You need this sort of a tailwind to make a startup successful. — Sam Altman Customer Copy Share Image
In YC experience, 2 or 3 co-founders seems to be about perfect. — Sam Altman Customer Copy Share Image
People that are really smart and that can learn new things can almost always find a role in the company as time… — Sam Altman Business Copy Share Image
You should be able to describe any employee as an animal at what they do. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Why now, why is this the perfect time for this particular idea, and to start this particular company? — Sam Altman Business Copy Share Image
I care much more about the growth rate of the market than it's current size and I also care if there's any… — Sam Altman Care Copy Share Image
It's better to have a few users love your product than for a lot of users to sort of like it. — Sam Altman Inspirational Copy Share Image
... but the pendulum has swung way out of whack here. A bad idea is still bad, and the pivot happy world… — Sam Altman Bad idea Copy Share Image
You have to be intense. This only comes from the CEO, this only comes from the founders. — Sam Altman Ceo Copy Share Image
... but actually it sucks to have a lot of employees, and you should be proud of how few employees you have. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
It's difficult to get large groups of people, to the extreme levels of focus and productivity that you need, for a startup… — Sam Altman Being successful Copy Share Image
You also really want to take the time to think about how the market is going to evolve.You need a market that's… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Be suspicious of any work that is not building product or getting customers. It's easy to get sucked into an infrastructure rewrite… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
The most common post YC failure case for the companies we fund, is they're incredibly focussed during YC on their company... and… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Two other things that we hear again and again from our founders, they wish they had done earlier, and that is... simply… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
In the early days of a startup, people's compensation is whatever you negotiate with a founder and it's all over the place. — Sam Altman Compensation Copy Share Image
Every thing at a startup gets modeled after the founders. Whatever the founders do becomes the culture. — Sam Altman Culture Copy Share Image
You want an idea that turns into a monopoly. But you can't get a monopoly, in a big market right away; too… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Be suspicious of any work that is not building product or getting customers. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
... you can think about that for everyone you hire: will I bet the future of this company on this single hire?… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
The track record for founders that don't already know each other is really bad. — Sam Altman Customer Copy Share Image
What being a founder means, is signing up for this years long grind on execution - and you can't outsource this. — Sam Altman Customer Copy Share Image
A single mediocre hire in the first five will often in fact kill a startup. — Sam Altman Customer Copy Share Image
If you look at successful pivots, they almost always are a pivot into something that the founder wanted. Not a random made… — Sam Altman Customer Copy Share Image
Startups are very hard no matter what you do; you may as well go after a big opportunity. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
If someone is getting every decision wrong, that's when you need to act, and at that point it'll be painfully aware to… — Sam Altman Decision Copy Share Image
If you're not in college and you don't know a cofounder, the next best thing I think is to go work at… — Sam Altman Best things Copy Share Image
I believe in fighting with investors to reduce the amount of equity they get and then being as generous as you possibly… — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
Many of the best YC companies have had phenomenally small number of employees for their first year, sometimes none besides the founders. — Sam Altman Company Copy Share Image
It really is true that you become an average of the people you spend the most time with. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
You're either not hiring at all or it's probably your single biggest block of time. — Sam Altman Copy Share Image
If you compromise in the first five, ten hires it might kill the company. — Sam Altman Business Copy Share Image
Stay focused and don't try to do too many things at once. Care about execution quality. — Sam Altman Care Copy Share Image
Most startups are not nearly focussed enough. They work hard...maybe, but they don't work hard on the right things. — Sam Altman Customer Copy Share Image
