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Day 2 of The Startup Mafia Series: Why YC Founders Have an Unfair Advantage The world thinks startups are a meritocracy—that the best ideas win, the smartest founders get funded, and anyone can build a billion-dollar company if they just work hard enough. That’s a nice thought. But it’s not reality. In the real world, the biggest startups are chosen before they even launch. And one of the most powerful forces behind this? Y Combinator. What is YC? Y Combinator (YC) is the most famous startup accelerator in the world. It has funded companies like: Airbnb → Changed travel forever Dropbox → Redefined cloud storage Stripe → Powers billions in online payments Reddit → Became the internet’s front page Sounds like a dream, right? Join YC, and you get funding, mentorship, and connections. But here’s what most people don’t realize: YC doesn’t just pick winners. It creates them. The YC System: Why It’s Not a Fair Game Getting into YC is like getting a golden ticket. Once you’re in: Investors chase you instead of the other way around. Media covers you because YC startups are seen as the next big thing. Top talent joins you because they trust YC’s vetting process. Suddenly, you’re no longer just a random founder with an idea. You’re a YC-backed founder. And here’s where it gets really interesting. YC doesn’t just support individual startups. It builds a powerful network. YC alumni invest in each other, hire each other, and give each other insider access. Just like the PayPal Mafia. What About the Rest of the Founders? If you’re not in YC, you don’t get the investor hype, the press, the automatic trust. You’re playing the game on hard mode while YC founders get a shortcut. This is how startup power works. It’s not about who works the hardest—it’s about who’s already inside the right circles. And the same pattern repeats in India, Europe, and beyond. Tomorrow: The IIT & IIM Startup Pipeline – Why They Keep Winning Follow now. The next post will open your eyes.