Hacker News Reader

Comment by arionhardison | Hacker News Reader

So basically now YC is looking to emulate Trump and his "pay for early access to truth social posts" ?

re: https://time.com/article/2026/08/13/trump-sued-truth-social-...

YC isn't taxing you, or elected to serve your interest, or beholden to public recordkeeping law or sworn to a national constitution with explicit rules against self-enrichment.

YC can do whatever they want, you can not play their game if you choose. It's not really comparable.

This is a very good point, I did not mean literally in that sense; only in that they are offering "the privileged" exclusive access to information that will further entrench their positions.

I apologize for not being clearer in my comment. I actually agree with your response and fully understand that there is a fundamental difference but also believe that the outcomes of both the aforementioned are aligned.

> YC isn't taxing you

It's a different kind of tax. The VC model is to get you addicted to a service and then jack up prices as soon as they've squeezed out other competition. You can't opt out of that game when AirBnBs take over your town.

That's fair and accurate, there's a lot broken with the system. But I wouldn't place the blame at the feet of YC, it would be just as bad without them.

> blame at the feet of YC, it would be just as bad without them.

I disagree, I think YC is fully to blame here as are the other grifters of the current administration.

The problem is predatory pricing is hard to prove, and the FTC is impotent or complicit, depending on the administration

Reply on news.ycombinator.com