4 ms·

This idea that parents can buy YC connections for their kids is the final nail in the coffin of the idea of Silicon Valley meritocracy.

maddddddddddddd 13y ago
and with it any sense of unbiased journalism from this site. YNepotator
Segmentation 13y ago
People with money have an advantage over people without money. News at 11.
- conanbatt 13y ago
  No need to make that disadvantage deeper by contributing to it. I also find selling connection-potential to be as anti-meritocratic as you can be.
Cookingboy 13y ago
In silicon valley merits play a huge part, but just like any other places, people are the build blocks of social interaction. Your connections and people you know and any other form of resources (rich parents, friend of VCs, etc) would fundamentally play a huge role in your success. I still think Silicon Valley is meritocracy since it's actually very difficult to succeed without any kind of value/merit, but meritocracy does not imply it's always going to be a fair playground for everyone.
selmnoo 13y ago
Oh, for goodness' sake. You could have made a legitimate point if you hadn't been so abruptly cut-throat. The fact of the matter is that connections, luck, etc. rule pretty much everywhere. It's useless and unproductive to cast this blame to specific, ultimately small entities. If I had been born about 5 miles north of where I was born -- in the ghettos, vs. to a household that valued education, I would have been living a very different life. And I'm grateful that didn't happen, I'm grateful for all the opportunities I got, that my dad had friends in high places and were willing to hire me as an intern. I'm grateful that I had the social support to seek therapy when I had depression, a place to live when I was unemployed and penniless, friends that respected me, etc. I would not have had a lot of this if I was living in the third world, where opportunity is scarce. That is the way it is. You could chide YC and all the VC world, and I'm not sure if you'd get anywhere. As far as VC firms and incubators go, it's clear to see YC is something else: they're funding nonprofits like Watsi, their partners seem to have some sense of social good, so I think snark here is misplaced.
- michaelochurch 13y ago
  I actually tend to like YC and the people it funds. They started with a noble mission, which was to provide access to funding for a larger set of people. I'd say that 75% of the YC founders I know are quality people. I do think that Silicon Valley's arrogance and general out-of-touch attitude-- and unashamedly handing out VC connections to children who already benefit from a massive private welfare system is pretty damn out of touch-- poses a threat to the reputation of technologists in general (including people like me) and I'm going to fight the tide by making fun of this sort of shit. When the country stops liking "the techies" I would at least hope that some of them would recognize that we're not all the same, and that lifelong engineers are of a different (and better) character than the reigning VC-halo/TechCrunch leadership.
  - anateus 13y ago
    Did you read pg's clarification that's now at the top, and does it change your feelings about this particular instance?
  - namenotrequired 13y ago
    They started with a noble mission, which was to provide access to funding for a larger set of people. I'm simply curious, did you mean to imply that this is something of the past?
    - michaelochurch 13y ago
      I'm simply curious, did you mean to imply that this is something of the past? The use of past tense was more to reflect deficiencies in my knowledge. I was a huge fan of PG and YC circa 2006-7 because of what the original mission seemed to be: to make funding possible for less established or connected people. I have no reason to doubt that he has deviated from his mission; however, I avoided the present tense because I do not know that he stayed the course. I can speak with more confidence on the past, hence the use of that tense.
      - 13y ago
nostromo 13y ago
It's not that hard to get a free meeting with pg. Scroll down, click apply.
- cinquemb 13y ago
  I wonder if someone will apply to YC S14 with this idea? I mean, raising funds for charities like these for access to the people behind YC and taking a small cut could be the next IPO! I can see the tagline now: "Watsi but for addressing the growing inequalities in the 'developed' world" and for growth would be just buying up the clones that pop up in the rest of the world.

maddddddddddddd 13y ago

and with it any sense of unbiased journalism from this site. YNepotator

Segmentation 13y ago

People with money have an advantage over people without money. News at 11.

conanbatt 13y ago
No need to make that disadvantage deeper by contributing to it. I also find selling connection-potential to be as anti-meritocratic as you can be.

Cookingboy 13y ago

In silicon valley merits play a huge part, but just like any other places, people are the build blocks of social interaction. Your connections and people you know and any other form of resources (rich parents, friend of VCs, etc) would fundamentally play a huge role in your success. I still think Silicon Valley is meritocracy since it's actually very difficult to succeed without any kind of value/merit, but meritocracy does not imply it's always going to be a fair playground for everyone.

selmnoo 13y ago

Oh, for goodness' sake. You could have made a legitimate point if you hadn't been so abruptly cut-throat. The fact of the matter is that connections, luck, etc. rule pretty much everywhere. It's useless and unproductive to cast this blame to specific, ultimately small entities. If I had been born about 5 miles north of where I was born -- in the ghettos, vs. to a household that valued education, I would have been living a very different life. And I'm grateful that didn't happen, I'm grateful for all the opportunities I got, that my dad had friends in high places and were willing to hire me as an intern. I'm grateful that I had the social support to seek therapy when I had depression, a place to live when I was unemployed and penniless, friends that respected me, etc. I would not have had a lot of this if I was living in the third world, where opportunity is scarce. That is the way it is. You could chide YC and all the VC world, and I'm not sure if you'd get anywhere. As far as VC firms and incubators go, it's clear to see YC is something else: they're funding nonprofits like Watsi, their partners seem to have some sense of social good, so I think snark here is misplaced.

michaelochurch 13y ago
I actually tend to like YC and the people it funds. They started with a noble mission, which was to provide access to funding for a larger set of people. I'd say that 75% of the YC founders I know are quality people. I do think that Silicon Valley's arrogance and general out-of-touch attitude-- and unashamedly handing out VC connections to children who already benefit from a massive private welfare system is pretty damn out of touch-- poses a threat to the reputation of technologists in general (including people like me) and I'm going to fight the tide by making fun of this sort of shit. When the country stops liking "the techies" I would at least hope that some of them would recognize that we're not all the same, and that lifelong engineers are of a different (and better) character than the reigning VC-halo/TechCrunch leadership.
- anateus 13y ago
  Did you read pg's clarification that's now at the top, and does it change your feelings about this particular instance?
- namenotrequired 13y ago
  They started with a noble mission, which was to provide access to funding for a larger set of people. I'm simply curious, did you mean to imply that this is something of the past?
  - michaelochurch 13y ago
    I'm simply curious, did you mean to imply that this is something of the past? The use of past tense was more to reflect deficiencies in my knowledge. I was a huge fan of PG and YC circa 2006-7 because of what the original mission seemed to be: to make funding possible for less established or connected people. I have no reason to doubt that he has deviated from his mission; however, I avoided the present tense because I do not know that he stayed the course. I can speak with more confidence on the past, hence the use of that tense.
    - 13y ago

nostromo 13y ago

It's not that hard to get a free meeting with pg. Scroll down, click apply.

cinquemb 13y ago
I wonder if someone will apply to YC S14 with this idea? I mean, raising funds for charities like these for access to the people behind YC and taking a small cut could be the next IPO! I can see the tagline now: "Watsi but for addressing the growing inequalities in the 'developed' world" and for growth would be just buying up the clones that pop up in the rest of the world.