New statistics Y Combinator will tell startups the direction of development

Venture Fund YCombinator decided to share with the world statistics on their projects. Previously, data were published only for the most successful and popular ones. Now the foundation will lay out everything as it is.

This information will allow to make certain conclusions about the prospects of a particular direction. Moreover, this foundation and its startup accelerator sets the tone for the global IT industry, so to speak.
')
In a blog, YC announced common "numbers" for all companies that have passed through the fund's caring hands. Representatives of the fund honestly made a reservation about the fact that this data is “not perfect.” However, the overall trend can be traced.

Total company valuation: $ 65 billion

Total volume of investments attracted by companies: $ 7 billion

Number of companies with valuation over $ 1 billion: 8
(Twitch, which Amazon recently acquired, is also taken into account. The amount of the transaction was almost $ 1 billion)

Number of companies with more than $ 100 million valuation: more than 40

Number of companies financed by YC: about 940

Number of dissolved companies financed by YC: 177

The number of companies in the latest set of startup accelerator: 107

Number of companies (in the latest set) working in the areas of hardware + biotech + healthcare: 32

According to YC, about 1,000 companies participated in its programs.

They want to be "stars"

According to partner Y Combinator Jared Friedman, since 2008, management has reviewed tens of thousands of applications for participation in the program. Friedman writes that the analysis of all applications gives an idea of ​​how the technology industry is changing, but until 2016, the accelerator team did not conduct such research.

In their applications, aspiring entrepreneurs indicate the niche and the relevant companies with which they would like to compete. At the same time, the accelerator’s partner notes, major startups, such as Airbnb and Uber, fall into the list of the most-mentioned competitors.


Statistics on references to competitors

Since 2005, many famous projects have gone through Y Combinator - Reddit, Loopt, Clustrix, Scribd, Wufoo, Xobni, Weebly, Dropbox, Twitch, Heroku, Machine Zone, Airbnb, Cloudkick, Bump, WePay and so on.

And there are more modest, have not yet declared themselves to the whole world. Such projects are the majority, but they are just as important for forming the general picture of the industry. A new toolkit on the YC website allows you to find out when they appeared in the accelerator and in which direction they are working.

Here are some startups that have passed the acceleration program in 2016.

Developer Tools category:

• ConstructVR - a platform for testing, managing and deploying applications for virtual reality devices.

• DevColor is a community of black software developers.

• Exponent - an engine for developing mobile games.

• MessageBird - API for sending SMS, text and voice messages.

• Metapacket is a corporate system for diagnosing and preventing hacker attacks and other security threats.

• Opsolutely - a service for the automatic deployment of software "one-click".

• Women Who Code - a community of women developers helping them in their career growth

• ZeroDB - a secure "cloud" platform for storing large amounts of data.

The number of startups in this category has not changed year to year.

Enterprise Category:

• Instumentl - a grant search system for scientists.

• Livement - an application for ordering tickets to sports events and food at stadiums.

• Seneca Systems - software for government structures.

• Smartpath - Mobile Financial Advisor and Planner.

• WorkRamp - a system for training employees in the company.

Compared to 2015, in 2016 the number of startups in this category has decreased significantly.

Hardware category:

• Airo Health - a “smart” bracelet that tracks the number of calories consumed and consumed.

• Amberbox - a system for tracking and preventing attacks with the use of firearms.

• ApolloShield - a system for the protection of territories from unwanted visits by quadcopters.

• Aptonomy - drones for the protection of premises or territories.

• GTrack - software for companies from the oil and gas industry. Helps to identify promising deposits of raw materials.

• Raptor Maps - a service for farmers, which helps to analyze the state of crops using shooting from drones.

• Validere - equipment for testing industrial designs.

Compared to 2015, in 2016 the number of startups in this category has grown again. In the last few years, the number of startups involved in technical devices and biotechnology has increased significantly among applicants. This is partly due to a change in the policy of accepting startups in the accelerator, which previously focused on the selection of software projects, writes Friedman.



Many startups are developing applications for wearable devices and the creation of such gadgets.


The number of projects in the field of virtual reality is growing rapidly.

One of the main trends of the latest Y Combinator sets, says Friedman, is artificial intelligence. "Startups apply similar technologies to all areas of life."

This year, Enterprise projects seemed less promising to YC experts than Developer Tools and Hardware startups.

The data for the remaining categories and years are available on the corresponding web page of the YC website.