You guys should post about your startup here while you have some attention. Sounds interesting (I am assuming you are applying with the seed launcher idea?).
Without being an expert in startup financing I'd imagine there would be some fairly significant regulation challenges in the idea? Anyone successfully using the platform currently?
It is also interesting that your idea itself if it comes off might be solving a YC problem (How best to connect pitching startups with the right investors and generate the best valuations).
Seedlauncher.com is a crowdfunding for equity site that is based around investing in small businesses within your own local community. With crowdfunding becoming legal we're creating a platform to enable both accredited and unaccredited investors to become part owners in their local businesses.
We are doing it. We've been working hard for months. We're just waiting for the SEC to write the regulations for crowdfunding following the passage of the JOBS act.
If it existed today, I would almost certainly be using it. This needs to exist, and with the JOBS act passing it will. The race is on to see who gets a user base first, or before someone like angelist does it with their existing user base.
If I were in your shoes I would spend 72 hours getting a full profiling system up and online with the vision, get THAT on hackernews, and start building a user base. By the time you actually finish the integration of backends to allow for micropayments, tracking users, and equity allotments, you already have users and are that much further ahead of anyone else working on something similar when you turn those features on.
YC is awesome, but they only are one of many options available to you. From where I sit, there is nothing about this project that _needs_ a lot of funding to get a prototype built, an a prototype will be what you need to prove you guys have the chops to take this all the way. The prototype just needs a few weekends of time, infrastructure knowledge and programming skill. The only thing I really see you needing some cash for early, is legal counsel to build solid terms of service and investment agreements carefully written to make sure you are fully protected and acting within the JOBS act.
Feel free to contact me if you want to discuss this further.
Without being an expert in startup financing I'd imagine there would be some fairly significant regulation challenges in the idea? Anyone successfully using the platform currently?
It is also interesting that your idea itself if it comes off might be solving a YC problem (How best to connect pitching startups with the right investors and generate the best valuations).