Hacker News Reader

Comment by thehodge | Hacker News Reader

Was just posted this by a friend and am absolutely gobsmacked...

You come up with an idea and then get assigned 'resources' who build it for the next 36 hours.. then when its all done.. you split the winnings 50% / 50%..

Really puts a bad taste in my mouth.

(Sort of disclaimer, I compete in a lot of hackdays and I run http://www.leedshack.com in the UK)

View on HN

Potentially less than 50/50. The "entrepreneur" gets $1k, the rest of the resources have to split the other $1k. Doesn't seem that fair to me

Pairing an 'entrepreneur' with a developer can work, and I know of cases where the 'idea guy' deserves 50% - they tackle the market and sell the product. But in a Hackathon environment I'm not sure it would work: you have to share the same passion. It takes someone who has the insight and ability to push forward a really great product in an industry in which they completely understand, and a development partner who is completely engaged in wanting to implement this technology (or ideally, you both come from the same place). Is a weekend enough time to spark this kind of connection?

An "idea guy" who also handles marketing and sales shouldn't be considered just an "idea guy".

I completely agree but I feel there is a bias on HN towards non-technical founders, certainly under these conditions. I think it's important to understand what traits of a non-tech co-founders are going to be more valuable / interesting to work with: I've seen friends get stuck in bad positions because the founder can't grow a business (I've been in this place myself when young).

Reply on news.ycombinator.com