[tomhow]

Edit: Fine! I found a way to get a16z in there and keep it to 80 chars.

Both for length reasons and because it was clickbait.

The original title doesn’t even have the actual company’s name in it, only the name of the investor, which is intended to elicit just the kind of ragey reaction you’re exhibiting in this comment.

On HN, titles need to be more neutral and factual (I.e., include the name of the company the article is primarily about).

(Also, you seem to be implying some conflict of interest? Doublespeed and a16z have nothing to do with HN/YC.)

[jpalawaga]

Nobody knows what Doublespeed is, everyone knows what a16z is. Doesn't putting the part that's pertinent to people in the headline oblige readers-to-be?

I'd say that the change is editorializing more than the original was "linkbait".

[tomhow]

A16z invests in _a great many_ companies. Without the company name in the title, you have to click to find out who the company is. That’s the point. The title gets readers riled up and activates them to click.

The title we’ve set is intended to give enough information to pique curiosity for those who will be curious about the topic - the company name, what the company does (AI-generated promotional content), what’s happened (hacked).

I don’t love the title but it’s the best I could come up with to fit within the 80 character limit.

Anyone is welcome to suggest a better one that is compliant with the guidelines.

(Edit: s/ countless / a great many /)

[defrost]

s/ countless / a great many /

Best to drop the contrafactual hyperbole .. unless A16z's accountants really have dropped the ball and can no longer enumerate their investments.

[tomhow]

Heh, fair enough. My first thought was “thousands” - which is true for YC. Then I thought “hundreds?” I have no idea and I don’t really want to spend time trying to find out, partly as it wouldn’t be a precise figure anyway (they wouldn’t disclose that publicly). So it’s “countless” for me.

[defrost]

No great drama, thanks for taking the worst kind of nitpick with grace.

For some of us these exaggerated claims of greater than aleph-null investments send our eyebrows literally to the stratosphere (/s).

[UncleMeat]

a16z is incredibly important to this ecosystem, far more so than any individual company. And them investing in many companies does not exempt them from people identifying when they invest in vile companies.

I am very sorry, but that's a critical part of the story.

[jfindper]

>Both for length reasons

The original title is 75 characters. Your title is 74 characters. If it was edited for length reasons, I'm not sure saving 1 character is worth it.

[tomhow]

The title had to be changed to be compliant with the guidelines. It also has to fit under 80 characters. It’s not an easy task and you’re welcome to suggest a better one.

[jfindper]

I'm just pointing out that it's weird to say you changed it for length reasons if you make the new title the same length.

[tomhow]

I’m saying the reason I couldn’t include a16z is that I can’t fit it into the title along with all the other details that seem important, notably the name of the company the article is about.

[rsynnott]

But the whole _point_ is "major VC funding spam outfit", surely? Like, who cares who the spam outfit is? There are lots of them. These phone farms are not exactly rare. The interesting bit is the involvement of a supposedly proper company.

[htrp]

VC backing makes a lot of less than reputable business models respectable enough to engage with corporate clients.

In this case you aren't backing a phone farm creating ad fraud, but rather a "organic paid media initiative backed by a16z"

[tomhow]

We had updated the title to put A16Z back in about 10 hours before your comment :)