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VentureBeat
July 24 2014
Alexis Ohanian on the evolution of Y Combinator and the future of Startup School
July 24, 2014 8:41 AM
Harrison Weber
You may know Alexis Ohanian as the Reddit guy. Or the "mayor of the
Internet." Now, he's a full-time partner at Y Combinator.
Ohanian sat down with us (metaphorically) to dish on his new role. He
also unveiled his plans to transform YC's Startup School event series
into an online resource for aspiring entrepreneurs.
Let's get to it.
Harrison Weber: What was your role at YC before becoming a partner?
Alexis Ohanian: Back in 2010, when I got back from Armenia, I met with
Paul [Graham, the founder of Y Combinator] and Jessica [YC partner
Jessica Livingston], and they asked me to be a partner. I said: 'That
is awesome and I would love to, but I don't want to live in San
Francisco anymore.'
And they said, 'Fine, we still want you to be an ambassador.'
Ambassador to the East -- because Paul is great with titles.
They said, 'Just represent us east of the Valley.' And it was a lot of
fun, but it was very ceremonial.
Harrison Weber: Why become a partner?
Alexis Ohanian: As Paul Graham stepped back, there was an opportunity
to take a more active role in YC. I think one of the best parts now is
if you look across the partners, there's a ton of talented people with
very different backgrounds.
We all have different skill sets, and I'd like to use mine to continue
spreading awareness about YC and helping startups in a more intimate
way than I was before.
Harrison Weber: Does YC have plans to open an office in New York? Did it ever?
Alexis Ohanian: It was never in the cards. I guess now, technically,
YC has a presence here because this is where I live, but right now it
takes a ton of people to make it work in one location, and it would
take nearly as many to make it work in a whole new one, so there's
nothing on the horizon.
Harrison Weber: And what are your plans?
Alexis Ohanian: One of the things that I am exploring is opening up
the knowledge [YC has] around startups. That's a project that I hope
to be working on in the next few months.
I think back to when Steve and I started Reddit nine years ago: There
was a dearth of knowledge compared to today. YouTube didn't exist back
then, and now you can find amazing talks from founders, and makers,
and investors. You can find Quora threads. You can find blog posts.
You can find insights about so many different aspects. But it's all
disparate now.
I'm talking about knowledge that's vast and diverse for an aspiring
entrepreneur -- not only how to hack Angel List, or the 10 things every
UX designer absolutely needs to know before she even opens up her
browser to start coding.
I want there to be one place, a kind of resource. Basically an
extension of Startup School that turns the event into something
digital, online, and just as freely available, and hopefully as
helpful.
Harrison Weber: You're actively working on this?
Alexis Ohanian: I'm hoping, once the batch is done, I'll be able to
get more focused on it. Hopefully by mid-September I'll have something
launched. Scaling Startup School to be more accessible than a
conference in meat-space.
Harrison Weber: What about your activism?
Alexis Ohanian: [Joining YC] basically takes my platform and amplifies
it. Because now I'm not just coming as a Reddit guy, I'm coming as YC
with a $30 billion portfolio.
At the end of the day, like for instance, going down to the Hill last
week, it just helps. It makes it a little bit easier for me to get the
doors open, in spite of the beard.
Harrison Weber: Is your time split between YC, your Initialized fund,
and activism?
Alexis Ohanian: I would say, in terms of time, it definitely changes.
The activism ebbs and flows the most. I am there when it's going to be
helpful. While the batches [of new YC startups] are in session, YC is
the majority of what I do. And then, Initialized stuff makes up the
rest.
Harrison Weber: Are you investing less through Initialized, or more?
Alexis Ohanian: The thing that we've noticed over the last year is
that our biggest bets -- like Secret -- weren't even part of the YC
network. It'll probably continue that way.
Harrison Weber: Why does YC's model still work?
Alexis Ohanian: What Paul, Jessica, Robert [Morris], and Trevor
[Blackwell], the four original founders, saw, before just about
anyone, was how much the world had changed -- that somebody with a
laptop can take a little bit of money and build something amazing.
They focused obsessively on helping founders ... and it was never about
doing press, or promotion. I think there was even a network that
wanted to do a reality show around YC, the first batch, but they
turned it down without thinking twice, and I am so grateful.
To that point, I think the fact that YC has been geographically
focused is part of the strength, because that does not stop us from
going everywhere else to recruit talent. Of this batch, 39 percent of
the founders are non-US citizens. That's a nontrivial number.
Harrison Weber: Is Sam Altman, Paul Graham's successor, just trying to
surround himself with smart people?
Alexis Ohanian: I think what he realizes is, for YC to evolve -- i'm
talking Pokemon-next-level-evolution -- we'll need to draw from a
really diverse set of founders-turned-partners who have a diverse
skill set.
It's gonna allow YC to do stuff that I don't think we were able to
before. I spoke earlier to the political involvement. That's something
that is in my wheelhouse. It's something that I've been doing. It's
something I know benefits the Internet as a whole but that I hope will
also benefit YC as an investor in things on the Internet. So it's
mutually beneficial, but it gives YC more of a presence in Washington.
Harrison Weber: What do you think of the latest batch?
Alexis Ohanian: I remember YC nine years ago, and no one would have
ever expected we would be investing in and helping founders who are
working on fighting cancer and getting us off fossil fuels, but it's
happening. And that's the kind of evolution that just gets me really
excited. Not to mention the non-profits. Oh man.
I don't think any of us can pretend we know where this is headed.
Harrison Weber: Is Sam going to let companies in that Paul Graham
wouldn't let in?
Alexis Ohanian: Probably. What's nice is that while Sam is president,
we are a partnership of equals.
I think we collectively as a partnership -- there are more partners now
-- I think you're definitely going to see a change. I think that's
inevitable. I am excited about that.
http://venturebeat.com/2014/07/24/alexis-ohanian-on-the-evolution-of-y-combinator-and-the-future-of-startup-school/
July 24 2014
Alexis Ohanian on the evolution of Y Combinator and the future of Startup School
July 24, 2014 8:41 AM
Harrison Weber
You may know Alexis Ohanian as the Reddit guy. Or the "mayor of the
Internet." Now, he's a full-time partner at Y Combinator.
Ohanian sat down with us (metaphorically) to dish on his new role. He
also unveiled his plans to transform YC's Startup School event series
into an online resource for aspiring entrepreneurs.
Let's get to it.
Harrison Weber: What was your role at YC before becoming a partner?
Alexis Ohanian: Back in 2010, when I got back from Armenia, I met with
Paul [Graham, the founder of Y Combinator] and Jessica [YC partner
Jessica Livingston], and they asked me to be a partner. I said: 'That
is awesome and I would love to, but I don't want to live in San
Francisco anymore.'
And they said, 'Fine, we still want you to be an ambassador.'
Ambassador to the East -- because Paul is great with titles.
They said, 'Just represent us east of the Valley.' And it was a lot of
fun, but it was very ceremonial.
Harrison Weber: Why become a partner?
Alexis Ohanian: As Paul Graham stepped back, there was an opportunity
to take a more active role in YC. I think one of the best parts now is
if you look across the partners, there's a ton of talented people with
very different backgrounds.
We all have different skill sets, and I'd like to use mine to continue
spreading awareness about YC and helping startups in a more intimate
way than I was before.
Harrison Weber: Does YC have plans to open an office in New York? Did it ever?
Alexis Ohanian: It was never in the cards. I guess now, technically,
YC has a presence here because this is where I live, but right now it
takes a ton of people to make it work in one location, and it would
take nearly as many to make it work in a whole new one, so there's
nothing on the horizon.
Harrison Weber: And what are your plans?
Alexis Ohanian: One of the things that I am exploring is opening up
the knowledge [YC has] around startups. That's a project that I hope
to be working on in the next few months.
I think back to when Steve and I started Reddit nine years ago: There
was a dearth of knowledge compared to today. YouTube didn't exist back
then, and now you can find amazing talks from founders, and makers,
and investors. You can find Quora threads. You can find blog posts.
You can find insights about so many different aspects. But it's all
disparate now.
I'm talking about knowledge that's vast and diverse for an aspiring
entrepreneur -- not only how to hack Angel List, or the 10 things every
UX designer absolutely needs to know before she even opens up her
browser to start coding.
I want there to be one place, a kind of resource. Basically an
extension of Startup School that turns the event into something
digital, online, and just as freely available, and hopefully as
helpful.
Harrison Weber: You're actively working on this?
Alexis Ohanian: I'm hoping, once the batch is done, I'll be able to
get more focused on it. Hopefully by mid-September I'll have something
launched. Scaling Startup School to be more accessible than a
conference in meat-space.
Harrison Weber: What about your activism?
Alexis Ohanian: [Joining YC] basically takes my platform and amplifies
it. Because now I'm not just coming as a Reddit guy, I'm coming as YC
with a $30 billion portfolio.
At the end of the day, like for instance, going down to the Hill last
week, it just helps. It makes it a little bit easier for me to get the
doors open, in spite of the beard.
Harrison Weber: Is your time split between YC, your Initialized fund,
and activism?
Alexis Ohanian: I would say, in terms of time, it definitely changes.
The activism ebbs and flows the most. I am there when it's going to be
helpful. While the batches [of new YC startups] are in session, YC is
the majority of what I do. And then, Initialized stuff makes up the
rest.
Harrison Weber: Are you investing less through Initialized, or more?
Alexis Ohanian: The thing that we've noticed over the last year is
that our biggest bets -- like Secret -- weren't even part of the YC
network. It'll probably continue that way.
Harrison Weber: Why does YC's model still work?
Alexis Ohanian: What Paul, Jessica, Robert [Morris], and Trevor
[Blackwell], the four original founders, saw, before just about
anyone, was how much the world had changed -- that somebody with a
laptop can take a little bit of money and build something amazing.
They focused obsessively on helping founders ... and it was never about
doing press, or promotion. I think there was even a network that
wanted to do a reality show around YC, the first batch, but they
turned it down without thinking twice, and I am so grateful.
To that point, I think the fact that YC has been geographically
focused is part of the strength, because that does not stop us from
going everywhere else to recruit talent. Of this batch, 39 percent of
the founders are non-US citizens. That's a nontrivial number.
Harrison Weber: Is Sam Altman, Paul Graham's successor, just trying to
surround himself with smart people?
Alexis Ohanian: I think what he realizes is, for YC to evolve -- i'm
talking Pokemon-next-level-evolution -- we'll need to draw from a
really diverse set of founders-turned-partners who have a diverse
skill set.
It's gonna allow YC to do stuff that I don't think we were able to
before. I spoke earlier to the political involvement. That's something
that is in my wheelhouse. It's something that I've been doing. It's
something I know benefits the Internet as a whole but that I hope will
also benefit YC as an investor in things on the Internet. So it's
mutually beneficial, but it gives YC more of a presence in Washington.
Harrison Weber: What do you think of the latest batch?
Alexis Ohanian: I remember YC nine years ago, and no one would have
ever expected we would be investing in and helping founders who are
working on fighting cancer and getting us off fossil fuels, but it's
happening. And that's the kind of evolution that just gets me really
excited. Not to mention the non-profits. Oh man.
I don't think any of us can pretend we know where this is headed.
Harrison Weber: Is Sam going to let companies in that Paul Graham
wouldn't let in?
Alexis Ohanian: Probably. What's nice is that while Sam is president,
we are a partnership of equals.
I think we collectively as a partnership -- there are more partners now
-- I think you're definitely going to see a change. I think that's
inevitable. I am excited about that.
http://venturebeat.com/2014/07/24/alexis-ohanian-on-the-evolution-of-y-combinator-and-the-future-of-startup-school/