Ask PG

1.
What is the most common area that a team fails on, both in the application and interview?
11 points by aj 11 months ago
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2.
What are some of the turn-offs when reviewing an applicant?
10 points by john 11 months ago
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3.
What ways of scaling the program up/out are you exploring if any?
9 points by ericb 11 months ago
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4.
Have you gone back and checked the applications of the more successful YC companies for similarites?
7 points by brett 11 months ago
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5.
What separates a team that just fails being selected for Y combinator from a team that is accepted?
7 points by jedc 11 months ago
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6.
How much does HN Karma and participation affect your decision?
7 points by dmorin 11 months ago
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7.
What question on the application do you most look forward to when reading the answers?
7 points by johnss 11 months ago
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8.
Is there a point at which the company has grown past what YC can reasonably adopt? Or does involvement scale down to advisorship?
6 points by daniellefong 11 months ago
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9.
Can you share any of the more interesting responses to "Please tell us something surprising or amusing that one of you has discovered."?
5 points by brett 11 months ago
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10.
What would make high-end/niche products fundable?
5 points by rwx 11 months ago
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11.
What outstanding things have YC done to help teams AFTER the YC bootcamp process?
4 points by babul 11 months ago
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12.
Would you accept teams with similar ideas to previously funded YC companies?
4 points by terpua 11 months ago
- 1 comment
13.
Which quality tends to drive successful YC companies - Imagination or Industriousness?
3 points by TKirby42 10 months ago
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14.
There are well over 100 people registered for this event tonight. Has it become fashionable to start a start up? If so – what are the implications?
3 points by erictobia 10 months ago
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15.
Is applying for YC reccomended for founders that don't need money, but likes your network of people?
2 points by brandon 10 months ago
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16.
Do you feel that typing on that keyboard with only 1s and 0s and no backspace key has prepared you well for the iPhone? (www.voguehost.com)
2 points by vegas 10 months ago
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17.
How would you advise an aspiring founder with the right mindset (ambitious, analyical, etc.) but lacking in immediately applicable skills (rusty coder, a few years out of engineering school)?
2 points by Arubis 10 months ago
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18.
How well did having previous YC Founders do preliminary interviews work out?
2 points by alv 10 months ago
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19.
When interviewing how much does the question of whether or not you would personally like to work with the team factor?
2 points by alv 10 months ago
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20.
How is the specific percentage stake (that YC receives) determined for each offer? Is there room to negotiate?
2 points by anonymous1 11 months ago
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21.
What do you look for when reviewing an application?
2 points by johnss 11 months ago
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22.
From Sergey to Stephen King to Bob Dylan, it seems that a key requirement to massive success is hyperfocus to the exclusion of other interests. Are there contemporary counterexamples? Can one pursue a startup and still write a novel, play guitar (cont'd)i
1 point by Arubis 10 months ago
- 1 comment

Ask PG

Questions about the Y Combinator Process and how to get accepted