Y Combinator

World's leading accelerator investing $500K in 5,000+ companies with $600B-$800B total value including Airbnb and Stripe

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Updated: Feb 17, 2026 ·

About

World's leading accelerator investing $500K in 5,000+ companies with $600B-$800B total value including Airbnb and Stripe

Financial History

Total Raised

N/A

Valuation

N/A

Investments Made

Date	Company	Round	Lead Investor(s)	Co-Investor(s)
Feb 12, 2026	Manufact	$6.3M Seed	Peak XV Partners	Liquid 2 Ventures, Pioneer Fund, Ritual Capital
Feb 12, 2026	Santé	$7.6M Seed	Bonfire Ventures, Operator Collective, TipTop VC, Veridical Ventures	Ian Crosby, Luke Sophinos
Feb 10, 2026	Bretton AI	$75.0M Series B	Sapphire Ventures	Canvas Prime, Greylock, Thomson Reuters Ventures, TIAA Ventures
Feb 10, 2026	Taiv	$13.0M Series A	Emerging Ventures, IDC Ventures	Garage Capital, Pioneer Fund, Trillick Ventures, Women's Equity Lab
Feb 10, 2026	Simple AI	$14.0M Seed	First Harmonic	Conviction, Hanover Technology Investment Management, Massive Tech Ventures, Samsung NEXT, True Ventures
Feb 10, 2026	Clearly AI	$8.4M Seed	Basis Set Ventures	Argon Ventures, Crosspoint Capital Partners, Ritual Capital
Feb 4, 2026	TRM Labs	$70.0M Series C	Blockchain Capital	Alumni Ventures, Bessemer Venture Partners, BH Digital, Citi Ventures, CMT Digital, DRW Venture Capital, Galaxy Digital, Goldman Sachs, Thoma Bravo
Feb 3, 2026	Ruvo	$4.6M Seed	1confirmation	Blast, Coinbase Ventures, First Check Ventures, Mission Street Capital, Neer Venture Partners, Rebel Fund
Feb 3, 2026	Pasito	$21.0M Series A	Insight Partners	MTech Capital
Jan 30, 2026	Poetiq	$45.8M Seed	FYRFLY Venture Partners, Surface Ventures	468 Capital, Hico Ventures, Neuron Venture Partners, Operator Collective
Jan 29, 2026	Uplift AI	$3.5M Seed	Indus Valley Capital, Y Combinator	Conjunction Capital, Moment Ventures, Pioneer Fund
Jan 28, 2026	Emobi	$3.4M Seed	Florida Funders	Aves Ventures, Collaborative Fund, Gaingels, gener8tor, Goodwater Capital, Oasis Capital Partners, OneSixOne Ventures, Ride Wave Ventures
Nov 1, 2025	Planbase	$2.0M Seed	—	LocalGlobe
Nov 1, 2025	Avallon Labs	$5.0M Seed	—	Will Prendergast
Nov 1, 2025	Bindwell	$6.0M Seed	—	Comal Ventures, Venture Highway
Nov 1, 2025	CoLab Software	$55.0M Series C	—	Insight Partners, Moment Ventures, Tet Ventures, Eric Ries, Jason Katzer
Nov 1, 2025	Cuckoo	$2.0M Seed	—	RTP Global, Scale Asia Ventures
Nov 1, 2025	Mecha Health	$4.0M Seed	—	10100, Foundation Capital, Goat Capital, Liquid 2 Ventures, SNR, Arash Ferdowsi, Emmett Shear, Immad Akhund
Nov 1, 2025	Flint	$15.0M Series A	—	Accel, Afore Capital, Basis Set Ventures, BlockTower Capital, Foundation Capital, General Catalyst, NEO, Patron, Polygon, Ribbit Capital, True Ventures, Ajit Tripathi, Do Kwon, Karim Atiyeh, Kunal Shah, Tim Griffin
Nov 1, 2025	Luminal	$5.0M Seed	—	Ben Porterfield, Guillermo Rauch
Nov 1, 2025	Stream	$4.0M Seed	—	01 Advisors, 2048 Ventures, 8-Bit Capital, Arthur Ventures, Byld Ventures, Felicis Ventures, Foundry Group, Tiffany Luck, Outliers Venture Capital, Preston-Werner Ventures, Vouch Insurance, Dharmesh Shah, Jeff Seibert, John Ives, Johnny Boufarhat, Wayne Chang
Oct 3, 2025	Supabase	$100.0M Series E	—	Accel, Figma Ventures, Peak XV Partners, Coatue, Felicis Ventures, Flex Capital, Lightspeed India Partners, Preston-Werner Ventures, Augusto Marietti, Ben Tossell, Christopher Golda, Kevin Weil, Scott Belsky
Oct 1, 2025	Substrate	$100.0M Series A	—	Founders Fund, General Catalyst, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Immad Akhund, Will Gaybrick
Oct 1, 2025	EvenUp	$150.0M Series E	—	645 Ventures, Gautam Gupta, Kevin Hartz, Accel, Alt Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Bain Capital Ventures, Bessemer Venture Partners, Bond, DCM, DTCP, Jenny Fielding, Scott Hartley, Forerunner Ventures, Foundry Group, Greylock, High Alpha, Insight Partners, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Maverick Capital, NFX, Ribbit Capital, SignalFire, Thrive Capital, Tribe Capital, Underscore VC, Aaron Levie, Allison Pickens (Allison Pickens Ventures), Frederic Kerrest, Gokul Rajaram, Howie Liu, Marc Benioff, Matt Macinnis, Mike Liu, Mike Vernal, Scott Belsky
Oct 1, 2025	AiPrise	$13.0M Series A	—	1984 Ventures, SixThirty, Verified Capital, Wedbush Ventures, Immad Akhund, Samvit Ramadurgam

Financial History

Total Raised

N/A

Valuation

N/A

Leadership Team

Key people at Y Combinator.

Explorer (New Cities)

Advisor | Startup School 2018

VP Finance and Operations

Tobias Knaup

YC Continuity Advisor

Director of Programming and Events

Principal, YC Continuity

Visiting Partner; prev. Part-time Partner

Leadership Team

Key people at Y Combinator.

Explorer (New Cities)

Advisor | Startup School 2018

VP Finance and Operations

Tobias Knaup

YC Continuity Advisor

Director of Programming and Events

Principal, YC Continuity

Visiting Partner; prev. Part-time Partner

Deep Dive

High-Level Overview

Y Combinator (YC) is the world’s leading startup accelerator, investing $500,000 in over 5,000 companies that collectively hold a valuation between $600 billion and $800 billion, including major successes like Airbnb and Stripe. Its mission is to empower early-stage startups by providing seed funding, mentorship, and a strong network to help founders build scalable, impactful companies. YC’s investment philosophy centers on backing bold ideas and exceptional founders, often in technology-driven sectors such as software, internet services, fintech, and biotech. It has profoundly shaped the startup ecosystem by formalizing the accelerator model, democratizing access to capital and expertise, and fostering a global community of entrepreneurs.

Origin Story

Founded in March 2005 by Paul Graham, Jessica Livingston, Robert Tappan Morris, and Trevor Blackwell, Y Combinator emerged from Paul Graham’s vision to create a new funding model focused on early-stage startups with high potential. Initially operating two programs in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Mountain View, California, YC started with just eight startups, including Reddit. Jessica Livingston played a crucial role in shaping YC’s culture and founder selection process, emphasizing team dynamics and founder potential. Early funding came from the founders themselves, with initial capital around $200,000, and later significant investments from Sequoia Capital helped scale the program. YC’s early success with companies like Reddit validated its model, setting the stage for its growth into a global accelerator powerhouse.

Core Differentiators

Unique Investment Model: YC offers standardized seed investments ($500K currently) with a focus on early-stage startups, combining funding with intensive mentorship.
Network Strength: Founders receive dedicated YC partners who have mentored hundreds of startups, providing unparalleled guidance and connections.
Track Record: Over 5,000 companies funded, including Airbnb, Stripe, Dropbox, and Reddit, with a combined valuation of up to $800 billion.
Operating Support: YC provides continuous support through weekly dinners, office hours, and a vast library of resources, fostering founder growth beyond capital.

Role in the Broader Tech Landscape

Y Combinator rides the wave of the global startup and innovation boom, capitalizing on trends like cloud computing, mobile internet, and fintech disruption. Its timing was critical—launching in 2005 when the startup accelerator concept was nascent, YC helped define and popularize this model worldwide. Market forces such as increasing entrepreneurial activity, globalization of tech talent, and the rise of software-as-a-service have worked in YC’s favor. By democratizing access to funding and mentorship, YC has influenced the broader ecosystem, accelerating innovation cycles and creating a vibrant community that spans continents and industries.

Quick Take & Future Outlook

Looking ahead, YC is likely to continue expanding its global reach and diversify its portfolio into emerging sectors like artificial intelligence, climate tech, and biotech. Trends such as remote work, decentralized finance, and AI-driven automation will shape the startups it backs. YC’s influence may evolve from primarily an accelerator to a broader innovation platform, integrating more resources for founders at every stage. Its foundational role in the startup ecosystem ensures it will remain a key driver of technological progress and entrepreneurial success worldwide, continuing to fuel companies that redefine industries and create new markets.

Sources

Frequently Asked Questions

What was the foundational innovation introduced by Y Combinator?

Y Combinator created a new model for funding early-stage startups when it launched in March 2005. This approach significantly influenced the venture capital and accelerator landscape.

Frequently Asked Questions

What was the foundational innovation introduced by Y Combinator?

Y Combinator created a new model for funding early-stage startups when it launched in March 2005. This approach significantly influenced the venture capital and accelerator landscape.

High-Level Overview

Origin Story

Core Differentiators

Unique Investment Model: YC offers standardized seed investments ($500K currently) with a focus on early-stage startups, combining funding with intensive mentorship.
Network Strength: Founders receive dedicated YC partners who have mentored hundreds of startups, providing unparalleled guidance and connections.
Track Record: Over 5,000 companies funded, including Airbnb, Stripe, Dropbox, and Reddit, with a combined valuation of up to $800 billion.
Operating Support: YC provides continuous support through weekly dinners, office hours, and a vast library of resources, fostering founder growth beyond capital.