5 ms·

Good technical due diligence from reputed organization costs something like $50-100k. Good legal/accounting due diligence costs the same amount. Which is >20% o

Good technical due diligence from reputed organization costs something like $50-100k. Good legal/accounting due diligence costs the same amount. Which is >20% of what YC invests. Even if 20% are committing clear fraud, it is worth it to pay them. Actual numbers are likely lower.

tempodox 2y ago
I can't help thinking that there has to be something inbetween doing nothing and going all the way.
- DonHopkins 2y ago
  Like sitting down with them for five minutes and talking, to see if they say shit like "dawg I chatgpt'd the license".
  - tptacek 2y ago
    Don, do you honestly think that's a lapse in the process, or are you just joining in to dunk on this random company? You think the YC interview involved licensing questions, and, if it did, that they "dawged" their way through it?
    - DonHopkins 2y ago
      Less about licensing in particular, more about simply not being serious or conscientious about what they're doing. Not just the "dawg" but the following "... we busy building rn can't be bothered with legal". ...or punctuation, capitalization, and grammar, apparently. And what else can't they be bothered with? https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=41702003 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=41702003 elicksaur: Why would you believe anything this person says after that? Default assumption #1 is any writing they output is an LLM product and insincere. Assumption #2 their actions are taken with little thought or intentionality. JohnFen: ... This one line tells me that's an outfit that should be avoided entirely. It's either unfathomable incompetence, or a strong aversion to doing things properly. Either way, it says nothing good. JumpCrisscross: ... The move that dials the dumbassery to eleven is using it as a defence. On Twitter. Like, Exhibit A for any lawsuit that company is ever in will be this tweet: it demonstrates a proud disrespect for law and contracts. That’s high-proof mens rea if I’ve ever seen any. https://x.com/anothercohen/status/1840515897804623882 https://x.com/anothercohen/status/1840515897804623882 Alex Cohen @anothercohen It’s not just the actual legal issues but generally the dismissiveness and sloppiness towards real concerns but I guess good on you all for making the appropriate changes
      - tptacek 2y ago
        Right, I don't think we're so much debating how conscientious this particular random company was, but rather its implications for the YC program.
        DonHopkins 2y ago
        How conscientious is YC for not noticing that this particular random company was not in the least bit conscientious?
        tptacek 2y ago
        That's the question I'm asking you. How seriously are you taking the idea that YC should have screened for something like this?
        DonHopkins 2y ago
        More seriously than my joke about how they should have screened out companies whose names were anagrams of "Rape". I personally think they shouldn't fund bullshitters, or sociopaths either, but if their spreadsheets tell them that startups run by bullshitters and sociopaths make them more money, then who am I to tell them how to invest? If sociopathic behavior is worthy of investment, then maybe aspiring YC applicants could pre-emptively impress YC investors and signal their political alignment by sending death threats to the appropriate people, then demonstrating what flowery insincere non-apology apologies they can write, an extremely valuable skill in the industry! (Extra credit for tweeting said non-apology apology as a garishly animated video with kinetic typography in Comic Sans!) https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39223766 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39223766 https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/garry-tan-tech-exec-angry-tweet-die-slow-supes-18635493.php https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/garry-tan-tech-exec-a... https://x.com/CodeFryingPan/status/1840464744626675719 https://x.com/CodeFryingPan/status/1840464744626675719 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinetic_typography https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinetic_typography
        2y ago

tempodox 2y ago

I can't help thinking that there has to be something inbetween doing nothing and going all the way.

DonHopkins 2y ago
Like sitting down with them for five minutes and talking, to see if they say shit like "dawg I chatgpt'd the license".
- tptacek 2y ago
  Don, do you honestly think that's a lapse in the process, or are you just joining in to dunk on this random company? You think the YC interview involved licensing questions, and, if it did, that they "dawged" their way through it?
  - DonHopkins 2y ago
    Less about licensing in particular, more about simply not being serious or conscientious about what they're doing. Not just the "dawg" but the following "... we busy building rn can't be bothered with legal". ...or punctuation, capitalization, and grammar, apparently. And what else can't they be bothered with? https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=41702003 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=41702003 elicksaur: Why would you believe anything this person says after that? Default assumption #1 is any writing they output is an LLM product and insincere. Assumption #2 their actions are taken with little thought or intentionality. JohnFen: ... This one line tells me that's an outfit that should be avoided entirely. It's either unfathomable incompetence, or a strong aversion to doing things properly. Either way, it says nothing good. JumpCrisscross: ... The move that dials the dumbassery to eleven is using it as a defence. On Twitter. Like, Exhibit A for any lawsuit that company is ever in will be this tweet: it demonstrates a proud disrespect for law and contracts. That’s high-proof mens rea if I’ve ever seen any. https://x.com/anothercohen/status/1840515897804623882 https://x.com/anothercohen/status/1840515897804623882 Alex Cohen @anothercohen It’s not just the actual legal issues but generally the dismissiveness and sloppiness towards real concerns but I guess good on you all for making the appropriate changes
    - tptacek 2y ago
      Right, I don't think we're so much debating how conscientious this particular random company was, but rather its implications for the YC program.
      - DonHopkins 2y ago
        How conscientious is YC for not noticing that this particular random company was not in the least bit conscientious?
        tptacek 2y ago
        That's the question I'm asking you. How seriously are you taking the idea that YC should have screened for something like this?
        DonHopkins 2y ago
        More seriously than my joke about how they should have screened out companies whose names were anagrams of "Rape". I personally think they shouldn't fund bullshitters, or sociopaths either, but if their spreadsheets tell them that startups run by bullshitters and sociopaths make them more money, then who am I to tell them how to invest? If sociopathic behavior is worthy of investment, then maybe aspiring YC applicants could pre-emptively impress YC investors and signal their political alignment by sending death threats to the appropriate people, then demonstrating what flowery insincere non-apology apologies they can write, an extremely valuable skill in the industry! (Extra credit for tweeting said non-apology apology as a garishly animated video with kinetic typography in Comic Sans!) https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39223766 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39223766 https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/garry-tan-tech-exec-angry-tweet-die-slow-supes-18635493.php https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/garry-tan-tech-exec-a... https://x.com/CodeFryingPan/status/1840464744626675719 https://x.com/CodeFryingPan/status/1840464744626675719 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinetic_typography https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinetic_typography
        2y ago