
How Y Combinator's powerful alumni network operates - alagu
http://infographics.fastcompany.com/magazine/163/y-connector-xl.html
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leelin
Heh, I'll chime in as the lone orphan connected to this glorious network as a
"video game buddy." Someone from FC wanted me to confirm a few connections and
the relevant part of my original response is below (I imagine most people
ignored FC and a lot of replies were trimmed -- all mention of my co-founder
is gone!):

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It turns out three YC company founders used to all play in the same corporate
basketball team back in Microsoft around 2004-2006! It was [redacted] and
myself (RentHop). At the time we were all working on Windows Phone 6.0 and
Blackberry was our biggest competitor (pre-iPhone days), so the name of our
team was the RimBusters; a pretty deceiving name since our entire team
consisted of short Asian guys averaging out at about 5'7". We didn't all leave
at the same time though, but certainly knowing just a few other people go the
risky founder route made the task seem more manageable.

Also, Lux Chen (Anywhere.fm), Anson Tsai (CardPool) and I used to all be
connected on a team as well, though this one less athletic and physical, more
nerdy and virtual. We were all fairly bored at our software jobs and had
plenty of free time for video games. We've joked about this many times but I
increasingly believe it is true: playing competitive video games might be a
good test of whether someone is a suitable co-founder. Not only do you see
someone's raw competitive ability and persistence, but you gain a lot of
insight into how they behave and treat others during moments of stress and low
morale. I also learned quickly that a person's raw ability in solo playing is
not nearly as important as how well the two of you mesh as a team, hence it's
better to partner up with a compatible friend than simply the most skilled
person you can find. You probably think I'm over-dramatizing here but I've got
an incredible number of both positive and negative data points; I almost want
to do a Starcraft trial now before I ever agree to partner up with someone!
Imagine a future where investors insist on your founding team reaching Master
League before they will fund you.

=====

~~~
luxiou
It's true, I spent hundreds of hours healing Anson's suicidal gnome warlock in
WoW before we ever started working together.

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cperciva
I wonder how much of this is YC networking and how much is HN networking.
Tarsnap isn't a YC company, but some of my largest customers are; I've never
asked, but I suspect they're only aware of Tarsnap because of my presence
here.

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zackzackzack
This is cool in all, but this is probably more information than I need to know
about these people's lives. I would have rather had something more useful on
the front page.

~~~
GuiA
Yes seriously, what is with the YC alum idolatry? I understand that these
people have very valuable experiences to share in the context of our
discipline, but it should stop there.

Let's not put a subjective subset of entrepreneurs on a pedestal and lose our
time gossipping about who they play basketball and go to parties with.

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swombat
Beyond the silly graph, it's interesting to note that with each passing year,
YC's value proposition shifts more from "We'll give you a bit of money and a
lot of good advice and top investor introductions" towards "We'll plug you
into the most powerful startup founders network in the world"...

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kd5bjo
One of the common strategies for a startup to achieve dominance in a market
is:

    
    
      * figure out how to make network effects important, and
      * build a bigger network than your competitors
    

As YC is essentially a startup in the startup-funding market, it shouldn't
come as a surprise to see this happening. As the number of startups YC funds
grows, it will become harder and harder for them to keep the quality of their
advice high. Without network effects, seed funding companies will eventually
reach an equilibrium with each company offering a similar value proposition,
and their market share determined primarily by the number and quality of their
individual advisors (similar to consultancies). If YC can figure out some kind
of systemic competitive advantage, however, they have a chance at dominating
the entire market.

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staunch
Vaguely creepy.

~~~
anateus
Definitely. To a level that surprised me. I'm a YC alum and I immediately
rushed to see if I was on the chart :> I remember passing on talking to a FC
reporter about the alumni network, I guess this is the result.

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mikeleeorg
This doesn't really surprise me. I always thought part of the value of YC was
its alumni network. If YC alums didn't socialize and help each other out, I'd
be worried.

I'm sure there are many more social connections than what is shown here too,
though it must've taken FastCompany quite a bit of sleuthing to unearth at
least this much.

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geoffsanders
But more importantly, has anyone gotten a YC tattoo yet?

