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we applied to @ycombinator a month late. got an interview in 2 days. here's the demo video that did it:
2:44
Meet Modi
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human building for ai agents | @agentphonehq
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grow alongside the best startups tbh
I’ve gone back and forth on this one publicly.View quoted post on X
Last year I passed on a YC company doing $500K ARR because 30/56 customers were batchmates. I asked how they’d win the next batch. The answer was “the same way.”
A few told me I was being too harsh...
Batchmates are the best first customers in startups. They’re technical, impatient, and won’t pay for anything that doesn’t work + PG’s point is that they’re the real test, and the best influence on how the product evolves.
Also... they don’t stay small. The good ones grow fast, so the customer paying you a little at 5 people can be paying you a lot at 500. You get to grow with them.
Sure, it’s an easier pitch. But nobody in the batch is obligated to pay you, dollars in the door are dollars in the door, and they fund the next stage.... so, why wouldn’t you start by selling to the people right next to you?
What I care about is what happens after Demo Day:
→ Do those batchmates stay?
→ Does the next batch buy without knowing you?
→ How do you get customers while you’re asleep?
10% of a batch is a *great* start.
if you had traction from day one, you’re just walking down someone else’s paved path
how long before they were obvious:View quoted post on X
instagram: ~12 months
snapchat: ~16 months
pinterest: ~20 months
minecraft: ~20 months
airbnb: ~18+ months
among us: ~2 years
zoom: ~7 years
chatgpt: ~2.5 years after gpt-3
nothing is obvious on day one.
