Dalton Caldwell's Whale AMA

TL;DR

Dalton Caldwell, Y Combinator's head of admissions, advises founders to prioritize product execution over networking or fundraising, apply to YC directly without seeking permission, and hire only when growth becomes the bottleneck.

Key insights

• CPMs are declining, so content businesses need a clever monetization plan from day one (native advertising, fan support) rather than assuming millions of users will yield riches.
• The vast majority of YC admits are strangers who simply filled out the application; networking with YC is not required.
• The null hypothesis for the music industry is that it will remain smaller permanently due to the loss of physical media revenue; founders should not wait for a "right time" that may never come.