Don’t ask them. The only one who can give you a sure answer is @dang .
My guess is that HN users flag the hell out of DF submissions for whatever reason, and that causes the so-called graylisting. But again only @dang can give you a straight answer.
If you prefer email, Dan can be reached at hn@ycombinator.com. He seems like a friendly guy.
Have you considered the possibility that the world has changed after 2020, and there's more to discuss re: technology and society than whatever Apple is up to? We've had Covid, meme stocks, Jan 6th, Huawei bans, Ukraine, NFTs, stablecoin collapses, Twitter takeover, AI everything, Chinese EVs, Tiktok ban....this list goes on.
My guess is that HN users flag the hell out of DF submissions for whatever reason, and that causes the so-called graylisting. But again only @dang can give you a straight answer.
If you prefer email, Dan can be reached at hn@ycombinator.com. He seems like a friendly guy.