

Will Y Combinator fund a service Company? - khurrams

Hi
We are a Lahore, Pakistan based software startup that focuses on developing Mobile2.0 ( IPhone and Android ) application. I wanted to know, can i apply for YCombinator or only product based startups get funded ?
www.geniteam.com
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rwalling
YC funds startup with great growth potential; companies that can "scale" well.
Service companies scale linearly, and require you to hire additional personnel
to grow, whereas product companies scale exponentially compared to personnel.

So my guess is YC will not fund a service company.

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khurrams
This is right analysis. However, ROI might be lesser but risk of failture
would be lesser as well ? But, there is chance that we *"might" become a brand
for IPhone apps development. If you can build reuseable libraries, then i
beleive you can scale faster ?

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pg
Venture investors are not looking for things with a low risk of failure. In
fact, all other things being equal, we're looking for the things with the
highest risk of failure-- like starting a new search engine in 1998.

~~~
Retric
It's not that they like risk the are just more willing to invest at high risk
than most people. Would you drop 10 Million for a 1 in 500 chance of 10
Billion dollars? It's a good bet bet but it can take a while before your first
hit.

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motoko
Would I spend 1e7 make an investment with an expected value of 1e9*(1/.5e3) =
2e6?

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motoko
Hm, on closer inspection, I would for 10 billion and an average 2x return. I
sure that wish I could delete both these comments.

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davidw
As a service company, would it be feasible for you to move to the US for three
months, away from your team?

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khurrams
Yes, this would be possible. But , see its extremely important to move to USA
and learn about ecosystem.

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khurrams
Can anyone provide suggestions, as how can i "repackage", what we have to
pitch to YC-Combinator ?

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khurrams
I am thankful to everyone for providing assistance. I have submitted the
application based on my understanding.

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vaksel
what exactly do you hope to achieve with a mere $15K? Even in pakistan that
can't be a lot of money

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khurrams
Hi I think basic reason would be learning from Technoprenuers and mentors,
because we dont have much success stories within Pakistan. With 15 K US $, we
can support a team for 3 months. However, more important perspective is : Can
we become a brand for building IPhone Applications faster, better and cheaper
? Can we build applications and charge subscription for maintiance ( we
already are charing small amount ) ? Is the segment lucerative enough to make
good profits for next 2-3 years ?

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rokhayakebe
Yes you can apply. But.

If you want to develop software for clients at their request, then it will be
hard for YC to invest in your company.

If you develop proprietary software and license it to other companies that
will need support, and customization, then it should be fine.

If your service allows clients to outsource customer service operations or IT
support and you show you can easily scale it, then it should be fine.

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khurrams
We have a mixed model : We have developed few reuseable components for quick
IPhone development. However, people using those would be developers. I dont
have the numbers though. You might consider reviwing our startup at
(www.geniteam.com).

