Amazon Web Services $100,000 Startup Challenge | Hacker News Reader

Amazon Web Services $100,000 Startup Challenge

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47 pointsdirtae29 comments

I wonder if they've thought this through. No really promising startup would go through all this just for a 1/n chance of $50k.

This is structurally different from raising investment. An investor tries to fund (as far as they can tell) all the good startups that approach them. Here there is only one prize. Which means the better the applicants, the more likely you're wasting your time applying.

I would like to add one more thing... The startup/company should already be using their web services. I am not sure if they consider a good idea that potentially could use their web services.

I am not sure I understand: seems to me all work you have to invest initially is to fill in a one page form? Making it among the finalists, even if you don't win the grand price, you get some exposure, get to present to VCs, and hopefully have some fun. Where is the downside, except for having to make your idea public?

Grand Prize $50,000 Cash

Prizes for 4 Second-Prize Finalists

$5,000 in AWS Credits A professionally developed video, filmed at their place of business, and posted on Amazon's website Exposure and promotion on Amazon.com and AWS websites Promotion in contest press release and other press activities Airfare and hotel accommodations in Seattle to meet and present to Amazon and Judges Panel Featured at the AWS Start-Up Challenge Awards Dinner in Seattle, WA with Amazon executives, industry leaders and VCs

http://www.amazon.com/gp/browse.html?node=377635011

The form might only take a day; the real time suck is for the finalists.

"An investor tries to fund (as far as they can tell) all the good startups that approach them."

Is this your strategy with YC? There has to be some limit (x) on the number (n) of companies you can take on, making YC a x/n for 5000 + 5000founders, no?

There probably is some limit to our capacity, but I don't think we're at it yet.

awesome.

I don't know how to ask this and not sound ironic...I hope it doesn't.

Do you believe they would ignore a good startup and not invest in it even if they didn't win a prize?

I was only talking about the prize aspect of it. The rest is impossible to evaluate. All they say is that they'll make an offer of investment. That could either be good or worthless, depending on the amount, the valuation, and other terms.

FWIW, my guess is that they'd err on the side of ignoring good startups. Amazon has not so far been in the investment business, and I don't think that is their goal here. Their goal is to promote AWS to startups. They're raising the prospect of investment because they know that's something many startups are interested in.

Amazon has invested in at least one startup: http://www.techcrunch.com/2007/02/25/amazon-invests-in-shelf...

Whether or not it's a good startup is another question.

I believe they also own a piece of 37signals

No, Bezos.

As you say, there's little work involved until you become a finalist. And if you become a finalist, I would think the minimum $5k + publicity is a good tradeoff for the trip to Seattle.

A couple of other contests (Adobe, Facebook) were ridiculous because entering the contest, not even winning it, required signing away significant control of your web app and letting the sponsors make derivative web apps.

Great point. It reminds of a lot of scholarship applications. It sounds good, until you realize your chances. In some cases for scholarship money, you're better off trying to create your own wealth through a job or business idea.

In addition to the $50k cash and $50k credit for AWS. The winner is also offered a business loan from Amazon described as such:

"Amazon.com, Inc. or one of its affiliates also will offer the first prize winner a loan in order to bring its Business Proposition to market (the "Investment Offer"). The Investment Offer would be in the form of a promissory note on terms to be determined by Amazon.com, Inc., in its sole discretion, including the conversion of such promissory note to equity in a future equity financing."

Now, I don't speak fluent legalese, but isn't this a lose-lose deal for the entrepreneur? It sounds like if your business flops, it's a loan and you have to pay it back, but if it succeeds, Amazon can convert the loan to equity and make out with much more then they would have by having the loan repaid.

There's nothing sinister about this. It probably just means they'd invest as convertible debt, which is very common (possibly the default) for angel investments. You wouldn't have to pay it back if the startup failed, and the conversion would be into a predetermined number of shares.

Why is it more common? One would expect angels and VCs to tend the other way (buying options and warrants, instead of making loans).

It's only nominally a loan. I think the main attraction to angels is that it protects them from VCs. They convert into the series A round alongside the VCs as the same class of investor.

It's an offer... nothing forces you to take it.

Only open to people/businesses in the US.

Ah well.

damn. from the official rules - First prize gets: "one-hour mentoring sessions from an AWS Technical Expert (ARV $500)"

I need to become an AWS Tech Expert.

Hey, that is interesting information indeed.

Sounds more like they are overvaluing what they are giving away in this contest for tax deduction purposes.

I'd consider submitting an application, except that the deal-breaker seems to be, "The Amazon judges' panel will review all applications and choose five finalists, based on ... implementation of pay-as-you-use Amazon Web Services." We'll certainly might use AWS in the future, but in prototype building mode, it seems like AWS would be a premature optimization.

By the way, I wonder if they are looking particularly for startups that use AWS in novel ways, as opposed to promising startups that just happen to use it on the backhand for scalability.

The VirtualMin folks might be good candidates for this contest since they have what seems to be a slick integration with Amazon's Elastic Computing Cloud (http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=52916). I know they're already YC'd, but it seems like it'd be a minimal time investment since they're already launched.

You have to make your idea ("in whole or in part") public if you become a finalist-- you're required to make a "finalist video" to post online to be voted on.

Votes don't count towards judging, though the judges will be aware of the votes.

Incidentally, is there any data available as to the survival/success rates of startups who won these types of business plan competitions?

I think this would be an awesome opportunity to build an ebay killer with the financial and management backing of Amazon.

Jeff Bezos is in the game?

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