[USNetizen]

Yeah, but the path to $20M+ in revenue is a LOT quicker in the government market. Setting up an "MVP" app with Stripe and such is easy to get some quick pennies, but the investment in going after the government market will get you some serious dollars - long term. Not only that, but the government will fund something if they consider it innovative. DARPA essentially funded the Silicon Valley before the VCs moved in, after all.

Nothing of any worth comes effortlessly.

[USNetizen]

Google SBIR, STTR and CRADA. This is how so many of the common technologies that underlie our very way of life were created in the 20th century. Semiconductors, the Internet, database systems, computing in general, etc. etc. etc. People forget the government initially funded so much of the technological foundation of our daily lives through DARPA and other programs, and they are continuing to do so for those willing to take advantage of it.

[USNetizen]

I'm not very acquainted with other YC companies. But I know of hundreds of others that have gone this route for many technologies ranging from energy production to cybersecurity to sensor devices to materials science to software applications in AI and other areas, you name it.

[logicallee]

thanks (to anyone else, the comment ordering is messed up in this thread, each of USNetizen's replies is to the sibling comment below it.)

[USNetizen]

No problem. Yeah, I'm not sure how the comment ordering got messed up.

[logicallee]

thank you, this is very interesting. Do you know of any more recent companies that started on this route but continued through private investment (like YC companies etc.) For example, have any of YC's roughly 1,000 companies made use of SBIR, STTR, CRADA, etc? (Which ones).

[stephendicato]

Technology Transfer[1] is one of the mechanisms that enables collaboration between federal labs and the commercial sector.

Caveat, I am not affiliated with YC. However, technology I invented at an FFRDC was licensed by an investment firm. I choose to follow the work, co-found a startup, and focus on bringing the technology to a wider audience. I'm happy to talk about my experiences.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Technology_Transfer_Ac...

[logicallee]

thanks - you say "I'm happy to talk about my experiences", any chance we could do it off of here? you don't list a contact.

[logicallee]

can you elaborate on the path of the government funding innovation? (your sentence, "the government will fund something if they consider it innovative" - I'd like to hear more.)

I don't think VC's and angel investors ever directly fund innovation (in fact they're allergic to it until proven by the market) and I would not be opposed to exploring the government route toward funding of these innovative ideas. I think there is an interesting space between projects founders are personally able to finance, and the minimum cash needed to prove innovative ideas of merit in the marketplace. airbnb's binder full of credit cards and 7 rejections show this pretty clearly.[1][2]

what does the government route to innovation look like?

[1] http://www.businessinsider.com.au/how-a-box-of-cereal-and-be...

[2] https://medium.com/@bchesky/7-rejections-7d894cbaa084