[JangoSteve]

> As you say YC admission or raising funds from investors isn't a measure of business success...but then again I haven't seen a tech unicorn that hasn't been funded by investors.

There is a difference between a company getting investor funding and the investor funding being a significant measure of success.

There are plenty of unicorns that didn't raise money until well after they were already considered a success. A couple examples off the top of my head would be:

* Github - first round was a $100mil series A at a $650mil valuation about 5 years after founding.

* Atlassian - first round was a $60mil round 8 years after founding.

I'm sure there are plenty more that are easier to find once you know what you're looking for.