Can YC alumni screen applications to my disadvantage?

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12 points by mangrish 4839 days ago

I recently met a YC alumni that I don't believe has the right angle on the market they are in. I am putting in an application that would compete with them but as I am still in the middle of building my MVP stage I am worried they will get too much information from my application and may pivot to my idea earlier than I would like a competitor to. Do all previous YC alumni get to screen applications?

I am mostly interested in the connections YC offers rather than the money (We intend on bootstrapping as much as we can). If this YC alum has access to this application should we perhaps submit for a later YC class or hold out till we have finished our MVP and apply for a different accelerator program?

What do you guys think?

2 comments

soneca 4839 days ago

I think that if this competitor is willing to pivot based on a insight you had without even having a MVP, with no data to support it, than you don't have to worry about them. They will just keep pivoting everytime someone smart give them a tip and will be lost sooner than later.

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argonaut 4839 days ago

No. Neither.

You're worrying too much. Stop worrying too much.

Are you going to force every potential employee to sign an NDA because you're afraid they'll tell others? Are you going to avoid explaining to people at meetups what your company does? Etc. etc.

What about the chance that a big company is going to copy what you do after you launch? All startups must be screwed then (sarcasm). Etc. etc.

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mangrish 4839 days ago

Ah yes you are right!

I should have mentioned that in my original post. I do tend to talk about my idea with everyone. It helps to weed out poor ideas and germinate new ones.

My question really was literally to do with a direct competitor getting an insight into my business plan while I was in the middle of building the MVP.

I think you are right in that i should stop worrying though :)

Also: I got a message from another mate in YC. He said that it's mostly the guys that are close with YC that do a lot of the screening so less worrying ahoy!

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