Brian Halligan is the CEO and cofounder of HubSpot. HubSpot builds software for marketing, sales, and customer service. You can try it out at HubSpot.com.Kevin Hale is a Partner at YC and cofounder of Wufoo.Brian is on Twitter @bhalligan and Kevin is @ilikevests.The YC podcast is hosted by Craig Cannon.Y Combinator invests a small amount of money ($150k) in a large number of startups (recently 200), twice a year.  Learn more about YC and apply for funding here: https://www.ycombinator.com/apply/***Topics00:00 - Intro00:27 - Brian's an introvert that likes to work from home. He also runs a public company. How does he do both?2:12 - How does he manage his calendar as an introvert?4:12 - How Brian met his cofounder Dharmesh6:12 - The first project they worked on together7:27 - What was their unique insight when starting HubSpot?8:52 - Pricing in the early days9:27 - How would he have priced HubSpot differently knowing what he knows now?10:27 - HubSpot's first customer12:27 - Important early features14:47 - At what point did they shift entirely away from consulting?15:32 - Providing advice as content vs in the product16:27 - SEO is underrated17:12 - Trends in B2B and marketing21:57 - Inbound marketing and audience building advice26:52 - How did Brian know that his cofounder was right for him?28:12 - The internet disproportionately benefiting small businesses over big ones29:12 - Keeping your company hungry when you're big29:52 - Building assets for your company 30:47 - Freemium34:27 - Structural pieces of HubSpot Brian would have changed if he did it again37:27 - Creating the voice of your company39:57 - Early metrics they tracked40:32 - Having a coach and reviews41:57 - How Brian's changed as a CEO from the beginning42:51 - What was the hardest thing to give up as CEO?43:57 - Humility

Jarvis Johnson was previously a software engineer at Patreon, Yelp, and Google. He’s now a YouTuber.You can find him on YouTube at Jarvis Johnson and on Twitter @jarvis.The YC podcast is hosted by Craig Cannon.Y Combinator invests a small amount of money ($150k) in a large number of startups (recently 200), twice a year. Learn more about YC and apply for funding here: https://www.ycombinator.com/apply/***Topics00:00 - Intro00:20 - Jarvis' intro00:50 - Where his videos first got traction1:30 - Being part of the software industry while critiquing it4:05 - How he got into programming6:30 - Moving to California7:50 - Interning at Google then Yelp9:20 - Interviewing multiple times at the same company10:20 - Moving from Yelp to Patreon14:30 - Switching from individual contributor to manager18:35 - Learnings from managing that he applies to himself21:45 - What made Jarvis want to do YouTube full time?30:20 - Investing in yourself31:25 - Making what you want vs talking to viewers35:55 - When did things really start to click for his channel?38:20 - Choosing to make multiple genres of video44:00 - Nathan Allebach asks - Are content creators responsible in any capacity for their audiences?51:05 - Taylor asks - In what ways do you think content creation can benefit one's career in the tech industry?54:40 - Jarvis made a podcast when he was a teenager56:30 - Octopus Blues asks - What lessons did improv teach you/who would you recommend it to, if anyone?58:45 - Predictions for YouTubers and content creators

Harry Zhang is the cofounder of Lob. Lob makes it possible for enterprises to programmatically send physical mail. They were in the Summer 2013 batch of YC.Kevin Hale is a Partner at YC.Harry is on Twitter @harryzhang and Kevin is @ilikevests.The YC podcast is hosted by Craig Cannon.***Topics00:00 - Intro00:31 - Harry's intro00:41 - What did Lob have when they applied to YC?2:01 - Documentation as an API company3:16 - Where did the insight to create Lob come from?4:26 - Lob's first version and first customer7:26 - Closing their first big customer then signing others12:31 - Did Harry always know Lob would be an API company?14:01 - How long did it take to work up to enterprise customers?15:31 - Pricing19:46 - Creating a product roadmap21:26 - Tradeoffs when building product22:21 - Competing for top engineers as an API company24:31 - Options vs RSUs28:01 - Sales mistakes32:21 - Building out features for enterprise clients34:16 - Why did Lob choose to not vertically integrate?39:31 - How has Harry had to change as a founder over the life of Lob?

Max Rhodes, CEO of Faire, and Anu Hariharan from YC discuss Faire's journey, from idea inception to product/market fit. Topics include changes in SMBs, try before you buy model, scaling challenges, calming stress, and strategic hiring for growth.

Austen Allred is the CEO and cofounder of Lambda School.Lambda School provides a CS education that's free until you get a job. They were in the Summer 2017 batch of YC.You can learn more about Lambda School at lambdaschool.com.Austen is on Twitter at @austen.The YC podcast is hosted by Craig Cannon.***Topics00:00 - Intro1:01 - Encouraging people to do something that they're scared to do5:16 - Where did the insight for Lambda School come from?6:26 - College vs developer schools10:26 - Building a network12:16 - Does Austen see value in a traditional liberal arts education?14:56 - Steven Klaiber-Noble asks - As competitors begin to copy your model what front do you believe you'll be competing on?17:56 - Why did Austen choose to raise money?20:06 - Fundraising falling through on Austen's first startup21:36 - Moving back to Utah and writing a book about growth23:26 - Why Austen wrote a book26:26 - "Starting a company is by definition saying, I think what I can do is worth more than what other people will pay me for."27:26 - Mispriced human capital30:21 - Other opportunities for Lambda School32:46 - Modeling risk35:36 - David Kofoed Wind asks - When Lambda School is incentivized to take in people that will land high paying jobs, how do you think about the diversity of candidates? One would imagine that it quickly becomes a game of pattern matching the stereotypical SV people.37:51 - Will Lambda School ever not be remote?41:16 - Dave Dawson asks - You appear to be on the successful path now, was there a point early in Lambda School when you wanted to stop?43:46 - Helping everyone become an autodidact46:46 - Rethinking where to start on an online course48:11 - Dave Dawson asks - What keeps you up at night at this point? 49:46 - Dayo Koleowo asks - “I have made remarks I do not agree with” - from Austen's Twitter bio. What is that one remark you wish you didn’t have to disagree with?53:26 - Choosing remote work as a core problem to solve in your company55:56 - Analysts aren't good at measuring product quality57:36 - Teaching taste

Amy Buechler is an executive coach for startup founders.Michael Seibel is a partner and the CEO of YC.In this episode we talk about coaching and use examples from Michael’s time working on Justin.tv and Socialcam.You can find Amy at her site foundercoach.io and on Twitter at @amybue.Michael is on Twitter at @mwseibel.The YC podcast is hosted by Craig Cannon.***Topics00:00 - Intro00:41 - What is coaching?01:11 - How is coaching different from therapy?2:31 - What are the most common challenges founders in coaching have?3:26 - Challenges with roles and responsibilities at Twitch7:46 - How would Amy have coached Michael around roles and responsibilities?9:41 - Not being disruptive as a leader11:31 - Switching roles at Twitch12:46 - Uneven equity splits15:01 - Distributing and negotiating equity21:16 - Communicating your own value22:51 - Can there be too much communication?24:11 - Productive arguments28:11 - Talking about performance issues30:16 - Setting clear goals and managing motivation33:16 - Enjoying the work34:01 - Conversations about runway36:51 - Digging your company out of the grave and continuing40:21 - Michael being against coaching initially42:31 - How to have hard conversations44:16 - Removing a responsibility from someone49:51 - Returning to roles and responsibilities 50:41 - Jeanie McCallister asks - What’s the single most important piece of advice you can give a founder?

Marques Brownlee is a YouTuber. He has over 8 million subscribers to his channel MKBHD where he reviews electronics, drives electric vehicles, and interviews people such as Kobe Bryant and Bill Gates.You can find Marques on YouTube and on Twitter at @MKBHD.The YC Podcast is hosted by Craig Cannon.***Topics00:00 - Intro00:26 - What does Marques attribute his channel's success to?2:41 - The early days5:11 - How does he go about evaluating a product?7:31 - Features that Marques thought were great that didn't catch on8:41 - Peak smartphone?10:31 - Folding phones and new trends11:26 - Tesla and the EV market15:46 - Getting older and staying relevant17:06 - New kinds of videos and podcasting22:26 - Does Marques feel limited by gear?26:11 - Storytelling techniques28:16 - Tech vs Marques as the star of the show29:56 - Marco Castro asks - What advice do you have for new creators on YouTube?30:56 - When did Marques find his voice as a creator?33:56 - Overcoming perfectionism 34:56 - Gut instinct vs data37:26 - YouTube comments39:31 - Austin Ryder asks - In the early years of his channel, Marques took a several month hiatus from YouTube, but then came back with a new video format and seemingly renewed drive. What happened during those months off that led to the channel becoming what it is today?40:41 - Winston asks - What’s your daily schedule?43:06 - Ultimate frisbee injuries43:26 - Amad Khan asks - Are there any problems that you see or face that you really wish engineers/developers would solve?44:51 - Christian Giordano asks - Any tips on how to engage/work with influencers when you are a very early stage startup with little or no money?46:41 - The future of creators supporting themselves financially49:31 - His biggest challenge as a creator50:31 - Long-term goals

Craig Cannon is the Director of Marketing at Y Combinator. He usually hosts the YC podcast but is the guest on this episode about podcasting.Adora Cheung is a Partner at YC.You can find Adora on Twitter at @nolimits and Craig at @craigcannon.***Topics00:21 - Adora's intro1:26 - Craig's intro4:06 - Starting the YC podcast5:21 - Podcast metrics6:21 - Tips on creating a podcast8:31 - Picking episode topics9:21 - Order of operations for finding guests10:51 - Preparing for interviews14:11 - How to keep an episode engaging16:26 - Analytics18:51 - Gear23:21 - Software24:16 - Listening to your own voice25:41 - Favorite interviews26:41 - Most surprising things Craig's learned about startups on the podcast29:21 - What has Craig learned from guests that he's put into practice?32:01 - Non-consensus things about building startups 34:21 - If Craig had to start a podcast from scratch, how would he structure it?37:01 - Clipping the show42:21 - Monetizing podcasts45:51 - Will podcasts become saturated?46:21 - What's missing in the podcast world?48:21 - Influential podcasters52:11 - Adora's podcast picks53:11 - Patrick Benders asks - What idea do you believe in that your social group would think is crazy?58:11 - Zachary Canann asks - Please tell us about the time you most successfully hacked some (non-computer) system to your advantage.1:00:11 - Being at YC, do Craig and Adora feel pressured to go start a company?1:06:21 - When is an opportunity good enough to quit your current job?

Domonique Fines is the Director of Events at YC.Cadran Cowansage is the cofounder and CEO of Elpha. Elpha is a private online community for women in tech.Join Elpha to read Dom's AMA.You can find Dom on Twitter at @domoniquefines and Cadran at @cadran_c.***Topics00:30 - Dom’s intro00:50 - How Dom started in events and her background2:25 - Deciding to not go to law school3:55 - Choosing to work on tech events6:00 - Outreach to underrepresented founders 9:15 - Common misconceptions about getting into tech10:35 - University outreach11:55 - Identifying problems to fix and not being blocked14:35 - Reflecting on accomplishments15:40 - Dom’s career plans17:10 - Will Dom do a startup?17:35 - Avoiding burnout20:55 - The importance of just getting started

Mike Knoop is cofounder and Chief Product Officer at Zapier, which was in the YC Summer 2012 batch. Zapier moves information between your web apps automatically.Kevin Hale is a Visiting Partner at YC. Before YC Kevin was the cofounder of Wufoo, which was funded by YC in 2006 and acquired by SurveyMonkey in 2011.You can find Mike on Twitter at @mikeknoop and Kevin at @ilikevests.The YC podcast is hosted by Craig Cannon.***Topics00:43 - Kevin's intro01:03 - Mike's intro2:03 - How Mike and Kevin met4:03 - Market sizing for consumer software5:13 - Zapier's growth strategy today vs 20126:28 - Jumpstarting a platform like Zapier9:03 - Building an app directory before building a product11:03 - Applying to YC twice13:23 - Zapier after Demo Day14:48 - Zapier's first remote hire16:48 - Remote companies not being perceived as legitimate18:48 - Noticing remote was working then committing21:28 - Qualities to look for when hiring remote employees24:28 - Nina Mehta asks - What’s the best way to share work and knowledge across designers working on different parts of product without distracting from focused working time?25:58 - Remote mistakes in the early days27:33 - When to change modes of communication to allow for deep work29:28 - When to ask for someone's full attention31:33 - Product and design practices at Zapier34:38 - OKRs for teams vs individuals39:48 - Tools for remote teams43:48 - No internal email at Zapier46:53 - Keeping morale high in a remote team49:28 - What happens at a Zapier retreat51:43 - Remote design critiques56:43 - Serendipity and over optimizing for it58:33 - Setting up a remote company for success