Welcome Garry and Aaron
Y Combinator is pleased to announce two new venture partners, Garry Tan and Aaron Iba. They're both YC alumni, both formidable hackers, and both really nice people. — Garry was one of the founders of Posterous, which we funded in 2008.
Context & Ripple Effects
This is the second consecutive winter Y Combinator has expanded its partnership bench: in November 2010 it brought on Paul Buchheit and Harj Taggar, and now it adds two more names drawn from its own alumni pool. Garry Tan co-founded Posterous, which YC funded in its 2008 batch, and Aaron Iba is likewise a YC graduate — both hired as venture partners rather than outside investors.
First-order effects
- Tan and Iba shift from running their own startups to screening applications and advising founders across YC's twice-yearly batches, which have grown from a previous high of 44 companies to a record 60+ in Summer 2011.
Second-order effects
- Recruiting partners from funded alumni tightens the accelerator's network loop — successful founders become the evaluators of the next cohort, which raises the bar for applicants competing for a fixed number of Demo Day slots in front of top angels and VCs.
Third-order effects
- If the alumni-to-partner pipeline keeps widening, seed acceleration consolidates around firms whose main scalable asset is their graduate network rather than check size — making partnership seats at YC a structural exit path for its own founders.
The trend: Startup accelerators are scaling by recycling their most successful alumni into investing roles, turning each graduating batch into future selection capacity.