We Got Into Y Combinator: Two Dropouts, One Mission, Zero Safety Net

Y Combinator Fall 2025. We made it.

Neo and I are still processing this. Just a few months ago, we were two guys with an idea, coding in coffee shops, wondering if we were completely delusional.

The Real Cost of "Making It"

Let me tell you what getting here actually cost us.

I dropped out of my Master's program at UCSD. Neo left his founding engineer position. We've moved apartments three times in six months because, well, startup life means you're constantly broke. Our server crashed for two days and nobody noticed. I went through the toughest breakup of my life. We've been living on instant ramen and pure conviction.

We sacrificed everything. Sleep. Stability. Relationships. Sanity.

Neo put it perfectly the other day: "When you're actually in the trenches, choosing between shipping a feature or writing a LinkedIn post isn't even a choice. You ship the feature. Every time."

That's exactly the problem we're solving.

The Problem That Obsesses Us

Every B2B founder knows they should be building in public. Sharing the journey. Growing their network. Turning expertise into pipeline.

But here's the reality: founders waste 8+ hours a week trying to write content that goes nowhere. They're brilliant at their craft but terrible at translating that brilliance into posts, engagement, and ultimately, revenue.

During our YC interview, they asked us what happens when every founder uses AI for their content. Neo's response was perfect: "That's already happening with ChatGPT. The difference is we help you show up as yourself, consistently, while you focus on building."

What We Built

Imagine AI isn't just another AI writing tool. It's an autonomous Head of Content for your company.

We perform deep research on everything about you. Build a 100-page persona that captures who you are, your market position, competitive analysis, and how to stand out. Then we create content that actually books meetings at named accounts.

Not just posts. We handle the entire presence: posting consistently, engaging with comments, reaching out to the right people—all in your authentic voice.

One client just closed a $5M deal from a single post we generated. Another agency replaced their 3-person writing team with our AI.

In 8 weeks, we went from $0 to $14K in revenue. We have 250+ companies on our waitlist.

Where We Come From

Sometimes I think about the distance between where I started and where we are now.

My grandparents' bathroom in rural China doesn't have running water. You heat water on a stove to shower. That's where my family comes from. My dad washed dishes when we first arrived in America as asylees.

Neo's parents still don't fully understand why he left a stable path in tech to build this with me.

The gap between those realities and standing here today, as YC founders, shouldn't be possible. But when you've seen what "starting from zero" really looks like, you realize that sacrifice isn't a cost—it's an investment.

What's Next

We start YC in two weeks. Still working out of Founders Inc. Still figuring things out as we go.

But we've got three months to prove something important: that founders can build in public authentically, at scale, without it eating up their entire Sunday. That building relationships doesn't have to compete with building product.

We weren't even sure if we were ready when we applied. We just thought, why not?

Turns out, YC really gets the problem we're solving. Because building in public isn't just about broadcasting. It's about actually building relationships that matter—the kind that turn into customers, investors, teammates.

The Climb Is Worth It

To everyone who's been supporting us: thank you. This is just the beginning.

To every founder choosing the fire over comfort, grinding through the uncertainty: the climb is worth it.

And to the other YC F25 founders reading this: we'd love to connect and see what you're building. Because if there's one thing we've learned, it's that the journey is better when you're not doing it alone.

Two dropouts. One mission. Zero safety net.

Welcome to the future of B2B content.