Agreed, YC's value is not in the initial funding but the brand name validation + connections + some organizational advices. I think tptacek and patio11 already

Agreed, YC's value is not in the initial funding but the brand name validation + connections + some organizational advices. I think tptacek and patio11 already have all that, plus they probably have enough self funding to run this company for a while. I don't see YC provide much added value here. On the other hand, if it's someone who just arrive to the Bay Area from schools, or someone who's always been with a big company as an engineer, then YC clearly provides a lot of extra values.