Y Combinator
also referred to as: yc
20 statements across 13 episodes · 12 bullish · 3 bearish · 10 people on the record · first statement Dec 23, 2021 by Alexis Ohanian · said 103 times in 36 episodes since 2021 · across every show →
Mentions by year
brought up most by Greg Isenberg (49), Sahil Bloom (11), Avi Schiffman (5), Matteo Franceschetti (4), Ali K. Miller (4), Alexis Ohanian (3), Adam Robinson (3), John Coogan (2)
tap a year for its mentions
2026 12 mentions in 6 episodes 2 per episode
2025 16 mentions in 5 episodes 3 per episode
- He Built a Startup using AI That Prints Money (Full Tutorial)
- Perplexity's new AI agents are INSANE
- The Golden Age of AI is happening right now (Here's Why)
- I built an AI Agent in 43 min to automate my workflows (Zero Coding)
- I Tested EVERY Hyped AI Tool - I ONLY Kept Using These
- every mention in 2025, scene by scene →
2024 29 mentions in 12 episodes 2 per episode
- "Y Combinator Is Overrated" - Inside the brain of this 22-Year-Old who built Multiple Viral Products
- 4 Startup Ideas Around Dating, Status, and AI
- Learn how to win on the internet in 28 min [tiktok shop, trends, building cult brands]
- The step by step guide to starting a business from $0
- 3 $1M+ AI startup ideas to build in 2025 (and how to grow them)
- John Coogan (TBPN) gives you $1B BIG startup ideas
- Bolt tutorial for beginners with the Bolt CEO Eric Simons
- The rulebook MrBeast followed to build his $1B creator empire
- 4 more episodes that year, every mention in 2024 →
2023 5 mentions in 3 episodes 2 per episode
2022 17 mentions in 9 episodes 2 per episode
- How to Build Hype with Matteo Franceschetti | Where It Happens
- How to Leverage Nostalgia and Win at Marketing with Danny Trinh
- Building Big Businesses with Creators with Emily Herrera
- Money, Wealth, and Personal Holding Companies with Michael Karnjanaprakorn
- Bootstrapping Through A Bear Market with Noah Kagan
- How to Build a Brand of the Future
- Why You Need A Digital Detox with Andrew Wilkinson
- Elon's Twitter Takeover and The Future of Social Media with Sriram Krishnan
- 1 more episode that year, every mention in 2022 →
2021 24 mentions in 1 episode
Everything said about Y Combinator, oldest first
Dec 23, 2021 bullish
Ohanian: An index of global Y Combinator startups will perform phenomenally
“Will YC still be successful for the next 10 years? Yes. I think as they expand the sectors and geographies, YC, I think globally is one of the most no brainer investments you can make in early stage investing. If you just invested in an index fund of all of th…”
Dec 23, 2021 negative
Ohanian: Early Y Combinator was dismissed and unsophisticated about Silicon Valley
“The first few years of YC were very janky. It was seen as, I think most people were quite dismissive of it, and frankly, PG and Jessica were not that sophisticated when it came to Silicon Valley VC, because they were based in Boston.”
Dec 23, 2021 neutral
Ohanian: Y Combinator originally funded founders with $6,000 each
“He announces Y Combinator and says, hey, I think random college kids when given 6000 dollars per founder, that's how much it was, spending an entire summer just building, like writing code, talking to customers, can one day build billion dollar businesses.”
Feb 3, 2022 neutral
Feb 3, 2022
Feb 3, 2022 neutral
Franceschetti: Eight Sleep built a full bedroom in the YC interview hallway
“So we rent a truck with a bed and the cover, but part of the experience was also with lights and other stuff that, you know, the nest that you were having in your bedroom because it was an IoT connectivity. So we also bring nightstands, And the lights that go …”
Mar 30, 2023 positive
Isenberg: Founders should join Y Combinator for community, not capital
“I always say like, only join, like join YC for the community and not the capital. Like, because the ability to sell to other founders within the network is, is, is really big. And also just like shared lessons, like it makes you go faster.”
Mar 30, 2023 positive
Aug 29, 2024 positive
Robinson: The ideal startup marries 'Rework' profitability with YC growth focus
“I think the perfect combination is, is like rework fundamentals, but Y Combinator orientation towards growth. If you can think about product market fit and growth from the Y Combinator lens, which I really don't think rework emphasizes that much.”
Nov 8, 2024 bullish
Nov 11, 2024 positive
Dec 18, 2024 bullish
Hudack invested in YC AI debt collection startup despite initial skepticism
“There's another one I invested in recently.
It's a YC company that is doing debt, AI debt collection, which I would have thought was like a terrible idea.
I can't think of the name off the top of my head, but the way the guy explained it, which I thought was r…”
Dec 30, 2024 negative
Dec 30, 2024 negative
Schiffmann: Founders Should Cultivate Self-Confidence Over YC Advice
“Personal confidence is what most founders should be working towards rather than like YC advice, because if you are confident enough in yourself, and again, you need to act like, I think the thing is that you still need to actually have good ideas and you need …”
Jan 13, 2025 positive
Mar 10, 2025 positive
Jun 16, 2025 bullish
Apr 1, 2026 bullish
Aug 12, 2026 neutral
Miller: Y Combinator's ratio of B2B to B2C startups has skyrocketed
“If you look at the YC splits right now when I was working with YC when I was at AWS compared to now, the ratio of B to B versus B to C has skyrocketed. Like there's just not as many B to C companies in these incubators getting built.”