

An entrepreneur's perspective on the YC/Yuri Milner deal - kul
http://kulveer.co.uk/2011/01/29/an-entrepreneurs-prospective-on-the-ycyuri-milner-deal/

======
mindcrime
I'm too lazy to write up a blog post on it, but here's my take on how it could
conceivably affect my startup:

Up until now, I've looked at YC as something that wasn't a doable scenario,
because they require the founders to move to the Bay area and live out there
for the 3 months, while investing a fairly small amount (I think somewhere
around $17,000 is the norm, no?) Anyway, for somebody in my shoes, that is,
doing a self-funded, bootstrapped startup while working a day job, the
requirement to move would mean needing to quit the day job, but the initial
investment would leave - for me anyway - too short of a runway to justify it.
At the end of 3 months, I'd come back here (presumably) and need to find
another day job, and need to find it pretty quick, in order to pay rent and
car payment, etc.

But the $150,000 investment option should be good for at least a year of
runway, enabling a founder to work on their project full-time. Given a year,
I'd feel pretty good about the chances of getting some traction and making a
go of things.

So where, before, I looked at the YC application as something to do just to
force myself to think about things, and maybe do a "mock YC interview" with
some local people as an exercise, now I'm seriously interested in actually
applying for a future cycle (if this offer continues as future cycles come
along.)

I see it as changing the whole game for somebody in my position... from YC
being something I'd have to turn down even if accepted, into something that is
a very real, practical scenario.

Of course getting accepted is a whole different story, but hey... you can't
win if you don't play, right?

------
borski
How do you know you're doing YC this summer? Applications, as far as I'm
aware, aren't due until March...

Is there some sort of grandfather rule?

~~~
zck
"Hey YC, I'm interested in coming back this summer. I had a successful exit
last time. We cool?"

"We dig. You're in."

~~~
borski
That's legit; I was just wondering if that's actually the case.

------
joshfraser
Doing YC for the second time? Why? Feels like the incremental value of going
back for seconds decreases once you have already gotten access to the YC
network.

~~~
kul
Hmm - it's still well worth it in my opinion. I last did YC 4 years ago (W07),
and whilst I now have my own network, it could still be much bigger. But
anyway, there are many other benefits. The focus of prototype and demo day
really increases productivity. Close proximity to the YC partners does wonders
for your product development, and of course the YC alumni network is much
bigger than when I first did it.

------
rhizome
"perspective"

~~~
kul
edited, thanks

