[amatic]

> Getting useful people (for many contextual definitions of 'useful') to care about your success could be a direct reason for your success.

That is what it seems like. In the early phases of a company, founders meet a lot of challenges they never could have prepared themselves for. Having a community of people who've gone trough the hurdles give you advice and guide you is what makes startups succeed. The money certainly helps, but it is the condensed knowledge and tried methods of problem solving that really drives YC companies.