SF Reflections

Went to SF for 2 weeks for YC Startup School. Here are my thoughts from the various conversations and observations I’d made.

On Validation

A big shift in my thinking is: ask first, build later. My initial assumption was that I had to build a fully working solution before demoing to customers. That thinking evolved into "an MVP would suffice" - but even that still takes hours to days to build. After seeing how fast and high-fidelity I can spin up a wireframes with Claude Design, I think that’s the way moving forward.

To iterate fast, you just need an idea and a wireframe that takes 2-3 hours to build. Use that to quickly validate the idea, and if they’re willing to pay for you to build out that solution (pilots, LOIs, etc.), then you’re no longer building blindly, and praying that others will pay for it later - something that I was guilty of… you know, me being an engineer and all (we just love the process of building).

I guess it’s about being comfortable with rejection. Talking to customers is the single most important thing when building a startup.

On Businesses

I think there’s generally 2 routes tech entrepreneurs can go: a) very technical/R&D, b) application-based. Very technical solutions like research or hard sciences still require lots of knowledge, and will probably need a decently-working solution before demoing to others. For the latter, the focus is much more on diffusion of technologies, whether it’s in older industries like healthcare and construction work, or in industries that one is familiar with/have connections in.

For the latter, it’s especially important to know how to validate an idea, market it, and sell to people.

On Geography

Just being in the SF region, and staying together with cracked people makes all the difference. You see what others are exposed to, you get inspired and stretched to your limits. Seeing people, teenagers at palantir, SpaceX, NASA, OpenAI, etc… really opens your perspective and humbles you. Hackerhouses are an excellent idea as you’re working on something 24/7, living with people who understand your struggles. Hackathons are a great way to meet other cracked builders, quickly prototype a business idea, meet VCs/Angels, etc.

On Pivoting

I knew numerous friends who’d gotten into prestegious incubators/VC programmes, and pivoted away from their initial ideas.

The idea you apply with isn’t necessarily the idea you stick with. Talking to YC founders, they mentioned that the YC partners already expect you to pivot - as many YC teams do during the batch.

So why do the partners choose your team, if it isn’t about the idea? It’s because they trust the team. They believe you can execute, regardless of the idea. Ideas are cheap in this age, and building is perhaps even cheaper with AI tools. What is hard to replicate is a solid reputation of solving hard problems, coachability, good execution, etc… And that’s what VCs like YC look for when evaluating applications.

On Solo-Founding

Met a few solo-founders at YC. I was surprised when they shared many people in their batch are now solo-founders, something like 20% of their batch. So, the preconception that YC rejects solo-founders doesn’t hold anymore. I think this goes back to my previous point: It’s about you as the founder - if you can prove that you can make it work regardless of circumstances, you’ll get in.

They also shared about the YC process: Your application is put into a pile. As long as one partner wants you, you're in... When you're rejected by one partner, you get put back into the common pile and other partners will review it...

On Problems vs Solutions

When I was thinking of startup ideas, I was unconsciously searching for solutions first, and then validating if the problem was real. The opposite is always better - fall in love with the problem, and then find solutions. Solutions will always change - startups pivot all the time - but if you’re set on fixing a single problem, you can adapt accordingly (a problem has multiple solutions).

On Asking

Asking is probably the most underrated skill to have (i.e. having thicker skin). Again, many of us fear rejection, but the upside is incredibly huge. As cliche as it sounds, the worst that can happen is them saying no. But I realize many successful founders in SF are helpful and open to sharing their personal struggles, failures, and experiences. Making introductions, connecting friends with others, is the norm here - and I think that’s one of the things that makes SF extremely special.

Conclusion

Honestly, most of the advice here can be found online. But reading it, and actually understanding it, internalizing it, and living it is two completely separate things. That’s why we don’t see many successful startups, even when there’s many great resources online.

Through these 2 weeks, experiencing first-hand what it’s like in the heart of startups, I came to these conclusions naturally. And it changes the way I approach entrepreneurship and startups.