[over50]

That's it, kind of.

I would say "Done thinking YC is the right fit for me" could be more accurate.

Of course, now they've flagged the thread, so not sure if any of this discussion matters. Instead of cancelling the discussion, it should be actively promoted.

I am not accusing of YC doing anything explicitly. I think they make the right decisions when it comes to what you need in a young team in order to succeed. An example of this is the multiple founder bias. Right on point. Young people are just not equipped for the brutality entrepreneurship can deliver.

I also think that some of their process results in unintentional age bias. Asking for age is one example. Older founders might not need or want co-founders. And relocation is something might be impossible as well. As an example, in my case, I have full industrial-class manufacturing capabilities where I live. Moving to YC for three months, quite literally, means I would be far less efficient and likely get very little done. Or, I would have to abandon work on hardware and focus solely on software.

[tptacek]

They didn't cancel the discussion; users did. I didn't flag this thread, but thought about it. It's got nothing to do with the validity of your argument. I'm in my 40s, am alert to ageism, and tend to think it's a real thing. But threads like this, where there's barely even circumstantial evidence in the story as presented (the whole story might be much clearer!) tend to be total shitshows as threads.

I think the bias towards founder teams is especially problematic. If I was trying to marshal a case that YC pattern-matches on 25-year-old top-school grads, I'd leave the solo-founder thing out. They're right about solo founders, and they're right along multiple dimensions. We can have a healthy debate about that, but all it'll do is muddy the waters about the ageism thing.

It sounds to me, given all the circumstances you've rattled off, the YC just isn't a fit for what you want to do. It wasn't at all a fit for my last couple businesses, either, and they did (/are doing) great.

[smithmayowa]

Unrelated and I expect to be downvoted but you were right https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1428764

The U.S did leave Afghanistan and now the Taliban's are about taking over, I'm always stunned when I see decade old predictions that were accurate.

[dang]

> now they've flagged the thread

Just to be clear, users flagged it, not moderators.

When you see [flagged] on a submission, it nearly always means that users flagged it (this is in the FAQ: https://news.ycombinator.com/newsfaq.html).

[over50]

> Just to be clear, users flagged it, not moderators.

I understand this. In this case "they" did not mean YC. Maybe I should have clarified.