> We are very actively working on the co-founder matching site and would love to hear from people who have used it - what your experience was and how we could make it better.
I used it a year and a few months ago. I'm a technical person with 10 years working in startups. I treated it the way I'd treat a job search etc.
I matched with ~150 people. Talked to ~50 people. Got close/did trial project with 3. Did a deal with 1. Raised a VC pre-seed (similar process) and have had a wild journey since.
Some learnings:
* Met some really cool people, some amazing talent on the platform.
* Know what you're looking for (e.g. complimentary skillset, company stage). Matching experience was key - didn't want too little (still making mistakes) but not too much (wanted an equal relationship, not a minor founder role).
* Co-founding is a relationship IMO. 'Matching' is just dating, 'trail project' is moving in together, and 'cofounding' is marriage. Expect to argue about curtains.
* It's hard to do and complex, this isn't handed on a plate. On the flip side, that's how business is, so builds skill sets that come in useful later.
Some ideas, if I ran this program:
1) Experiment with different interaction forms. E.g. 60 second video bio's to see if that helps people match faster.
2) Do a 'YC-lite' incubator program. We were never interested in the time or equity of a full YC program, so DIY'd fundraising, company formation etc. There's room to build community/support that's less intensive than YC's incubator, more suitable for founders who have matched and are building now... not waiting for incubator. I note that 20 match teams got YC funded... how many are doing well that YC knows nothing about?
This is cool to hear (as another member of the CFM team!)
We have admittedly less insight in this type of 'success' (we talk to all of the teams that end up in a YC batch) but if you stopped actively using the platform and paused your account, you would have told us you met someone you were working with.
I used it a year and a few months ago. I'm a technical person with 10 years working in startups. I treated it the way I'd treat a job search etc.
I matched with ~150 people. Talked to ~50 people. Got close/did trial project with 3. Did a deal with 1. Raised a VC pre-seed (similar process) and have had a wild journey since.
Some learnings:
* Met some really cool people, some amazing talent on the platform.
* Know what you're looking for (e.g. complimentary skillset, company stage). Matching experience was key - didn't want too little (still making mistakes) but not too much (wanted an equal relationship, not a minor founder role).
* Co-founding is a relationship IMO. 'Matching' is just dating, 'trail project' is moving in together, and 'cofounding' is marriage. Expect to argue about curtains.
* It's hard to do and complex, this isn't handed on a plate. On the flip side, that's how business is, so builds skill sets that come in useful later.
Some ideas, if I ran this program:
1) Experiment with different interaction forms. E.g. 60 second video bio's to see if that helps people match faster.
2) Do a 'YC-lite' incubator program. We were never interested in the time or equity of a full YC program, so DIY'd fundraising, company formation etc. There's room to build community/support that's less intensive than YC's incubator, more suitable for founders who have matched and are building now... not waiting for incubator. I note that 20 match teams got YC funded... how many are doing well that YC knows nothing about?