Y Combinator Startup Podcast

Y Combinator
  • 4.4 (36)
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • UPDATED WEEKLY
Y Combinator Startup Podcast

We help founders make something people want.

  1. How To Start A Dev Tools Company with Nicolas Dessaigne | Startup School

    1 DAY AGO

    How To Start A Dev Tools Company with Nicolas Dessaigne | Startup School

    YC's Nicolas Dessaigne was the co-founder and CEO of @algolia, a Search API used by millions of developers to build great search experiences into their apps and websites. Today it powers over 1.75 trillion searches annually for 17,000+ customers worldwide. In this episode of Startup School, @dessaigne shares his advice for founders building a dev tools company from the ground up— covering everything from team and idea to GTM and sales.

    33 min
  2. Twitter vs. X: Product Lessons For Startup Founders | The Breakdown

    6 DAYS AGO

    Twitter vs. X: Product Lessons For Startup Founders | The Breakdown

    Since Twitter rebranded to X, the platform has added new features and implemented a few major updates to both its UX and algo. So what can founders interested in product design learn from all this? In the first episode of our new series, The Breakdown, YC’s Tom Blomfield (co-founder of Monzo) and David Lieb (creator of Google Photos) take a closer look at X to find what lessons there are for founders building consumer products.

    23 min
  3. How To Build The Future: Sam Altman

    NOV 18

    How To Build The Future: Sam Altman

    It’s fair to say that few people in tech are positioned to have a bigger impact on the future than Sam Altman. At OpenAI, Sam and his team have overseen monumental leaps forward in machine learning, generative AI, and most recently, LLMs that can reason at PhD levels. And this is just the beginning. In his latest essay Sam predicted that ASI (Artificial Super Intelligence) is just a few thousand days away. So how did we get to this point? In this episode of our rebooted series "How To Build The Future," YC President and CEO Garry Tan sits down with Sam to talk about the origins of OpenAI, what’s next for the company, and what advice he has for founders navigating this massive platform shift.

    47 min
  4. How Do Billion Dollar Startups Start? | Office Hours

    NOV 17

    How Do Billion Dollar Startups Start? | Office Hours

    The biggest companies in the world all had to start somewhere. In this episode of Office Hours, the Group Partners explore the humble origins of several top YC companies to try and identify common traits of the most successful founders. They’ll explore what it takes to keep your company alive in the early days, where to focus your energy and how to find product market fit that leads you to mega success.

    19 min
  5. Why Design Matters: Lessons from Stripe, Lyft and Airbnb | Design Review

    NOV 16

    Why Design Matters: Lessons from Stripe, Lyft and Airbnb | Design Review

    Stripe, Airbnb and Lyft are a few of the most successful companies of the past decade. And there are at least two things they all have in common - great design, and Katie Dill. Katie was Head of Experience Design at Airbnb, led the design team at Lyft and is now Head of Design at Stripe. We spoke with Katie about her design philosophy, what sets companies like Stripe apart, and how important it is to instill a culture of design in your startup from day one.

    34 min
  6. How To Find A Co-Founder with Harj Taggar | Startup School

    NOV 16

    How To Find A Co-Founder with Harj Taggar | Startup School

    Building a startup and trying to break into an established market is very difficult, especially if you’re trying to do it alone! That’s why it’s critical to find the right co-founder for the journey. In this episode of Startup School, YC Group Partner Harj Taggar explains why you need a co-founder, when to bring them on, where you can find one and how to maintain the relationship.

    21 min
  7. How To Convert Customers With Cold Emails with Aaron Epstein | Startup School

    NOV 16

    How To Convert Customers With Cold Emails with Aaron Epstein | Startup School

    Whether it's for sales, recruiting or making new connections, cold outreach is a necessary tool for helping build your startup. But as you probably know, most cold emails either are ignored or end up in the trash. So what can you do to make sure your emails break through the noise? In this episode of Startup School, YC Group Partner Aaron Epstein shares expert advice on how to write cold emails that have all the right ingredients to get noticed and convert new customers.

    33 min
  8. How To Improve Cohort Retention with David Lieb | Startup School

    NOV 16

    How To Improve Cohort Retention with David Lieb | Startup School

    At YC our motto is make something people want. But how do you actually know if you’ve accomplished that in the early days? One of the best ways to measure successful growth is a concept called cohort retention, which tracks the fraction of new users that come back time and time again to use your product. In this episode of Startup School, YC Group Partner David Lieb explains how to define cohorts, track active users and determine the appropriate time frame for measuring successful retention rates.

    29 min
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