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Sam Altman for President
- natural219 13y agoWow, awesome news! I've noticed a lot more Sam Altman posts on HN recently, and I have to say I'm a fan, at least of his writing. What does this mean for your role at YCombinator, PG? Will you still be spending most of your time helping out with companies there, or are you going to work on other projects?
- pg 13y agoI'm going to continue doing office hours with startups in future batches. And since office hours are the main way founders interact with me, YC should feel the same to companies we fund. It will feel a lot different to me though. Not so much because I'll have more time as more attention to spare. For years now YC has been the thing in the top of my mind. That has made it hard to write essays. Now I'll be able to focus most of my attention on writing again.
- brudgers 13y agoCongratulations. Succession is hard. Books in the pipeline?
- larrys 13y ago"Books in the pipeline?" An opinion column in a well respected publication has the ability to wield more influence. Books are hit or miss and ephemeral.
- bicknergseng 13y agoI think there are some dead guys who would argue with that ephemerality point.
- brudgers 13y agoOn Lisp and ANSI Common Lisp are still relevant in regard to their subject matter while the essays of Hackers and Painters can at times seem dated despite being more recent. That's not to say that Graham's essays haven't had more impact, it is possible they have. But even the essays when presented in book form seem to hold a greater claim upon us than a dozen or so links in an email or blog post. Then again I don't deny my bookishness.
- larrys 13y ago"Now I'll be able to focus most of my attention on writing again." Sounds to me as if you have bigger ambitions in that area than just writing essays.
- slewis 13y agoWill you still review all the preview/demo day pitches? For those who haven't witnessed this: pg stands there for an entire day (maybe longer now), watching every pitch, slicing and dicing like a samurai. It's super rapid-fire, and with one or two pieces of advice each presentation doubles in effectiveness.
- pg 13y agoProbably not. But though it's an impressive feat of standing, the stuff that comes up then is so basic (slow down, look at the audience, etc) that any YC partner could make those sorts of comments. I'll still talk about pitches individually with startups at office hours.
- slewis 13y agoHa, what I remember most is you modifying presentations based on the psychology of the audience (investors). For example, for Pebble you said, "put this joke in there: 'I bet you guys really want to check your phones right now but you can't because it would be rude... if you had one of these babies on your wrist you'd be able to see those precious emails'". OK maybe not the most world-changing example but there were 100 more of those. I'm sure Sam will be excellent at this too.
- adamzerner 13y agoSo is that the main motivation - so you have attention to spare for essays? Any other plans? EDIT: I know how you say that writing => other ideas. So I guess the question is whether 1) You have something else in mind currently 2) You're writing with the intent to come up with other ideas 3) You're writing, and if another idea happens to come up that you like, you'll pursue it, or 4) You want to write and not pursue other ideas
- pg 13y agoIt's not the only motivation. It really will be better for YC to have someone running it who is actually interested in running an organization. I have a whole bunch of ideas for essays I'd like to write, but I almost never pick a topic. The way I decide which one to write is that one starts to write itself in my head.
- adamzerner 13y agoCool, I look forward to reading them! Just a thought (I know you've got a huge "to-do list" in your head), I'd like to hear your opinions on effective altruism, and what you think the best ways to change the world are.
- larrys 13y ago"The way I decide which one to write is that one starts to write itself in my head." As someone who only comments in two places on the web (HN and at another place that I'd rather not mention) that is exactly how it works when I make comments. You read something you react you write. It's not an assignment. It's not a job. It's not required. You just do it because you are moved and/or inspired by something you read or observe.
- darkmighty 13y agoDo you think this will provide you with an opportunity to approach prospect and current yc startups in a less "adversarial" manner, for the lack of a better term?
- Typhon 13y ago
- kirubakaran 13y agoWow, congrats Sam. Seeing the title I thought it was a "Altman 2016" joke.
- mion 13y agoIt's kind of sad to see pg stepping down, but I'm sure sama will do a great job. Should we expect any fundamental changes in the way things get done at YC?
- josh2600 13y agoAlways enjoy Sam's writing. Wondering how this will impact YC (how much of YC is PG's aura and how much is YC? We will find out). Change is hard and exciting. If PG is monitoring these comments, my question is: "what was the hardest part about letting go?"
- supersystem 13y ago"Always enjoy Sam's writing" I'm surprised that so many people are saying this, since I find his writing mediocre.
- Peroni 13y ago>So when Sam became available in 2012, I started trying to recruit him. It took me over a year, but eventually I succeeded. All you had to do was ask for my help... Jokes aside, congrats Sam! PG: What's your next primary focus going to be?
- sama 13y agoI’m very excited about this. YC is the smartest group of people I’ve ever worked with, and I believe that startups are going to be the major driver for innovation and economic growth going forward. I was thinking this morning about what it was like to start a startup in early 2005 and how much it’s changed now. PG has done a remarkable amount to improve the startup ecosystem for founders—in fact, it’s hard to think of anyone who has done more. (Also, maybe someday soon we’ll make Hacker News work well on mobile :) )
- aelaguiz 13y agoCongrats Sam. I love your thoughtful writing style and think you're the natural choice for the job.
- atomicunit 13y agoCongrats Sam!
- zefi 13y agoCongrats Sam. Ace news.
- TheMakeA 13y agoCongratulations Sam! Can you share a little bit about how you plan on growing YC?
- jl 13y agoSam, you already know this, but I just want to say publicly how happy we are to have you leading YC.
- sama 13y ago:)
- karlhwhite 13y agoSeconded. Motion carried.
- brentledent 13y agoWow, didn't see that coming. I hope the direction stays the same.
- Kiro 13y agoIs this the first time pg has stepped down?
- zbruhnke 13y agoAs a past YC founder that sat on the receiving end of some awesome advice from Sam from time to time I think this is a great thing for YC and for future YC founders. Aside from being a smart, well connected guy Sam has the innate ability to solve complex problems in a well thought out and efficient manner. I can't wait to watch YC scale like so many of the companies it has funded. It might be the gold standard for this model of financing, but I think they've only just begun. Glad to have been a part of YC and glad to be a part of the awesome network of Alums. I sold my first company before I graduated college and never got to be an "Alumni" anywhere else, so in some ways I feel like this is watching my Alma Mater make great forward progress, I'm proud to watch it.
- jusben1369 13y agoCongratulations to Sam. This was as interesting for the topics it didn't dive into as to the topic it did. I'm sure there'll be an outcry and wild conjecture requiring a longer post on the reasons for doing this.
- blakerobbins 13y agoHuge congrats to Sam! Can't think of a more deserving person. Excited to see the transition and effect this has on YC.
- mjackson 13y agoHuge congrats Sam! I think this move makes a lot of sense for a lot of reasons. You've been cranking out some really great stuff lately. Best of luck to you and YC!
- angersock 13y agoOne wonders what pg is going to be up to now. Maybe lobste.rs?
- lowglow 13y agodefinitely techendo.co he's always over there commenting on how great of a job we're doing.
- pmcpinto 13y agoCongratulations!
- brianmcdonough 13y agoIt takes tremendous self-knowledge and insight to take a step like this. It's what makes Paul Graham, Paul Graham and it's incredibly inspiring. Welcome to YC 2.0. Looking forward to following the original meta-startup under Sam's leadership.
- PStamatiou 13y agoCongratulations Sam! We only had an office hours or two during my YC batch but you instantly struck me as a remarkably bright and quick-witted mentor.
- nostromo 13y agoThe focus on scaling YC in this post is interesting: > Because YC needs to grow > we'll have to grow proportionally bigger I'm excited to see how this plays out!
- the_watcher 13y agoFor a second I got irrationally excited that Sam was announcing a Presidential run, then read the post. Beyond my initial excitement at a potential USPOTUS candidate I actually believe in, I'm much happier that Sam is taking over YC, where he can add much more value, and hopefully free up PG to do more thinking (writing, giving advice, etc).
- kgermino 13y agoOT: USPOTUS threw me for a loop there. :) I'm not sure how I even noticed as I was just skimming the thread but I hit that line and lost all train of thought. Must be one of those things... POTUS is "President Of The United States" so USPOTUS is redundant, but no more so than "ATM Machine" which my brain parses no problem. Sometimes its interesting to think about why we notice what we do :).
- teawithcarl 13y agoPOTYC.
- the_watcher 13y agoYea, don't know why I did that. I've never used that acronym before, must have been my brain processing POTUS as President rather than the actual acronym.
- samstave 13y agoYeah, but as POTUS, he would be able to tie in his location-based experience at Loopt with drone strikes and Jihadist check-in sniping!
- lukasm 13y agoMy first reaction "Sam Altman for President? Is he running for POTUS office? wow! that would be awesome if a hacker would be the president". And then logic part of brain kicks in...
- danhodgins 13y agoCongratulations Sam, and well-done Paul. I consider both of you to be mentors who have educated, inspired, and motivated me to push myself further than I ever thought possible. Paul, you'll continue your mission... it'll just be at a higher level. And Sam... I wish you the best of luck as you elevate Ycombinator to the next level and beyond with your drive, enthusiasm, and talent for spotting patterns, trends and opportunities as well as pain points worth addressing and problems worth solving. dh
- Havoc 13y agoCongrats >There will be a lot more startups in 10 years than there are now Pity pg phrased this in such a fuzzy fashion. Does he mean more in the absolute sense or per 1000 people?
- bhaumik 13y agoWhat a horrible overreaction: http://www.techendo.co/posts/yc-is-dead http://www.techendo.co/posts/yc-is-dead
- bhaumik 13y agonot this thread (congrats Sam!)
- edw519 13y ago4 years ago, I had a feeling something like this would happen. See #4: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1025798 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1025798 5 years earlier than I predicted and for a better job. Congratulations, sama.
- nathancahill 13y agoThat's really impressive.
- defen 13y agoFunny, but I'm pretty sure pg is not eligible to be President.
- boomzilla 13y agoI am really curious about YC corporate structure. Is it a partnership or LLC? Does PG still have "controlling vote block" in significant matters? Can I buy YC shares?
- HockeyPlayer 13y agoFor your questions, it doesn't matter if it is a partnership, LLC or C-corp. I don't know if PG has control. You can't buy YC shares.
- 6thSigma 13y agoSam, it would be great since you are the new President of YC if you could update the How to Apply to Y Combinator[1] page with your views on what a successful application looks like and your typical thought process when reviewing applications. Also, congratulations! [1] http://ycombinator.com/howtoapply.html http://ycombinator.com/howtoapply.html
- weixiyen 13y agoCame here thinking he was running for public office.
- londont 13y agoCongratulations Sam and PG, this is exciting news. Lots of <3 and support from the ZenPayroll team!
- guttermaw 13y agoplz helbn me u faggts
- denismars 13y agoCongrats Sam! Exciting times for YC.
- cma 13y agoAltman's recent essays have used the same phrasing/style as Paul's.. hope Paul isn't handing that off too. =P
- RKoutnik 13y agoThis is absolutely fantastic news for YC, their startups and the community as a whole. pg was a huge influence on me - I've read all of his essays, watched his talks and studied his comments on HN. I've learned so much about startups and making cool things from him and am now in SF hacking away at a startup solely thanks to the inspiration "How to Make Wealth" gave me. sama, if you'll take a piece of advice from a lowly HN commenter, please be the same to the next generation of founder/hackers. Don't just be really good at accelerating startups. Teach, inspire, and care. You're inheriting a legacy, now build one of your own. I've never met you in person but from what I've heard, you're just as capable of this as pg was in your own way. Godspeed.
- b_emery 13y ago>I'm convinced there's a fundamental change happening in the way work gets done. It's becoming normal to start a startup. I'm hoping this will be the topic of PG's next essay.
- naveenspark 13y agoCongrats Sam! Thank you for the ridiculously good advice you give us and our fellow YC founders. The future is very bright for YC.
- ulfw 13y agoSam is a very intelligent, likeable and knowledgeable guy. Best man for the job. Congrats!
- andrewpbrett 13y ago"You could parachute [Sam] into an island full of cannibals and come back in 5 years and he'd be the king." - PG 5.5 years ago[1] Congrats Sam. [1] http://paulgraham.com/fundraising.html http://paulgraham.com/fundraising.html
- nandemo 13y agoSo Y Combinator is slightly harsher than an island full of cannibals?
- nwenzel 13y agoBuilding a startup is slightly harsher than an island full of cannibals.
- namenotrequired 13y agoSam was 'parachuted' into YC 9 years ago - so almost twice as harsh!
- pbhjpbhj 13y agoSo, he eates cannibals for breakfast [until they are all gone and he's king!]? ;0)>
- tomasien 13y agoI hope this means PG will write more - PG's essays are why I got into startups (an increasingly common phenomenon), and while some of them are timeless, there are issues of the day that need constant tackling. Here's moar essays PG.
- gummify 13y agoA smart, young, relatable person of the next generation to grow the company. Looking forward to seeing what Sam's got under his sleeves. Has Sam done anything in the entrepreneurial world after Loopt was acquired? Or has he just been an investor?
- lifeisstillgood 13y agoWeird - I saw this about a minute after reading the AI post - and I did for a second think that he was actually going to run as an Independent candidate for US Presidency. The weird part of course was "oh on some kind of business / privacy reform ticket. Yeah that makes sense - he might be like a privacy Ralph Nader. " I think either I live in a bubble or the world really is changing.
- wuhhaa 13y agoI am very excited!!
- rdl 13y agoI think it's a sign of how good this choice is that I can't think of any serious changes which it will bring immediately (other than maybe freeing up more of pg's time to write essays and do office hours); the long-term changes are all positive.
- spinlock 13y agoAm I the only one who thinks hn is fine on mobile? It's not perfect but the contents the same.
- dfguo 13y agoCongratulations Sam!
- seddona 13y agocongrats Sam! Thanks for your help the last few months!
- SworDsy 13y agodaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaamn
- sytelus 13y agoOn semi-unrelated note: Can YC-like incubators/accelerators ever become a public company? Lot of people I know would like to invest in startups but have no time, resources or experience to personally do due diligence. It would be great if public could buy shares of these accelerator companies. The amount from their IPOs can truely trigger exponential growth of startups. Right now most incubators/accelerators are busy playing small investment/big exits model but there is huge untapped area where one need medium to large capital but can expect 2X-5X return with lower risks. I'm not sure if SEC has any rules against incubators/accelerators going public but for next exponential growth it seems essential.
- hueving 13y agoI don't think there is a shortage of capital right now. I haven't heard of anyone with a really good idea being turned down recently because the VC firms were currently out of money.
- coltr 13y agoExciting, congrats.
- dome82 13y agoCongratulations Sam! Good luck with what is coming next in this adventure and I hope you will continue writing on your blog.
- rsl7 13y agoexcellent news.