The Launch Pad: Inside Y Combinator, Silicon Valley's Most Exclusive School For Startups (2012) - Plot & Excerpts
Well written and very interesting for the behind the scenes view of Y Combinator as well as a number of startups going through their program. I found the specifics of how the variety of companies profiled came up with their ideas and moved them forward to be interesting. I also learned from the description of the pitch presentations, which are just like very short and highly important sales presentations. I found that a lot of what I do in my work, technical sales, is very similar to what the startups do to get funding, which I hadn't really thought about before. This was very readable, and the author kept the interest up throughout. I did investigate some of these companies on the web based on their excellent descriptions in the book. I will be looking for more audiobooks by Mr. Stross. After first reading an excerpt from this book in a magazine, I had to read this book, which provides insight into the world of startups. This book covers the setup for the Y Combinator program (application process, development period, interaction with other teams, funding procurement, sendoff back to the world, and followup months later). For each phase, the author describes the specifics of a few teams, sometimes returning to teams that have been previously described for an earlier phase, so that you start to feel like you know them, while at the same time getting a sense for a variety of situations and levels of success. From the view of an outsider....amazing. I also really enjoyed "Planet Google"--another book by the same author. Randall Stross is truly gifted in capturing the energy of the world of technology.
What do You think about The Launch Pad: Inside Y Combinator, Silicon Valley's Most Exclusive School For Startups (2012)?
audio book, didn't finish. Made me think techstars was a far superior incubator.
—ShowATC
Interesting look at startups going through the Y Combinator program.
—aSHLEY_LYNN
Great book, a comprehensive view into Y Combinator.
—noelani
I really enjoyed this book. I found it motivating.
—RoflCreeper
Interesting read if you're thinking startup.
—Sheriden
