossiblemining.com/ https://impossiblemining.com/), I don't think “too ambitious” is a problem for them if you can convince them that you're capable of delivering.
- jsiaajdsdaa 5y ago
  Serious question, let's say that I have delivered or proven some prototype to users, but I am not already famous or rich or powerful. How would I convince YC that though I am technically gifted and people like my prototype, there is probably a founder out there elsewhere who has the ability to make the legal/manufacturing side of things work? Airbnb and Uber essentially disregarded local regulations and let things fall as they may. If you do that with the FCC or DOE I imagine things are a bit more serious? Most of the problems out there that need solving are not data ones anymore, they're physical/manufacturing related in my opinion.
  - ahstilde 5y ago
    FROM THE ARTICLE: > We strive to be a bridge for everyone – no matter who they are, where they live, or what demographic they belong to – to enter the startup world. That was the situation for me and many other I know. YC explicitly looks for overlooked founders and companies. They'll take risks other won't. They discount credentialism more than any other S-tier VC I know. FROM THE ABOVE: > let's say that I have delivered or proven some prototype to users, but I am not already famous or rich or powerful. How would I convince YC that though I am technically gifted and people like my prototype, there is probably a founder out there elsewhere who has the ability to make the legal/manufacturing side of things work? Keep demonstrating traction, and find that founder out there who can make it work. FROM THE ABOVE: > Airbnb and Uber essentially disregarded local regulations and let things fall as they may. If you do that with the FCC or DOE I imagine things are a bit more serious? That's after they had initial traction. YC accepted ABNB off of literal airbeds on people's floors.
  - anamax 5y ago
    > Airbnb and Uber essentially disregarded local regulations Not really. There were almost no AirBnB regulations before AirBnB because no one was doing anything like that at scale. Uber/lyft got started as a "town car" service, which is legally very different from a taxi. The essential difference is that "town cars" can't do "street hail" - they can only do rides when they're specifically called (or messaged). "Street hail" is where you flag down a ride. Confusing this is that most taxi companies also offer town-car services, but even pre-Uber/Lyft, most town car providers were not taxis. No one thought that town car services could compete with taxis before Uber/Lyft. Plus, all previous town car services were "call us for our cars", not two-sided market places/aggregators. That's why there were very few town-car regulations.
    - jacquesm 5y ago
      > There were almost no AirBnB regulations before AirBnB because no one was doing anything like that at scale. You mean unlike the piles of settled law governing the hospitality industry? > Uber/lyft got started as a "town car" service, which is legally very different from a taxi. Which is exactly like a taxi. It is a vehicle that you do not own that some else is driving to take you places, where you will pay per ride.
      - anamax 5y ago
        > You mean unlike the piles of settled law governing the hospitality industry? Short-term rentals are/were not part of the hospitality industry. >>> Uber/lyft got started as a "town car" service, which is legally very different from a taxi. > Which is exactly like a taxi. It is a vehicle that you do not own that some else is driving to take you places, where you will pay per ride. You mean buses? Trains? Airlines? Taxi services are services that can legally accept riders via "street hail". There are "rides for rent" that are not done via street hail and they are regulated differently. This LEGAL distinction predates Uber/Lyft by decades. It's a bit confusing because most taxi companies provide both street hail and arranged-ride services. However, most "rides for rent" companies do not have street hail privileges. Uber/Lyft did "call for a ride" on a scale that no one had imagined and via a two-sided marketplace. Previous companies didn't work that way.
  - jollybean 5y ago
    If your 'prototype' does something materially useful wherein there's some kind of clear revenue opportunity, then it doesn't hurt to apply. And you can always apply again.
joefigura 5y ago
YC has funded multiple companies drone delivery companies - Volansi, Pyka, Flirtey, etc., and they've also funded a jetpack company (Jetpack Aviation). Being too ambitious or too difficult is not an issue, and if you want to apply to YC you should
- jsiaajdsdaa 5y ago
  Thanks so much for the reply, could you check out my message to the other user? Genuinely curious as I feel like I have good ideas, have delivered in the past, and can apply with working prototypes for my ideas. My main concerns are applying without solutions for legal/physical scalability.
  - jedberg 5y ago
    One of the things YC gets you is access to lawyers. And if their lawyers don't have the expertise you need, they can send you to one who does and you can use the money you get to pay said lawyers. The fact that you know you need lawyers you can't currently afford is a good start because it shows you're at least thinking about the problem.

duped 5y ago

YC is one of the best ways to get funding and access to the highest tiers of investor and advisers. It's startup funding on easy mode, if you can get in. The rest of your batch doesn't really matter.

paulgb 5y ago

YC has funded a company building supersonic passenger jets (https://boomsupersonic.com/ https://boomsupersonic.com/) and underwater mining robots (https://impossiblemining.com/ https://impossiblemining.com/), I don't think “too ambitious” is a problem for them if you can convince them that you're capable of delivering.

jsiaajdsdaa 5y ago
Serious question, let's say that I have delivered or proven some prototype to users, but I am not already famous or rich or powerful. How would I convince YC that though I am technically gifted and people like my prototype, there is probably a founder out there elsewhere who has the ability to make the legal/manufacturing side of things work? Airbnb and Uber essentially disregarded local regulations and let things fall as they may. If you do that with the FCC or DOE I imagine things are a bit more serious? Most of the problems out there that need solving are not data ones anymore, they're physical/manufacturing related in my opinion.
- ahstilde 5y ago
  FROM THE ARTICLE: > We strive to be a bridge for everyone – no matter who they are, where they live, or what demographic they belong to – to enter the startup world. That was the situation for me and many other I know. YC explicitly looks for overlooked founders and companies. They'll take risks other won't. They discount credentialism more than any other S-tier VC I know. FROM THE ABOVE: > let's say that I have delivered or proven some prototype to users, but I am not already famous or rich or powerful. How would I convince YC that though I am technically gifted and people like my prototype, there is probably a founder out there elsewhere who has the ability to make the legal/manufacturing side of things work? Keep demonstrating traction, and find that founder out there who can make it work. FROM THE ABOVE: > Airbnb and Uber essentially disregarded local regulations and let things fall as they may. If you do that with the FCC or DOE I imagine things are a bit more serious? That's after they had initial traction. YC accepted ABNB off of literal airbeds on people's floors.
- anamax 5y ago
  > Airbnb and Uber essentially disregarded local regulations Not really. There were almost no AirBnB regulations before AirBnB because no one was doing anything like that at scale. Uber/lyft got started as a "town car" service, which is legally very different from a taxi. The essential difference is that "town cars" can't do "street hail" - they can only do rides when they're specifically called (or messaged). "Street hail" is where you flag down a ride. Confusing this is that most taxi companies also offer town-car services, but even pre-Uber/Lyft, most town car providers were not taxis. No one thought that town car services could compete with taxis before Uber/Lyft. Plus, all previous town car services were "call us for our cars", not two-sided market places/aggregators. That's why there were very few town-car regulations.
  - jacquesm 5y ago
    > There were almost no AirBnB regulations before AirBnB because no one was doing anything like that at scale. You mean unlike the piles of settled law governing the hospitality industry? > Uber/lyft got started as a "town car" service, which is legally very different from a taxi. Which is exactly like a taxi. It is a vehicle that you do not own that some else is driving to take you places, where you will pay per ride.
    - anamax 5y ago
      > You mean unlike the piles of settled law governing the hospitality industry? Short-term rentals are/were not part of the hospitality industry. >>> Uber/lyft got started as a "town car" service, which is legally very different from a taxi. > Which is exactly like a taxi. It is a vehicle that you do not own that some else is driving to take you places, where you will pay per ride. You mean buses? Trains? Airlines? Taxi services are services that can legally accept riders via "street hail". There are "rides for rent" that are not done via street hail and they are regulated differently. This LEGAL distinction predates Uber/Lyft by decades. It's a bit confusing because most taxi companies provide both street hail and arranged-ride services. However, most "rides for rent" companies do not have street hail privileges. Uber/Lyft did "call for a ride" on a scale that no one had imagined and via a two-sided marketplace. Previous companies didn't work that way.
- jollybean 5y ago
  If your 'prototype' does something materially useful wherein there's some kind of clear revenue opportunity, then it doesn't hurt to apply. And you can always apply again.

joefigura 5y ago

YC has funded multiple companies drone delivery companies - Volansi, Pyka, Flirtey, etc., and they've also funded a jetpack company (Jetpack Aviation). Being too ambitious or too difficult is not an issue, and if you want to apply to YC you should

jsiaajdsdaa 5y ago
Thanks so much for the reply, could you check out my message to the other user? Genuinely curious as I feel like I have good ideas, have delivered in the past, and can apply with working prototypes for my ideas. My main concerns are applying without solutions for legal/physical scalability.
- jedberg 5y ago
  One of the things YC gets you is access to lawyers. And if their lawyers don't have the expertise you need, they can send you to one who does and you can use the money you get to pay said lawyers. The fact that you know you need lawyers you can't currently afford is a good start because it shows you're at least thinking about the problem.