[Elite]

Quite a bit of it has to do with YC and the tech community buzz and implicit validation. The founder of HipMunk mentioned that CNN contacted him out of the blue within a day after they launched.

If it was the same product done outside YC I don't think they would have got CNN coverage, at least not this soon.

[kn0thing]

Aye, YC is probably one of the strongest startup-related brands these days. It's shocking to see how well people respond to my relationship to YC these days. Back when Steve & I started reddit, we had to explain to nearly everyone just what "Y Combinator" was all about. The association really is validating in a lot of ways -- but every day it becomes even more important to keep up the brand's value.

(Full-disclosure: I'm a new employee at YC - Ambassador to the East)