With a 1.5% acceptance rate, @ycombinator is the world's most revered startup accelerator for a reason.
How can you stand out from 10,000+ applications?
Here's what YC is looking for when you apply: 🧵👇
How can you stand out from 10,000+ applications?
Here's what YC is looking for when you apply: 🧵👇
The Application
1. Be matter of fact
- No 'marketing-speak'
- Be narrow in your descriptions
2. Use data
- Numbers > superlatives
3. Show that you can become a huge business
- They are looking for 100x opportunities
Your #1 priority is for them to understand what you're doing
1. Be matter of fact
- No 'marketing-speak'
- Be narrow in your descriptions
2. Use data
- Numbers > superlatives
3. Show that you can become a huge business
- They are looking for 100x opportunities
Your #1 priority is for them to understand what you're doing
The Team
They want:
- Industry leaders
- Unique insights
- Those who go against the system
The most important question:
"Please tell us in one or two sentences about something impressive that each founder has built or achieved."
Extraordinary people do extraordinary things.
They want:
- Industry leaders
- Unique insights
- Those who go against the system
The most important question:
"Please tell us in one or two sentences about something impressive that each founder has built or achieved."
Extraordinary people do extraordinary things.
The Interview
There are 90+ questions they might ask you.
You have to answer each questions in 10 - 15 seconds.
They expect you to back each answer with data and zero fluff.
Want to practice?
Check out YC.battlecard.com where you can do interview questions with a bot.
There are 90+ questions they might ask you.
You have to answer each questions in 10 - 15 seconds.
They expect you to back each answer with data and zero fluff.
Want to practice?
Check out YC.battlecard.com where you can do interview questions with a bot.
Sample interview questions:
✔️ How many active users?
✔️ How fast is the market growing?
✔️ What’s the biggest mistake you've made?
✔️ Why are you uniquely qualified to work on this?
✔️ How much money could you make per year?
✔️ How does this become a billion-dollar company?
✔️ How many active users?
✔️ How fast is the market growing?
✔️ What’s the biggest mistake you've made?
✔️ Why are you uniquely qualified to work on this?
✔️ How much money could you make per year?
✔️ How does this become a billion-dollar company?
Bonus Points
1. Have traction
- Show you'll be successful with or without the program
2. YC Alumni are using your product
- Endorsements never hurt
3. Be remarkable
- Past wins look like future success.
1. Have traction
- Show you'll be successful with or without the program
2. YC Alumni are using your product
- Endorsements never hurt
3. Be remarkable
- Past wins look like future success.
The most important thing...
There are no hacks or shortcuts to getting in.
The most important thing is to build an amazing product your customers are obsessed with in an exploding market.
Everything else will figure itself out.
There are no hacks or shortcuts to getting in.
The most important thing is to build an amazing product your customers are obsessed with in an exploding market.
Everything else will figure itself out.
If you are interested, I'm going to breakdown Dropboxes YC application in a future thread.
Please follow @Adam_Ha_Yes and thanks for reading.
RT greatly appreciated 🙏
Please follow @Adam_Ha_Yes and thanks for reading.
RT greatly appreciated 🙏
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