The non-monetary resources provided to YC companies are mostly freely available to any company (startup school, how to start a startup, pg&#x27;s blog, sama&#x27;s blog, AmAs, etc.).<p>Sure, you could argue that being a YC alum helps you raise that first round, but even YC companies that raise smaller-ish rounds fail all the time.<p>I feel like people think if you&#x27;re in YC you&#x27;re a sure bet. That&#x27;s not the case at all. First and foremost you need a product that&#x27;s going to be better than anything that currently exists. At the end of the day YC is just an angel investment firm with a great track record.