Latest Interviews

An Update on the Economic and Public Health Implications of Coronavirus for Europe

Sharmin Mossavar-Rahmani, Dr. David Heymann, Sven Jari Stehn, Silvia Ardagna, Peter Oppenheimer, Sharmeen Mosavar-Rahmani

Hosted by Goldman Sachs on March 26, 2020, a panel of infectious disease experts and economists analyzed the severe impact of the coronavirus on Europe, highlighting Italy's high mortality due to demographic factors and early hospital overload while noting a potential 9% GDP contraction in the Euro area by year-end. In response to the crisis, European central banks and governments deployed unprecedented monetary and fiscal measures, including unlimited asset purchases and corporate loan guarantees, though fragmentation within the Eurozone contrasted with more coordinated US actions. Despite the deepening economic downturn, equity strategists noted that market valuations have reached historic lows, projecting a high probability of double-digit returns over the subsequent 24 months as earnings decline stabilizes.

Mangroves: how they help the ocean

Lillian, Mark Huxham

Global mangrove ecosystems face imminent collapse due to industrial expansion, prompting the launch of Mikoko Pomoja in Kenya's Ghazi Bay as the world's first community-led project funded by carbon credits. This initiative has successfully generated over $60,000 for local communities while sequestering significant carbon in sediment, effectively incentivizing conservation over resource extraction. Although experts caution that such offsets cannot replace broader policy reforms, the model is gaining traction as a replicable strategy for marine protection and economic stability across the region.

YC SUS: Eric Migicovsky hosts founder office hours

Eric Migicovsky, Eric Michakowski, JC, Mary, John, Jake, Nate, Chefy, Wee Susu, Armin, Amy, Lindy

Startup School facilitator Eric Michakowski leads concentrated office hour sessions where founders receive targeted strategic guidance from YC partners to solve specific scaling, product, and go-to-market challenges. Participants from diverse sectors including hardware, fintech, and biotech present their current bottlenecks to receive actionable advice on metrics, user acquisition, and regulatory compliance. The sessions are publicly recorded to foster peer support and provide a resource library of problem-solving strategies for the broader founder community.

YC SUS: Eric Migicovsky hosts founder office hours

Eric Migicovsky, Eric Mijakovsky, Helen, Drow, Philippe, Diana, Bill, Jason Hirschhornbecker

Five software founders presenting Jovial, Cognitive, Match Hotels, DreamList, and Burlocks received targeted strategic advice to refine their business models and overcome specific operational hurdles such as low conversion rates and scalability challenges. The session emphasized executing concrete two-week action plans, including manual outreach to secure annual subscriptions, niche market testing, and pivoting from manual services to scalable software products. By defining clear success metrics and shifting revenue strategies from one-time fees or unreliable affiliate tracking toward recurring revenue, these entrepreneurs aim to validate their product-market fit and drive sustainable growth.

YC SUS: Gustaf Alströmer and Eric Migicovsky discuss growth tactics

Gustaf Alströmer, Eric Migicovsky, Gustav

This comprehensive analysis outlines critical strategies for early-stage startups, emphasizing that charging users immediately is essential for validating product-market fit and sustaining growth. Founders are advised to prioritize direct customer engagement and curated supply acquisition while leveraging predictive retention metrics and substantial referral incentives to drive scalable adoption. The guidance further details how to navigate market education through targeted SEO and social proof, ensuring that monetization models align with user value rather than relying on unsustainable advertising revenue.

Why Investing in the Longest Bull Market in History is Still a Smart Move

Sharmin Mossavar-Rahmani, Jake Siewert, Jake Seward

Goldman Sachs Private Wealth Management's 2020 "Room to Grow" report argues that the current economic expansion will likely persist through 2020, citing favorable central bank policies, a low 20% recession probability, and balanced market conditions that support an 87% chance of positive returns. The firm recommends a strategic overweight in U.S. equities driven by superior demographics and productivity, while cautioning that high capital gains taxes make it inefficient for investors to sell assets waiting for a market dip. Although the analysis acknowledges short-term volatility from geopolitical tensions and the coronavirus outbreak, it projects that disinflationary trends and robust household balance sheets will allow underlying economic growth to reassert itself within months.

YC SUS: Aaron Epstein and Eric Migicovsky give website feedback

Aaron Epstein, Eric Migicovsky

Aaron Epstein, a YC alum and Creative Market co-founder, evaluates the websites of Startup School founders to identify critical failures in clarity, trust signals, and conversion optimization. The review process prioritizes precise value propositions and user benefit statements over visual aesthetics, exposing common issues like vague positioning, confusing navigation, and a lack of social proof across diverse ventures ranging from crypto tax tools to pet insurance. Epstein concludes with a strategic directive for founders to validate their messaging through external user testing and to align their site content immediately with a single, clearly defined use case.

YC SUS: Kat Mañalac and Eric Migicovsky discuss Week 2 SUS Lectures

Kat Mañalac, Eric Migicovsky

Founders are advised to prioritize rapid MVP validation and recurring launches over perfectionism to maximize market discovery and gather authentic user feedback. Strategic distribution requires targeting accessible micro-communities and non-scalable manual hacks before scaling, while pricing and feature decisions must rely on real customer interactions rather than hypothetical surveys. Ultimately, sustainable growth depends on securing early revenue from niche customers to fund development, treating failed hypotheses as necessary pivots, and aligning product iteration with specific geographic or sector constraints.

YC SUS: Michael Seibel and Eric Migicovsky discuss How to Launch an MVP

Michael Seibel, Eric Migicovsky

This presentation outlines a comprehensive framework for executing Minimum Viable Products across diverse sectors, emphasizing scrappy differentiation in saturated markets and safety-first approaches for hardware challenges. Founders are advised to prioritize high-bandwidth feedback loops, validate demand through manual service models before full automation, and utilize strategic pricing to distinguish between casual and critical user needs. The session further details critical pitfalls regarding platform dependency, intellectual property timing, and investor communication structures to ensure robust product-market fit and sustainable iteration cycles.

What will be the biggest stories of 2020?

In 2020, global markets confront recession risks from the US-China trade war while the US presidential election pivots on Wisconsin's swing status and Germany faces potential debt rule breaches. Simultaneously, cultural and institutional milestones include Beethoven's 250th birth anniversary, a WHO campaign for nurses amid a projected global shortage, and the Tokyo Olympics' controversial new transgender inclusion guidelines. These divergent themes highlight a year defined by economic instability, political realignment, and complex debates over human rights and biological definition.

Brexit: Live Q&A with The Economist

John Peet, Anna Vux

After securing EU approval for his withdrawal deal, Prime Minister Boris Johnson faces a parliamentary amendment backed by the DUP that delays the final vote pending new legislation, effectively blocking a no-deal exit. With Speaker John Bercow ruling against a repeat vote and analysts deeming the October 31 deadline improbable, the government is compelled to request an extension while navigating intense regional tensions over the new Irish Sea border arrangements. Although the political landscape points toward an early general election rather than a second referendum to break the deadlock, long-term economic forecasts warn of reduced investment and global trade friction regardless of the outcome.

Kat Mañalac - How to Launch (Again and Again)

Kat Mañalac

The presentation redefines startup launching from a singular event into a continuous iterative process designed to validate problems and refine pitches before full product completion. It outlines specific tactical approaches ranging from silent and community-based launches to strategic influencer outreach and viral waitlists, illustrated by case studies from companies like Reddit, Magic, and Superhuman. By prioritizing early market testing over perfectionism, founders can identify target segments and secure traction while avoiding the risks of delayed development.

How to Get the Most from Your Board

Scott Kupor, Frank Chen

This presentation analyzes the critical dynamics of long-term venture capital relationships, emphasizing the need for entrepreneurs to align with board members who serve as strategic stewards rather than mere financial backers. It details how diverging economic interests and fiduciary duties influence three distinct exit scenarios: distress management through recapitalization, acquisition negotiations involving management carve-outs, and IPO processes where pricing conflicts arise. Ultimately, the discussion advises founders to rigorously assess investor incentives and liquidation structures to maintain alignment and build durable, independent public companies.

MIT 6.S091: Introduction to Deep Reinforcement Learning (Deep RL)

This presentation analyzes the architectural foundations of deep reinforcement learning, contrasting its trial-and-error paradigm with supervised learning while detailing critical algorithmic categories such as model-based, model-free, and actor-critic methods. It highlights pivotal breakthroughs like Deep Q-Networks and AlphaZero that leverage neural networks to achieve superhuman performance in complex decision-making tasks, while cautioning against the misalignment risks inherent in reward function design. The discussion further explores the transition from simulation to real-world deployment in robotics and autonomous driving, emphasizing the necessity of mathematical rigor and iterative implementation for effective research and development.

Immigration Shifts 2019: Prep & Resources for Startups

Ting Ni, Hendrik Pretorius

This analysis addresses the critical recruitment and compliance challenges facing Silicon Valley employers, where foreign-born talent comprises nearly 70% of the technical workforce yet faces onboarding delays six times longer than domestic hires. The event details specific strategies for navigating high-rate Requests for Evidence in H-1B filings, leveraging alternative visa pathways like O-1 and L-1, and maintaining operations during government shutdowns. It further outlines actionable recommendations for drafting robust internal immigration policies and preparing for upcoming regulatory shifts regarding wage levels and STEM OPT extensions.