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Ask PG: Isn't it too late, historically speaking, to apply?
Last year Y Combinator was reported to have a 2% acceptance rate with an incoming class of 80.
Imagine that you have 50 concise filled in forms with 1 minute videos attached, behind each of which are two-three personalities, and you have to choose 1 group who has this unique amalgam of traits which will allow them to devise, build, grow, and run a successful tech company. To what extent your decision will be a product of a well-grounded analysis or at least reasonable hunch and what will be the share of mere chance in it? Is there a limit of this share after which we can be saying that the process is largely arbitrary? Or the original rule that all YC founders read all applications and then find common denominator is no longer in power?
But then OK, you're an applicant and you've been admitted. A class of 80 teams is a hell lot of people. And if you're smart, you applied not only for the money, ties or VCs' attention. When it started YC' tiny team were litereally mentors for the startups hand-crafting and guiding them gradually translating to the would-be startupers their experience, skills and wisdom which you cannot read in a book. Now a crowd of sturtups is baked simultaneously with dozens of YC alumni involved. But honestly speaking, you'd wish to learn in a mild pace from Paul Graham, not from his apprentices. Judging by the figures YC has never been more successful and one can say hence there never been a better moment to join. And maybe you'll indeed make a lot of smart friends, participate in a line of dinners with speakers, get serious VCs' attention and even money. But can you be sure that you'll get everything that Drew Houston got which made Dropbox possible in the old days? And is there a limit of class size and all the surrounding ado after which all this might become pointless?
- windsurfer 14y agoYou never win if you never begin, right? And what do you lose by applying?
- kohfake 14y agojust contemplating
- deleted 14y ago[deleted]
- xijuan 14y agoAdd to this point. If you apply, then prepare the application as well as you can. I have seen people rushing to finish the application for something as competitive as this the night before the deadline. And of course, in such cases, they are going to lose to the teams that are well-prepared.... Put effort in if you are really up to it.
- logn 14y agoJust a snark I guess, sorry... But you write your paragraphs in sort of an inverted style. You should lead with a topic sentence that states your point and then follow up with specifics or scenarios, etc. It's much easier to read.
- itsprofitbaron 14y agoWhilst PG, Jessica, RTM, Trevor, Harj, Kirsty, Paul, Geoff etc and the other members of the team at Y Combinator are there to help founders, the most important thing that YC have created is their alumni network (YC have invested in 400 companies and ~1500 founders). The network of YC also appear to be willing to pay it forward (in other words they are often each others first customers/users and they mentor, support and fund each other to success). So to answer your question, can another Dropbox or AirBnB come out of YC with everything that the original Dropbox got? I believe the answer is Yes.
- kohfake 14y agoquestion is, can drew houston substitute paul graham? i'm sure he'll be glad to do his best, but i'm not sure he's essentially capable to
- itsprofitbaron 14y agoLet’s not forget that PG's full-time job is YC whereas Drew's full-time job is as Dropbox CEO. I think the difference is already apparent in that sentence – Drew isn’t a substitute for PG and PG isn’t a substitute for Drew. YC has never been just PG, there has always been a group of partners (which has increased over a period of time and includes some part-time founders) and you can always arrange time with the partners during office hours. Sure PG and the other partners can provide you with some excellent advice but, no one is an expert in every single vertical. YC fully understand that which is why they bring experts in during YC for dinners as well as hosting conferences for the founders throughout the year. I believe the alumni network has made YC stronger because, they've funded so many companies that there's likely to be other members in the alumni network within the same industry and/or using a similar technology to you – and if you ever need their help then they are there to help you.
- Mz 14y agoYou can never step in the same river twice. That doesn't by itself suggest the river has dried up or turned to poison.