
Y Combinator is accepting applications for S18 - V2hLe0ThslzRaV2
http://www.ycombinator.com/apply/#Summer2018
======
blhack
To anybody considering applying: I've applied twice and been rejected both
times.

Just the application process itself was hugely valuable. The questions really
make you think out your model. It helped us identify some [now] obvious flaws
in the way we were trying to solve our problem.

You're not wasting anybody's time by applying.

~~~
lettergram
I've actually applied at least 6 times. Interviewed twice. Rejected every
time, yet don't regret it at all.

Both times I was interviewed, I've continued the projects and they are
actually both still going strong. Ones being funded by various grants (related
to EEG research). The other, which I interviewed for W18, just launched and is
already self-sustaining with profits off investing + subscriptions:

[https://projectpiglet.com/](https://projectpiglet.com/)

The process of interviewing helps to clarify business values, and honestly -
I'll be applying again with a clearer vision. The main thing they appear to
look for is viable business, future vision, then team. I highly recommend
applying.

Finally, and the primary reason I suggest applying is the people you meet!
Just from my trip for the interview(s) I met several different teams, some of
them I ended up introducing to other people to get them business. Other
startups ended up helping me. It's worth the trip.

~~~
LearnerHerzog
>" _The main thing they appear to look for is viable business, future vision,
then team. I highly recommend applying._ "

It seems to me — based on YC's resources I've read — the passion, personality,
and relationships of the company founders come first— including how willing
they are to be flexible with their idea.

Jessica Livingston on what they look for:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPd5vgXJ-R4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPd5vgXJ-R4)

They also often say how ideas are a dime a dozen, mentioning time and again
that most businesses who join YC end up changing their idea completely. They
even went as far as to accept founders _without an idea at all_ one year:

[http://paulgraham.com/notnot.html](http://paulgraham.com/notnot.html)

" _In a sense, it 's not a problem if you don't have a good idea, because most
startups change their idea anyway. In the average Y Combinator startup, I'd
guess 70% of the idea is new at the end of the first three months. Sometimes
it's 100%. In fact, we're so sure the founders are more important than the
initial idea that we're going to try something new this funding cycle. We're
going to let people apply with no idea at all. If you want, you can answer the
question on the application form that asks what you're going to do with "We
have no idea." If you seem really good we'll accept you anyway. We're
confident we can sit down with you and cook up some promising project._"

more related articles from the Paul Graham:

[http://paulgraham.com/start.html](http://paulgraham.com/start.html)

[http://paulgraham.com/bronze.html](http://paulgraham.com/bronze.html)

[http://paulgraham.com/ideas.html](http://paulgraham.com/ideas.html)

[http://paulgraham.com/ds.html](http://paulgraham.com/ds.html)

On the other hand, Sam Altman discusses, in the Stanford YC _Startup School_
videos, how the overall idea certainly does matter and that thinking "the idea
doesn't matter" has become a myth in silicon valley. He says the most
successful companies have been an idea first, and a startup second.

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoqgAy3h4OM#t=22m52s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoqgAy3h4OM#t=22m52s)

I think the answer is somewhere in the middle, leaning in one direction
depending on the founders' mindsets and knowledge. I wish they would be a bit
more clear about this since both opposing arguments are being advised through
their resources.

Either way, I look forward to start applying to batches when I feel ready.
Perhaps I'll apply without being ready to help gain some clarity as you
suggested.

~~~
forgotmysn
Agreed. I worked for a YC company who's founders went through YC before they
even had a company. In fact, they still hadn't landed on one by the time they
came out. But they were Stanford and MIT grads, and insanely well-connected.

~~~
gt_
When I hear that founders are more important than ideas, I wonder how much of
“founders” refers to the founders’ upper-class culture sync and connections.
Of course, it never represents all of that, but, could founders with only
intelligence, teamwork and ingenuity skills suffice on their own?

~~~
forgotmysn
It's definitely complex. A strong network doesn't necessarily signify wealthy
background, although it is likely. Rather, it demonstrates an ability to
connect with people who can aid in your success, and that ability is a
necessary component of being a successful founder.

~~~
gt_
That makes sense. I wouldn't want to underrate the importance of ability to
connect with the right people, which is a pretty complicated thing as it is,
and there are only so many ways by which to evaluate it.

------
staunch
YC is still the best and most open gateway to Silicon Valley investors.

But that's only true because they have no real competition and it's a closed
system. An open system wouldn't require gateways. There wouldn't be a need to
be walked into a private party by a trusted club member.

It looks like the answer to even this huge roadblock is new technology.
Amazingly, it's not even theoretical at this point, it has actually begun.

These new decentralized protocols and "ICOs" are going to all but eliminate
Silicon Valley as a center of orbit. All startup funding will move onto the
internet, where it belongs.

~~~
MediumD
I disagree. You need to have someway of filtering out companies that don't
have potential. These 'gateways' are vetting on behalf of investors who don't
have the time/resources to perform a rigorous due diligence of everyone who
wants funding. Without any sort of closed system, investors would get swarmed
with people asking for money. ICOs are interesting, but how do you get around
the scams and pretenders without any sort of filter, if anyone can host an
ICO?

~~~
tabeth
How do VCs "get around the scams and pretenders?" Presumably regular people
would do the same thing.

~~~
avip
VCs have the resources and capacity to pursue due diligence, even in very
technical domains. Indeed this occasionally fails and you get Theranos. Yet
for the "public", Theranos will undoubtedly become the norm.

~~~
tabeth
It's unlikely that VCs have more resources then the collective internet
though. Of course there will be scams, but there are scams with or without
VCs.

The question is -- should only VCs have the opportunity?

~~~
komali2
>more resources than the collective internet

My understanding is that, taking cryptocurrency as an example, crowds of
uninformed investors will stampede on something that's popular rather than
something that's necessarily an objectively good investment. Regardless of
your thoughts on cryptocurrency as a concept, I would say an intelligent
investor would balk at the kind of ICOs and prices we're seeing.

A lot of this, I think, can be explained by simple psychological concepts like
repetitive attraction (seeing something in the news again and again makes you
more comfortable with it), good first-impression traits (GOOGL performing
better because it's more pronounceable than TWTQR), and other things that have
been fuxing with the stock market for decades.

The market has never been rational, and as I've learned from crowd-funding
campaigns, the internet didn't make that situation any more rational.

------
foodislove
Even if you know your startup isn't the right fit or you and team are not the
YC type, the application is hugely valuable because it makes you think long
and hard about what you are doing.

We never got into YC, but we did end up with another accelerator. The one
question that YC asks, that sets it apart is the question at the end: "what do
you know about your industry or business that other people don't".

It's a simple question with a lot of meaning. I found that working out a
concise answer to that question turned out to be key to our fundraising and
product positioning. If you don't have a ready answer to that question, most
investors and accelerators will just make their own assumptions about what you
do. Our industry is NOT the most exciting and hot trend so having that answer
left and center turned out to be key to presenting what we do in a good light.

Do the application even if you know you won't get in.

------
almostApatriot1
please give extra scrutiny to blockchain start ups looking to ICO. I've seen Y
Combinator tossed around for a couple companies as a means to pump their coin,
and I'm sure a lot of would be scam coiners would love that type of attention.

~~~
sparkie
I'd be willing to bet that around half of applications this year will be
"blockchain for ...". I'd also be willing to be that zero of them succeed long
term.

------
tschellenbach
YC is a great option to build a business. There are more paths though, so
don't be discouraged. Stream participated in Techstars NYC. The MD in NYC
(Alex Iskold) is excellent. It's been 2 years and he's still helping us out.
YC does a great job of selecting companies, but they can't always get it
right. Qualifying early stage companies is very hard. I'd definitely recommend
giving Techstars some thought as well. They really go the extra mile to help
you succeed.

------
dlanged
Can anybody from recent batches comment on the extent of actual advice and
mentoring received during the program?

E.g. do you typically work closely with your advisor(s) on near daily basis,
or is this more like booking a meeting with your university professor
occasionally, when you need to discuss a particular topic?

------
seehafer
If you’ve been rejected before don’t be discouraged, we were rejected twice
before getting in last summer. Stick with it!

------
ScottBurson
Interviews are planned for "late May", yet the program presumably starts on
June 1. This seems to make for an awfully short interval between finding out
one has been accepted and actually starting. Can someone from YC clarify?

~~~
katm
Interviews are in late April. We'll update!

------
hamslamwich
Generally, is there a rough percentage of their cohorts that are pre-revenue?
Or does it vary wildly each round?

~~~
snowmaker
Most.

------
sAbakumoff
I'm wondering if YC will accept a block chain based startup.

~~~
chrischen
They have already.

~~~
sAbakumoff
Is there a list somewhere? Do some of them do ICO

~~~
rrecuero
Moneytis(Request Network) and Quantstamp have both done a token sale

~~~
chrischen
And fairly large rounds at current Eth prices.

~~~
sAbakumoff
Okay, will keep an eye on the 2018 YC graduates in hope to fund future block
chain incumbents :-)

------
bambax
> _if your company is already incorporated as a non-United States company, to
> participate in YC you will need to convert your foreign company into a
> United States corporation_

I have always wondered what this means exactly. If I'm the CEO of a company
outside the US, that is unrelated to what the startup would be doing, does it
matter?

Is it just a question of who owns the IP for the startup? And even if another
company owns the IP, can't the IP be transferred/sold without converting the
company itself?

~~~
kirsty
It depends on specific circumstances. If the IP in the foreign company is
truly unrelated, then there are circumstances where it could make sense to
just start a new company in the US. If the US company is going to use the IP,
then there are lots of potential solutions and structures.

Often we see founders with foreign companies do a share exchange so the shares
in the foreign company are exchanged for shares in the US company and the
foreign company then becomes a subsidiary of the US company. Particularly in
the case where the founders plan to go back to their home country or to hire /
operate in that country.

If you get accepted into YC and have already incorporated a foreign company,
then we can help you figure out what the best solution would be in your
situation.

If you aren't already incorporated and you don't have to immediately, then
probably best to wait to find out if you're accepted into YC before
incorporating anywhere other than the US.

~~~
bambax
Thank you!

------
partoa
We've been working on a hardware startup for about 7 years now, 8 years since
I had the idea. It took us such a long time because we had to learn a lot of
things. Our prototype is a two weeks away, and actual tests with users a
little over a month away. What would the ideal time to apply? Now, as soon as
the prototype is done or after actual tests with actual users?

------
EGreg
I remember we used to apply every semester until we gave up years ago:

[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2426118](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2426118)

Now our company has become pretty successful without taking any VC. David
Heinemeier Hansson (one of our advisors btw) at least is pretty proud :)

------
cvaidya1986
I would highly recommend just applying. It really puts your thoughts in order
for your startup. Also, if you have a ton of ideas, I would try to apply with
the one that has the potential to scale quickly and is the simplest to explain
to end users.

------
sadfjaflj
The only thing I don't like is that it requires a US company. I wish they were
more open to legal entities elsewhere. Even Canada would be a better option
(for me) given its right next door.

------
an4rchy
If anyone has any info, I would love to know how often YC reject
companies/ideas because of a conflict of interest or if there's any
rules/guidelines around that?

~~~
snowmaker
We do have a policy on this. The short version is that we will fund
competitors of companies we have funded in the past, so if that describes you,
please don't be dissuaded from applying.

From our FAQ: Will you fund multiple startups working on the same idea?

Yes. If you fund as many companies as we do it's unavoidable you'll end up
with some overlap. Even if you tried not to accept competing companies, you'd
still get overlap because startups' ideas morph so much. The way we deal with
it is that when two startups are working on related stuff, we don't talk to
one about what the other's doing.

In practice it has not turned out to be a problem, because most big markets
have room for several slightly different solutions, and it's unlikely that two
startups would do precisely the same thing.

------
arekkas
If an international founder is accepted, does she/he need some special visa -
like work visa or those H1B ones?

~~~
awaaz
No, you do not. I am from India, and went through YC on a B1/B2 visa.

~~~
arekkas
Nice thank you! That seems reasonable :)

------
qnk

      4. If we invest in you, your group is expected to move to
      the Bay Area for June–August 2018.
    
      6. Y Combinator doesn’t supply office space. We have space
      you can use if you need to, but we expect you to work out
      of wherever you find to live.
    

Why is it so important to be in the Bay Area? I get that for some interactions
it'd be ideal to be there, but I don't see the need for a team to actually
move there.

~~~
verelo
Approximately 7 years ago I applied to YC, and rightly so I was rejected [our
idea sucked, our presentation of it sucked even more...i had a lot to learn in
general]. Having said that, given how far the world has changed in that time,
but how little progress YC seems to have made [other than diluting their value
across a larger number of companies per cohort], I don't know they're still as
interesting in the world today.

Additionally, i hate Bay Area "culture". I feel like it's got a lot of the
problems Hollywood has, and frankly even if it didn't, i'm not sure I'd want
to live in an overpriced apartment in the burbs. On the plus side, the weather
is great...

~~~
thoaway012218
I now have a business that grossed $50k+ last month just because I was forced
to answer the "what did you hack lately" question. YC rejected my application
but the hack idea, which I posted on Youtube, had so much interest it became a
real company. Thanks YC!

~~~
plinkplonk
> "what did you hack lately" question.

Is this part of the application anymore? I took a quick look and all I could
find was

"Please tell us about an interesting project, preferably outside of class or
work, that two or more of you created together. Include urls if possible. "

"Please tell us something surprising or amusing that one of you has
discovered. "

both of which seem to be, at best, sanitized versions of the original
questions which IIRC referred specifically to _hacking_ systems, and
_impressive_ achievements of founders.

(If somebody has saved the original questions from the PG era, could you
confirms this?)

~~~
vqc
The application now comes in two parts: one for the "business" and one for
each founder. I believe the "hack" question is now in the founder application.

~~~
plinkplonk
Thank You. Very Interesting!

------
polloyksi
Due to Trump, and all the negative press USA has gotten lately, I wonder if it
makes an impact of how eager people are to move to the USA anymore?

Also, in case foreigners get accepted to YC, will it be more difficult than
before to be able to stay in the USA for the duration of the program?

~~~
spamizbad
With Bannon gone, I think the only immigration hard-liners left in Trump's
circle are Stephen Miller and his chief of staff John Kelly who could very
easily quit before ICE has a chance to wreck YC. Whitehouse Chief of Statff is
a notorious high-turnover position and Kelly apparently threatens to quit on a
weekly basis.

Anyway, YC never threw Thiel under the bus so maybe they can call in a favor
if things get dicey?

~~~
cobookman
How would ICE impact YC Founders. Has YC ever sponsored an Illegal Immigrant
as part of its class?

