YC S18 YouTube Video

[askmr]

Are all the YouTube videos submitted not viewed as a part of the application? Can they skip the app-video altogether? Are Unlisted videos not view if people at YC don't find the application worthy?

[dtawfik1]

This is a bit of a tangent, but if you don't get in, don't read into it too much. The rejection could be due to many factors. One thing that pops out is the stage of your company. You may not have built out enough, or haven't had enough validation. I know a solo founder who didn't get in, but went on to raise 20m plus for his company (tuition.io). The fact that he was a solo founder and that he was still developing the product could have been the issue. You really have to develop the idea and see where your traction is to validate your idea. YC is a great organization to have backing you, but it's not always perfect in selecting great companies

[pedalpete]

They are definitely not all viewed, I've never had one of my videos viewed, and I've applied 3 times.

Never had an interview, I suspect (as mentioned in other threads) they see "solo-founder" and skip.

Doesn't matter that I've brought together a team, raised funding, and that we have paying customers, leading tech, etc. etc.

[bsvalley]

I think each reviewer has its own process. I believe the video doesn't come first in most cases since it's faster to sort via text. You might have been sorted out from your title or company description. And if you're a solo founder in 2018, forget about it. It's easy and quick to look at the team 1st in the application.

[askmr]

What's wrong with being a solo founder? Was there any guideline that said you have to have a 2-3 co-founders?

In our case, the other founder is very much a part of this company but we didn't have to transfer 10% equity and that never a concern with any of us. We are in prototyping stage and equity distribution right now was not our top concern.

So only one founder filled the Founder's Form and everyone was there in the video.

I didn't know YC S18 had a rule of "No SOLO founders". And that they won't even check our application properly because of that.

[ParameterOne]

If your statements are accurate there is very little reason why 96% of applicants should apply to YCombinator in the future. I certainly would not have wasted my time in the past if I knew the above to be true. Can we get a confirmation please?

[levimaes]

Did they interview or contact you, then reject you? What was it all like?

[ParameterOne]

I did not get contact or interview. In light of the new information by the parent I can only assume that I was "sorted".

[nayname]

It was just his opinion, you never know the result until april 17.

[ParameterOne]

I didn't apply for this session

[nayname]

there are solo founders in Y Combinator.

[ParameterOne]

I was more concerned about company name/description

[levimaes]

When you say, "forget about it", regarding trying going solo with an idea, do you say that because the only hope for a chance at bringing and keeping the idea at viability is to simultaneously have 5,000 USD , liquid -- and to be, yourself, or close friends/co-founders with some kind of technologies Wunderkind? Like, the only hope at getting capital while staying organized, focused and adaptive is to have a healthy savings to dispose of?

I'm hoping there's still hope that a motivated and disciplined individual, today, can strive towards what might as morally well be their American (read: capitalist) birthright. I think it was someone at YC who stripped my self-defeating default to dismissal of the idea of becoming a lower middle class American owner when they wrote, "Build something users love, and spend less than you make. How hard is that?"