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Chamarti Sreekar
Passionate about Pos... • 3m
Y Combinator’s Identity Crisis: Growth or Decline? Y Combinator, the famed Silicon Valley accelerator behind Airbnb, Stripe, and Doordash, is facing scrutiny as it expands. Once exclusive, YC now runs more frequent and larger startup batches, raising concerns about diluted quality and investor fatigue. In 2022, the winter batch hit 400 companies, prompting CEO Garry Tan to scale back. However, the addition of fall and spring cohorts means more startups and Demo Days for investors to track. Critics say the excitement has waned, with too many duplicate companies and smaller seed rounds. Despite this, YC remains prestigious, with a 1% acceptance rate and strong success metrics—5.5% of its startups become unicorns, and its graduates are valued at over $600 billion. Investors like Masha Bucher acknowledge the challenges but still see value in YC’s ecosystem, albeit wishing for smaller batches. As YC evolves, the debate continues: Is it still the gold standard for startups, or is it losing its edge?
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