new standard deal</a> of $500,000 gives you some slack, you will likely have to develop very smart habits around spending because fundraising is harder. Learning how to <a href=https://www.ycombinator.com/"http://www.paulgraham.com/aord.html/">stay alive</a> is arguably the most important skill you can have as a founder.</p><p>I don’t think it’s a coincidence that two of the top YC companies, Airbnb and Stripe, were started in the depths of the last recession (2009).* They learned how important it is to build something people want and not assume investors will be there to save them early on.</p><p>None of this is new. It’s common knowledge, especially in the tech community, that many successful startups were created during recessions (just search “startups + recession” and you’ll find a bunch of articles), which may be one reason we’ve seen high numbers of applications from founders leaving their big tech company jobs, especially in the last couple of months.</p><p>If running a startup is like commanding an army, then YC is elite basic training. You’ll learn how to navigate the challenges (or realize you’re not up for it) when your company is small and with the support of advisors and YC batchmates. You’ll build a solid foundation of learning how to build something people want and staying alive. </p><p>The YC training prepares you by default for succeeding through recessions. And it’s easier to internalize that training today when the macroenvironment supports it. The alternative is learning it on the battlefield when the stakes are way higher — when you’ve already raised money and have employees who depend on you. </p><p>As YC founder Paul Graham <a href=https://www.ycombinator.com/"http://www.paulgraham.com/die.html/">wrote, “Bad shit is coming. It always is in a startup.” If you’re interested in starting a startup, we’re entering a counterintuitively good time to do it. It won’t be easy, but if you get through the early days, you’ll be better prepared than most. And if the challenge excites you, you probably have the right personality for it.</p><p>*Their products were also tailored to a cost-sensitive environment. 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We’re hosting interviews in Bangalore from May 12-14. These will be like regular YC interviews in every way. The application is the same, as well as what we look for in the application and the criteria for acceptance.</p>\n<p>Accepted companies will join the Summer 2020 batch immediately. The in-person program starts in June in Mountain View, California, but funding and access to YC partners and resources happens right away.</p>\n<p>To date, we have funded 80 companies from India, including <a href=https://www.ycombinator.com/"https://cleartax.in//">ClearTax, <a href=https://www.ycombinator.com/"https://meesho.com//">Meesho, and <a href=https://www.ycombinator.com/"https://razorpay.com//">Razorpay. In our W20 batch alone, we funded 26 Indian startups — a record for us.</p>\n<p><a href=https://www.ycombinator.com/"https://www.ycombinator.com/apply//">The deadline to apply</a> is March 16, which is the same deadline for all startups applying to YC.</p>\n<p><a href=https://www.ycombinator.com/"https://apply.ycombinator.com//">Apply here</a>.</p>\n<p>We look forward to meeting you soon! If you have any questions, send us an email at apply@ycombinator.com.</p>\n<!--kg-card-end: html-->","comment_id":"1104186","feature_image":null,"featured":false,"visibility":"public","email_recipient_filter":"none","created_at":"2020-02-27T01:00:58.000-08:00","updated_at":"2021-10-20T10:52:55.000-07:00","published_at":"2020-02-27T01:00:58.000-08:00","custom_excerpt":null,"codeinjection_head":null,"codeinjection_foot":null,"custom_template":null,"canonical_url":null,"authors":[{"id":"61fe29e3c7139e0001a710d1","name":"Y Combinator","slug":"y-combinator","profile_image":"/blog/content/images/2022/02/1200px-Y_Combinator_logo.svg.png","cover_image":null,"bio":"Y Combinator created a new model for funding early stage startups. Twice a year we invest a small amount of money ($150k) in a large number of startups (recently 200).\r\n\r\nThe startups move to Silicon","website":null,"location":null,"facebook":null,"twitter":null,"meta_title":null,"meta_description":null,"url":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/author/y-combinator/"}],"tags":[{"id":"61fe29efc7139e0001a7117d","name":"Admissions","slug":"admissions","description":null,"feature_image":null,"visibility":"public","og_image":null,"og_title":null,"og_description":null,"twitter_image":null,"twitter_title":null,"twitter_description":null,"meta_title":null,"meta_description":null,"codeinjection_head":null,"codeinjection_foot":null,"canonical_url":null,"accent_color":null,"url":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/tag/admissions/"},{"id":"61fe29efc7139e0001a71179","name":"YC Events","slug":"yc-events","description":null,"feature_image":null,"visibility":"public","og_image":null,"og_title":null,"og_description":null,"twitter_image":null,"twitter_title":null,"twitter_description":null,"meta_title":null,"meta_description":null,"codeinjection_head":null,"codeinjection_foot":null,"canonical_url":null,"accent_color":null,"url":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/tag/yc-events/"},{"id":"61fe29efc7139e0001a71173","name":"YC News","slug":"yc-news","description":null,"feature_image":null,"visibility":"public","og_image":null,"og_title":null,"og_description":null,"twitter_image":null,"twitter_title":null,"twitter_description":null,"meta_title":null,"meta_description":null,"codeinjection_head":null,"codeinjection_foot":null,"canonical_url":null,"accent_color":null,"url":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/tag/yc-news/"}],"primary_author":{"id":"61fe29e3c7139e0001a710d1","name":"Y Combinator","slug":"y-combinator","profile_image":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/content/images/2022/02/1200px-Y_Combinator_logo.svg.png","cover_image":null,"bio":"Y Combinator created a new model for funding early stage startups. Twice a year we invest a small amount of money ($150k) in a large number of startups (recently 200).\r\n\r\nThe startups move to Silicon","website":null,"location":null,"facebook":null,"twitter":null,"meta_title":null,"meta_description":null,"url":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/author/y-combinator/"},"primary_tag":{"id":"61fe29efc7139e0001a7117d","name":"Admissions","slug":"admissions","description":null,"feature_image":null,"visibility":"public","og_image":null,"og_title":null,"og_description":null,"twitter_image":null,"twitter_title":null,"twitter_description":null,"meta_title":null,"meta_description":null,"codeinjection_head":null,"codeinjection_foot":null,"canonical_url":null,"accent_color":null,"url":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/tag/admissions/"},"url":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/yc-s20-interviews-in-india/","excerpt":"Once again, YC is coming to India! We’re hosting interviews in Bangalore from May 12-14. These will be like regular YC interviews in every way. The application is the same, as well as what we look for in the application and the criteria for acceptance.","reading_time":1,"access":true,"og_image":null,"og_title":null,"og_description":null,"twitter_image":null,"twitter_title":null,"twitter_description":null,"meta_title":null,"meta_description":null,"email_subject":null,"frontmatter":null,"feature_image_alt":null,"feature_image_caption":null},{"id":"66b268d9cd7d5f0001aee231","uuid":"3ad8026a-2c1e-4af7-8930-1ef0cded7ba8","title":"YC Fall 2024 batch applications due by 8/27","slug":"yc-fall-2024","html":"<p>In response to overwhelming demand, we are running a YC batch this fall. Applications are <a href=https://www.ycombinator.com/"https://ycombinator.com/apply/">now open</a>. The Fall 2024 batch will begin in San Francisco on Sunday, 9/29, and Demo Day will be in early December. We are excited to work with founders who want to begin YC right away rather than wait for the W25 batch.</p><p>In addition to YC’s standard deal investment of $500,000, YC companies have access to dedicated GPU clusters from <a href=https://www.ycombinator.com/"https://techcrunch.com/2024/08/01/google-cloud-now-has-a-dedicated-cluster-of-nvidia-gpus-for-y-combinator-startups//">Google Cloud Platform</a> and <a href=https://www.ycombinator.com/"https://techcrunch.com/2023/11/07/microsoft-partners-with-vcs-to-give-startups-free-ai-chip-access//">Microsoft Azure</a> along with exclusive credits worth over $1M from:</p><ul><li>Microsoft for startups</li><li>AWS AI/ML</li><li>Google Cloud</li><li>Open AI</li><li>Replicate</li><li>Scale AI</li><li>and many more</li></ul><figure class=\"kg-card kg-embed-card\"><iframe width=\"200\" height=\"113\" src=https://www.ycombinator.com/"https://www.youtube.com/embed/9jOYX2pgTZk?feature=oembed\%22 frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen title=\"Apply To The F24 Batch!\"></iframe></figure><p>This is a special moment to start a startup, and we want to be here to serve founders who know today is the day to take the plunge. To apply, please <a href=https://www.ycombinator.com/"https://ycombinator.com/apply/">submit an application</a> by Tuesday, 8/27 @ 8PM PT. <br><br>---</p><h2 id=\"faq\">FAQ<br></h2><p><strong>Why is YC doing a fall batch?</strong><br>The opportunity for new startups is only growing, especially given the latest results we are seeing from the most recent YC batches where in aggregate companies are growing revenue by 4X or more in a single quarter during the YC batch itself.<br><br>The group partners got together and agreed it was time to grow the pie and do our first-ever Fall batch.</p><p><strong>Who is this for?</strong><br>There’s no special vertical focus or requirement for this batch. Like any other YC batch, we’re looking for great founders working on technology of all kinds that solve real problems for every market in the world. </p><p><strong>What are the terms of YC's investment?</strong><br>We invest on standard terms as described <a href=https://www.ycombinator.com/"https://www.ycombinator.com/deal/">here.
Will the fall batch be different from the summer or winter batches?</strong><br>The fall batch is likely to have fewer companies than our Summer and Winter batches, but in every other respect it will be a “normal” batch.</p><p><strong>If I don't get selected for F24, will I be able to apply for W25?</strong><br>Yes, you will be able to apply for W25! Applications for the winter batch will open in early October and will be due late October. </p><p><strong>Will you do a new fall batch next year?</strong><br>YC is always updating how we do things because we want to serve founders to the best of our ability. We are considering adding new batches during the year and expect to have more to announce later in the year.</p>","comment_id":"66b268d9cd7d5f0001aee231","feature_image":"/blog/content/images/2024/08/PBS_6793.jpg","featured":true,"visibility":"public","email_recipient_filter":"none","created_at":"2024-08-06T11:18:01.000-07:00","updated_at":"2024-08-19T12:35:53.000-07:00","published_at":"2024-08-06T12:00:15.000-07:00","custom_excerpt":"In response to overwhelming demand, we are running a YC batch this fall. Applications are now open.","codeinjection_head":null,"codeinjection_foot":null,"custom_template":null,"canonical_url":null,"authors":[{"id":"61fe29e3c7139e0001a71085","name":"Dalton Caldwell","slug":"dalton-caldwell","profile_image":"/blog/content/images/2022/02/Dalton.jpg","cover_image":null,"bio":"Dalton is Managing Director, Architect and Group Partner at YC. He was the cofounder and CEO of imeem (acquired by MySpace in 2009), and the cofounder and CEO of App.net.","website":null,"location":null,"facebook":null,"twitter":null,"meta_title":null,"meta_description":null,"url":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/author/dalton-caldwell/"}],"tags":[{"id":"61fe29efc7139e0001a71173","name":"YC News","slug":"yc-news","description":null,"feature_image":null,"visibility":"public","og_image":null,"og_title":null,"og_description":null,"twitter_image":null,"twitter_title":null,"twitter_description":null,"meta_title":null,"meta_description":null,"codeinjection_head":null,"codeinjection_foot":null,"canonical_url":null,"accent_color":null,"url":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/tag/yc-news/"},{"id":"61fe29efc7139e0001a7117d","name":"Admissions","slug":"admissions","description":null,"feature_image":null,"visibility":"public","og_image":null,"og_title":null,"og_description":null,"twitter_image":null,"twitter_title":null,"twitter_description":null,"meta_title":null,"meta_description":null,"codeinjection_head":null,"codeinjection_foot":null,"canonical_url":null,"accent_color":null,"url":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/tag/admissions/"}],"primary_author":{"id":"61fe29e3c7139e0001a71085","name":"Dalton Caldwell","slug":"dalton-caldwell","profile_image":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/content/images/2022/02/Dalton.jpg","cover_image":null,"bio":"Dalton is Managing Director, Architect and Group Partner at YC. He was the cofounder and CEO of imeem (acquired by MySpace in 2009), and the cofounder and CEO of App.net.","website":null,"location":null,"facebook":null,"twitter":null,"meta_title":null,"meta_description":null,"url":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/author/dalton-caldwell/"},"primary_tag":{"id":"61fe29efc7139e0001a71173","name":"YC News","slug":"yc-news","description":null,"feature_image":null,"visibility":"public","og_image":null,"og_title":null,"og_description":null,"twitter_image":null,"twitter_title":null,"twitter_description":null,"meta_title":null,"meta_description":null,"codeinjection_head":null,"codeinjection_foot":null,"canonical_url":null,"accent_color":null,"url":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/tag/yc-news/"},"url":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/yc-fall-2024/","excerpt":"In response to overwhelming demand, we are running a YC batch this fall. Applications are now open. The Fall 2024 batch will begin in San Francisco on Sunday, 9/29, and Demo Day will be in early December. We are excited to work with founders who want to begin YC right away rather than wait for the W25 batch.","reading_time":2,"access":true,"og_image":null,"og_title":null,"og_description":null,"twitter_image":null,"twitter_title":null,"twitter_description":null,"meta_title":null,"meta_description":null,"email_subject":null,"frontmatter":null,"feature_image_alt":null,"feature_image_caption":null},{"id":"61fe29f1c7139e0001a71c07","uuid":"c2233b91-77a7-46da-bace-85a0e7e1b73d","title":"Now Accepting Applications for YC Summer 2022","slug":"now-accepting-applications-for-yc-summer-2022","html":"<p>The Winter 2022 batch is underway, and we’re excited to announce that we’re now accepting applications for Summer 2022. The summer batch will be remote with some optional in-person components depending on the pandemic. We will invest a total of $500,000 in every company accepted into the batch as part of our <a href=https://www.ycombinator.com/"https://www.ycombinator.com/deal/">new standard deal</a>.</p><p>We will be offering an early deadline again this batch for founders who need early access to YC advice and resources. The early deadline is <strong><strong>January 31 at 8pm PT</strong></strong>, and we will be holding interviews in mid-February and early March. The founders who tend to get the most out of the early deadline are those who are actively fundraising; they benefit from advice on terms, investors, and timing before signing anything.</p><p>If you’re not sure whether you should apply early, you’re probably better off waiting until the regular deadline: <strong><strong>March </strong>24<strong> at 8pm PT</strong></strong>.</p><p>Whether you apply by our early deadline or our regular deadline, the latest you’ll hear back from us with a decision is <strong><strong>May 19</strong></strong>. The reason this is a ways away is because we know how much can change in a matter of months, and we want to give founders the option to update their applications. But if there are timing considerations we should be aware of, please make a note on your application. We’re happy to give you an answer sooner if you need it.</p><p>Apply early for the YC Summer 2022 batch <a href=https://www.ycombinator.com/"https://www.ycombinator.com/apply/">here.
","comment_id":"61e645f0144a7c0001fe157e","feature_image":"/blog/content/images/2022/01/Accepting-applications.png","featured":false,"visibility":"public","email_recipient_filter":"none","created_at":"2022-01-17T20:45:36.000-08:00","updated_at":"2022-02-17T12:31:41.000-08:00","published_at":"2022-01-11T20:45:00.000-08:00","custom_excerpt":"The Winter 2022 batch is underway, and we’re excited to announce that we’re now accepting applications for Summer 2022. We will invest a total of $500,000 in every company accepted into the batch as part of our new standard deal.","codeinjection_head":null,"codeinjection_foot":null,"custom_template":null,"canonical_url":null,"authors":[{"id":"61fe29e3c7139e0001a710c8","name":"Stephanie Simon","slug":"stephanie","profile_image":"/blog/content/images/2022/02/steph-af6b11e61b7a3c55b099c780fe0a359236ceaab496850b530d178aedb8cefb2c.jpg","cover_image":null,"bio":"Stephanie Simon is the Head of Admissions at Y Combinator. \n\nPrior to YC, she was a software engineer at Earnest and co-founded Murmur, a venture-backed local search startup.","website":null,"location":null,"facebook":null,"twitter":null,"meta_title":null,"meta_description":null,"url":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/author/stephanie/"}],"tags":[{"id":"61fe29efc7139e0001a7117d","name":"Admissions","slug":"admissions","description":null,"feature_image":null,"visibility":"public","og_image":null,"og_title":null,"og_description":null,"twitter_image":null,"twitter_title":null,"twitter_description":null,"meta_title":null,"meta_description":null,"codeinjection_head":null,"codeinjection_foot":null,"canonical_url":null,"accent_color":null,"url":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/tag/admissions/"},{"id":"61fe29efc7139e0001a71173","name":"YC News","slug":"yc-news","description":null,"feature_image":null,"visibility":"public","og_image":null,"og_title":null,"og_description":null,"twitter_image":null,"twitter_title":null,"twitter_description":null,"meta_title":null,"meta_description":null,"codeinjection_head":null,"codeinjection_foot":null,"canonical_url":null,"accent_color":null,"url":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/tag/yc-news/"}],"primary_author":{"id":"61fe29e3c7139e0001a710c8","name":"Stephanie Simon","slug":"stephanie","profile_image":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/content/images/2022/02/steph-af6b11e61b7a3c55b099c780fe0a359236ceaab496850b530d178aedb8cefb2c.jpg","cover_image":null,"bio":"Stephanie Simon is the Head of Admissions at Y Combinator. \n\nPrior to YC, she was a software engineer at Earnest and co-founded Murmur, a venture-backed local search startup.","website":null,"location":null,"facebook":null,"twitter":null,"meta_title":null,"meta_description":null,"url":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/author/stephanie/"},"primary_tag":{"id":"61fe29efc7139e0001a7117d","name":"Admissions","slug":"admissions","description":null,"feature_image":null,"visibility":"public","og_image":null,"og_title":null,"og_description":null,"twitter_image":null,"twitter_title":null,"twitter_description":null,"meta_title":null,"meta_description":null,"codeinjection_head":null,"codeinjection_foot":null,"canonical_url":null,"accent_color":null,"url":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/tag/admissions/"},"url":"https://ghost.prod.ycinside.com/now-accepting-applications-for-yc-summer-2022/","excerpt":"The Winter 2022 batch is underway, and we’re excited to announce that we’re now accepting applications for Summer 2022. The summer batch will be remote with some optional in-person components depending on the pandemic. We will invest a total of $500,000 in every company accepted into the batch as part of our new standard deal.","reading_time":1,"access":true,"og_image":null,"og_title":null,"og_description":null,"twitter_image":null,"twitter_title":null,"twitter_description":null,"meta_title":null,"meta_description":null,"email_subject":null,"frontmatter":null,"feature_image_alt":null,"feature_image_caption":null}]},"url":"/blog/why-would-you-start-a-startup-in-an-economic-downturn","version":"86a82864a2e98321858efc8147c8b7f9287218a4","encryptHistory":false,"clearHistory":false,"rails_context":{"railsEnv":"production","inMailer":false,"i18nLocale":"en","i18nDefaultLocale":"en","href":"https://www.ycombinator.com/blog/why-would-you-start-a-startup-in-an-economic-downturn","location":"/blog/why-would-you-start-a-startup-in-an-economic-downturn","scheme":"https","host":"www.ycombinator.com","port":null,"pathname":"/blog/why-would-you-start-a-startup-in-an-economic-downturn","search":null,"httpAcceptLanguage":"en, *","applyBatchLong":"Spring 2026","applyBatchShort":"X2026","applyDeadlineShort":"February 9","ycdcRetroMode":true,"currentUser":null,"serverSide":true},"id":"ycdc_new/pages/BlogPage-react-component-c6f61921-3884-46a7-9ef8-24e435e632bb","server_side":true}" data-reactroot="">
Why would you start a startup in an economic downturn?
There will likely be a recession in 2023, and the major downsides to starting a startup are obvious: There is less money in the system so selling and fundraising are harder; investors have less money to invest and companies have less money to spend on products.
But these are also reasons it’s an especially good time to start a startup, especially with YC.
Cost-sensitive customers can be helpful in the early days of your company. If they pay you in this tough environment, it's a stronger signal. There’s a higher likelihood you’re building something they really want.
And though our new standard deal of $500,000 gives you some slack, you will likely have to develop very smart habits around spending because fundraising is harder. Learning how to stay alive is arguably the most important skill you can have as a founder.
I don’t think it’s a coincidence that two of the top YC companies, Airbnb and Stripe, were started in the depths of the last recession (2009).* They learned how important it is to build something people want and not assume investors will be there to save them early on.
None of this is new. It’s common knowledge, especially in the tech community, that many successful startups were created during recessions (just search “startups + recession” and you’ll find a bunch of articles), which may be one reason we’ve seen high numbers of applications from founders leaving their big tech company jobs, especially in the last couple of months.
If running a startup is like commanding an army, then YC is elite basic training. You’ll learn how to navigate the challenges (or realize you’re not up for it) when your company is small and with the support of advisors and YC batchmates. You’ll build a solid foundation of learning how to build something people want and staying alive.
The YC training prepares you by default for succeeding through recessions. And it’s easier to internalize that training today when the macroenvironment supports it. The alternative is learning it on the battlefield when the stakes are way higher — when you’ve already raised money and have employees who depend on you.
As YC founder Paul Graham wrote, “Bad shit is coming. It always is in a startup.” If you’re interested in starting a startup, we’re entering a counterintuitively good time to do it. It won’t be easy, but if you get through the early days, you’ll be better prepared than most. And if the challenge excites you, you probably have the right personality for it.
*Their products were also tailored to a cost-sensitive environment. Stripe made it easier for brick-and-mortar businesses to cut costs by selling online and Airbnb created a new income stream for hosts and lower-priced accommodations for travelers.
Stephanie Simon is the Head of Admissions at Y Combinator.
Prior to YC, she was a software engineer at Earnest and co-founded Murmur, a venture-backed local search startup.
