I haven't directly cofounded a company remotely, but I've contracted at early stage startups (<5 members) multiple times from afar. They were always in DC or SF

I haven't directly cofounded a company remotely, but I've contracted at early stage startups (<5 members) multiple times from afar. They were always in DC or SF, I'm in NY. I'll no longer agree to do so, however. In fact, I no long freelance offsite at all, because I don't believe it's possible to get results of the same caliber. The best ideas are born of spontaneity, and the hardest work of camaraderie. Despite the best intentions on all sides, remote hires don't feel either. I remember staying up all night drinking and eating pizza hunched over a conference table, or slouching back after a brainstorming session that literally covered 3 walls of a room in marker, basking in an afterglow that can only be described as "post coital". Remote hires don't feel that. I've felt it - I know what it's like, I know why it's good, and I know what it takes to cultivate it - but try as I might, it can't be replicated over a google hangout. There's no agility. You can't see the light in the other guy's eyes, where you both pause for a moment and let the breakthrough sink in before passionately attacking it. Startups are able to pull such great work from so few people because they're intense. They're hugely intimate. It can't be faked online. I know there are ample exceptions to this. Whatsapp comes to mind. But, in the same way, there were those couples in high school who managed to make it work despite 4 years of distance, to the surprise of everyone around them. It's anomalous to the same degree. A lucky few pull it off, but most fail and slink away to try again. If given the choice between a 9/10 employee across the country, or a 6/10 employee that's in the same suite with me, I'll take the 6 every time. Proximity matters.