FundersClub

FundersClub, from YC S12, is a web service that pools money from many individuals and institutions to make aggregated investments in startups.  This business model makes it easier for startups to raise money by allowing individual investors to make smaller investments (as low as $1,000).  As VentureBeat reports, FundersClub recently won a significant victory as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission issued a “no-action letter” recognizing FundersClub as an investment advisor rather than a broker-dealer. Continue reading …

BufferBox HD Trade Services Instacart Keychain Logistics Swapbox Octopart Upverter CircuitHub CircuitLab Clerky Wevorce Lawdingo Watsi Prizeo Amicus FarmLogs

With each successive round, Y Combinator frequently funds new markets of startups that solve existing problems for other YC companies and the greater startup ecosystem.  I’ve recently been able to identify sixteen such companies in five new markets. Continue reading …

Y Combinator’s webpage for today’s YC W13 Demo Day indicated the 47 startups would be “presenting in 3 groups of 16, spread throughout the day.”  However, it seems from press reports (well, TechCrunch) there were only two groups of companies.  In the first group, all sixteen companies had previously been covered in the press.  In the second group, only one of the companies was new (Medisas).  In its post of that second batch, TechCrunch basically said they were done for the day.  The remaining companies all chose to speak off-the-record. Continue reading …

Tuesday, March 26, is Demo Day for YC W13.  I guess my invitation got lost in the mail.  No worries, though.  Thirty of the 47 startups have already launched publicly.  According to Y Combinator’s website, this Demo Day will follow the same format as YC S12.  Demo Day will be a single day-long event held at the Computer History Museum.  Presentations to investors will be made in three sessions, 16 companies each, between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Continue reading …

Exec Justin Kan

Over 11,000 people have applied to be Exec contractors, says Justin Kan in a talk with TechCrunch’s Jordan Crook.  Exec’s vision is being able to easily solve all of consumers’ local services problems.  Mr. Kan says Exec’s biggest challenges in fulfilling that vision primarily involve the logistics of building a service that scales and consumers enjoy. Continue reading …

Eight startups for fashion and clothing have done Y Combinator.  Three of these companies are new, in the current batch of YC W13.  And Winter must be a good time to get funding for fashion.  All except one are from winter sessions.  Here’s all of them: Continue reading …

YCUniverse.com began two years ago as simply a long list of startups.  I’ve since added various features, including filtering by market for the companies and this blog.  Y Combinator Universe has been mentioned on Business Insider and San Francisco Chronicle.  All of the time and money for this has come out of my own pocket.  I’d like to raise some funds to improve the site’s design, cover my hosting expenses, incorporate my own unfunded startup, and perhaps get some equipment to do new things like video interviews and pay guest bloggers. So please take a moment and throw in a few bucks.

Dropbox Orchestra Mailbox Drew Houston Arash Ferdowsi Gentry Underwood IDEO Scott Cannon Apple

Dropbox has acquired Orchestra, Inc., makers of Mailbox.  The announced was made by Drew Houston and Arash Ferdowsi on the Dropbox blog.  The rumored purchasing price was between $50 million and $100 million, consisting of both cash and stock. Continue reading …

PG

In a new essay, Paul Graham suggests Silicon Valley adopt standards for doing handshake agreements.  The goal is faster deal flow.  Startups and investors would be able to confidently reach a meeting of the minds on the essential terms of a transaction prior to drafting and signing any paperwork.  The need for such protocol results from character traits inherent in both founders and investors.  Founders, through wishful thinking and/or lack of experience, frequently misunderstand the specifics of what technically constitutes an agreement.  Investors likewise tend to do business in such a way as to both avoid commitment and provide themselves with ways to back out of a deal. Continue reading …

Teespring Watsi

Support non-profit Watsi.org and get an official Hacker News t-shirt.  Teespring.com is a startup that allows people to crowdfund awesome custom apparel with no up-front cost and no risk.  Watsi.org enables people to directly fund low-cost, high-impact medical treatments for people in need,  as previously reported here.  Teespring and Watsi are teaming up for a good cause.  For the next five days, contributing just $13 to this campaign on Teespring will get you a Hacker News t-shirt and all proceeds benefit Watsi.  The shirts are high-quality screen prints, American Apparel material, choice of black or slate grey, and available in either normal or ladies’ fit.  The t-shirts do not have any words on them.  However, there’s an interesting discussion on HN: What phrase would you put on an official Hacker News t-shirt? Continue reading …