I think there are a few issues here: * sure a degree alone isn’t instantly valuable, you can skip it in CS, but it requires substantial time commitment regardl

I think there are a few issues here: * sure a degree alone isn’t instantly valuable, you can skip it in CS, but it requires substantial time commitment regardless. The goal is to have the knowledge and skills to be valuable (in a purely utilitarian sense). A CS degree can do that, but so can for example working on large OSS projects - the difference is largely how focused the approach is on bringing up core knowledge. On the one hand I know a lot of “self taught”/non degree devs who have annoying gaps, on the other hand you get people who know O(N) but not how a computer works. You really need both. > many of them can excel … No, the super successful “young founder” startups are largely luck plus connections, not any magical ability others lack. There’s often after the fact assignment of brilliance, but that happens in many fields and is often kind of questionable. Strategic/tactical brilliance is also super susceptible to survivor bias. Just focus on doing the best you can, and worry less about what others are doing. There will always be someone who might be smarter, or richer, or luckier, etc and there’s nothing you can do to change that, so don’t bother.