←back to thread

YC: Requests for Startups

(www.ycombinator.com)
514 points sarimkx | 3 comments | 14 Feb 24 16:31 UTC | HN request time: 0.614s | source
Show context
zug_zug ◴[14 Feb 24 17:39 UTC] No.39372656[source]▶
One interesting thing about this is that this what investors want you to make for them to invest in, not necessarily what you want to make. Investors are very happy with moonshots (1% chance of you succeeding, but 10,000x return if you do). But I don't think any rational founder should be.

Not all of these are moonshots, but some of them are (e.g. securing defense contracts seems lower risk). Also I imagine getting that defense contract may be a very different value proposition depending on what connections that investor has.

replies(2): >>39374531 #>>39374657 #
1. dang ◴[14 Feb 24 20:04 UTC] No.39374531[source]▶
I don't know how other investors operate but if YC sees a good founder working on something they don't care about, just because they think investors want them to work on it, they'd almost certainly tell them to switch to something they do care about.

pg's most frequent advice to founders about ideas is to ask themselves what they themselves wish would exist, then make that—i.e. solve a problem you yourself have. Another thing he and Jessica say a lot is that you need to be passionate about what you're working on in order to make it through the arduous haul of a startup.

That's even more true of the 'moonshot' startups, since they're harder and take longer. If you look at the hardest startups YC has invested in, you won't find many founders who aren't personally obsessed with what they're working on, and have been for many years. That's one of the things YC would be looking for before funding somebody to work on such things.

replies(1): >>39376904 #
2. Draiken ◴[14 Feb 24 23:11 UTC] No.39376904[source]▶
Interesting, because on existing startups I've seen them build features/products solely because they believe VCs will like it.

Just look at AI and the amount of useless chatbots and other half-baked "AI" solutions several startups built in a rush after the topic became the latest fad and VCs were saying it's hot.

replies(1): >>39377561 #
3. the_only_law ◴[15 Feb 24 00:29 UTC] No.39377561[source]▶
I wouldn’t count out the thought that there are many brainless people who convince themselves what’s “VCs will like” is “what they wish would exist”.