One of the common strategies for a startup to achieve dominance in a market is: * figure out how to make network effects important, and * build a bigger ne

One of the common strategies for a startup to achieve dominance in a market is: * figure out how to make network effects important, and * build a bigger network than your competitors As YC is essentially a startup in the startup-funding market, it shouldn't come as a surprise to see this happening. As the number of startups YC funds grows, it will become harder and harder for them to keep the quality of their advice high. Without network effects, seed funding companies will eventually reach an equilibrium with each company offering a similar value proposition, and their market share determined primarily by the number and quality of their individual advisors (similar to consultancies). If YC can figure out some kind of systemic competitive advantage, however, they have a chance at dominating the entire market.