Edu

@fin465 @garrytan That’s right, we manage all that for many YC founders

talked to a bunch of current YC batch founders today The ones hitting $1m+ ARR (there are several this batch) are just ripping the same outbound playbook every time: 1. build your lead lists using tools like Origami or Clay 2. Run an auto-connect + DM sequencer on LinkedIn 3. aim for 200 connects/week. linkedin is a goldmine 4. when writing Linkedin DMs, send 2-sentences, ideally with a warm thread (shared school, mutual, etc) 5. Post on LinkedIn 5x/wk minimum 6. get good at AEO (yes, you can get results in a few weeks ) Spend 20 hrs/wk doing this properly, and you will start consistently booking demos

@MatthewBerman I convinced my grandparents to buy one. arrived two days ago, they still can’t believe it drives itself, even after trying it multiple times. They think it’s impossible lol. But it gave them back a ton of independence since the last time they drove they ended up on the sidewalk.

my parents bought a tesla model 3 and there's nothing else like it. the most astonishing capability is self-driving. their tesla can drive them from their driveway to their destination, including parking in a busy parking lot, without disengaging once. comparing Tesla's self-driving to other automakers is like comparing an iPhone 17 to one of those grey brick phones from the 80s. it's kind of embarrassing. a week before they bought the tesla, my dad told me he didn't think he'd be driving much longer since he's pretty old. the tesla just extended his independence by years. feeling grateful for all tesla has done.

Officially addicted @david_protein

Tony the claw is on @OpenAI GPT 5.5 via OAuth, let's see if it delivers

@AlexFinn I’m using gpt 5.4 with my claw and it’s amazing. Zero issues, maybe you’re doing something wrong in your setup

Here's the truth people are afraid to admit: Even if using Opus 4.7 with OpenClaw costs you $1,000 a month through the API, you still need to be paying for it When it comes to OpenClaw there's simply no second best model ChatGPT is completely useless for OpenClaw. Doesn't complete tasks, actively deletes and messes up files, has no idea how to use tools Every night before I go to bed I pray ChatGPT 5.5 matches Claude at OpenClaw usage. OpenAI has been a lot more consumer friendly when it comes to limits and oauth use But at the moment there is no dodging the truth. Claude is the only way to go for OpenClaw I look at it like this: OpenClaw with Opus 4.7 is a super intelligent employee that works 24/7 without complaint Even if I pay $1,000 a month for API usage ($12,000 a year) that's still a steal compared to hiring humans I'd be paying over $100,000 a year if I hired an actual person. And they wouldn't be working 24 hours a day and they wouldn't be immediately responding to my telegram chats and they'd file HR complaints if I talked to them the way I talked to my Claw I'm confident OpenAI is training their new models for OpenClaw usage, but in the meantime, there's simply no 2nd best. Pay for the API.

20M tokens spent in 1hr. Thank god Tony the claw 🦞 was using gpt 5.4 mini 🥵

@floriandarroman Since I changed from Sonnet/Opus to GPT 5.4 my OpenClaw has improved significantly, maybe you need to update your openclaw or change the settings to thinking and fast mode. Works amazingly well

I stopped using OpenClaw. Claude won.

@gregisenberg You literally described rethoric.com and you are pretty accurate with the numbers and headcount

THE CLEAREST PATH TO A $10M+ SOFTWARE EXIT in 2 YEARS (with AI and agents) building an agency right now is one of the most interesting business moves the productized agency had its moment in 2022. it collapsed because scaling humans is a nightmare. inconsistent output, people quitting, margins getting crushed. most of the founders (and creators) who tried it got burned and moved on but the thesis was right. the labor problem is just solved now with AI, claude code, openclaw etc. here's the actual playbook i'd run today: pick one painful deliverable for one specific buyer. like SEO content for e-commerce brands doing $1M+ but not "marketing." or like ad creatives for DTC brands spending $50k/month on meta. one thing. one customer. that's it then you build the AI workflow behind it. you're selling an outcome on a monthly retainer. $3-5k/month. 80%+ margins because your cost is compute and a few hours of QA "BuT tHaT'S nOt a BiG bUsInnesS" okay but you're still swinging for the fences because the agency IS the research and development for your agent SaaS every client is paying you to figure out what to automate. you're learning what breaks, what scales, what customers actually want. by month 4 you know exactly what to productize. you build the software on top of the workflow you've already proven works and already have customers paying for agency funds the agent SaaS. SaaS scales without the agency overhead. the clients become your first software customers now let's talk about what this actually looks like financially year 1: 10 clients at $4k/month. $480k revenue. 2 people. maybe $80k in costs including compute, tools, one part time VA. you're taking home $400k between two people while building the software in the background year 2: you launch the software. your 10 agency clients are the first to convert. they already trust you. they've seen the output. you charge $800/month for the software version. now you have recurring software revenue AND the agency still running year 3: agency is winding down or running on autopilot. software has 200 customers at $800/month. that's $1.9M ARR. 2-3 person team. 85% margins. you are now a very attractive acquisition target the exit math is interesting. SaaS at $1.9M ARR with strong retention trades at 5-8x revenue. that's a $10-15M exit for something two people built in 3 years starting with zero VC CAVEAT: Startups are hard. A lot needs to go right. But from a framework perspective, I think this probably the lowest risk, highest reward option for lots of of folks and most of the businesses cost $0 to start basically this is the most capital efficient path to a software exit that exists right now happy building

@MatthewBerman @luisffab How are you using it with codex OAuth?

@luisffab codex oauth

Use GPT-5.4 mini and nano for most of your Openclaw use cases. It’s a workhorse model.

I just got a team plan of @claudeai, Monday noon I’m getting messages that I’m reaching my weekly limit, using sonnet. Wtf. Never hit a limit in years with ChatGPT plus.

@GovTimWalz I think this is the first time a YouTuber makes a governor resign, crazy

Minnesota has to come first - always. Today, I’m proud of the work we’ve done to make Minnesota the best place to live and raise kids. I’ve decided to step out of the race and let others worry about the election while I focus on the work.

@teddyschleifer @RMac18 @hknightsf True. I ran into Peter Thiel early this week. I think he’s going to Florida.

NEWS: Larry Page and Peter Thiel are making moves to leave California by the end of the year to avoid a possible billionaires tax that could hit them where it hurts. With @RMac18 + @hknightsf. nytimes.com/2025/12/26/tec…

Loving the @coinbase credit card. It has replaced all my other cards, this is the card for everything. But there’s one big problem. No @Plaid integration. Pls tell me it’s coming @maxbranzburg. It’s key for tracking spending with @copilotmoney and others.

@niccruzpatane Anyone with 2025.38.6 who already have FSD 14?

Another big FSD V14.1.4 wave went out today. Those were still waiting should get it now!

@wholemars @dshac001 @CarlosWazowski @TSLAshareholder @elonmusk It’s not

@dshac001 @CarlosWazowski @TSLAshareholder @elonmusk it definitely is

“Anyone can get FSD 14 if they set their software to advanced” — @elonmusk

@rod_mallo Yea probably

Wow, new iPhone at 70% at 7 pm with decent use since 8 am Just that worth the upgrade.

@dennismuellr I stoped using Notion cal because Amie calendar + noteaker is so good. I think you shouldn’t ignore the calendar and just focus on the notetaker. You already have an amazing calendar just make sure to finish the last 5% of it and you will have a super differentiator

a lot of customers recently asked for a slimmed down version of Amie. they love the ai meeting notes and notch. but wanna keep gcal and their todo app. is this relevant to anyone else here? one even said: "you shipped the best ai notes, but your calendar sucks" lol (don't worry active users, we aren't gonna remove it for you)

It can't even get this right... 😑

@mwseibel Thanks for everything Michael!

Today after 12+ years at Y Combinator I’ll be transitioning to a Partner Emeritus position. This role allows me to continue to do office hours with the 1000+ companies I’ve worked with in the past decade while giving me the free time to explore new adventures. It also means that the w25 batch was my last batch funding new YC companies. The next adventure I’m excited to pursue (after taking the summer to relax) is how I can help government better serve its citizens. Thank you to the countless friends who have been pushing me in this direction for years. Government was the passion of my youth and I’m excited to reengage. Thank you to @ycombinator @paulg and @jesslivingston for changing my life.