To be clear, it has nothing to do with all the shit he talks about YC. Though that's annoying, it's fine.
We collect feedback from YC founders on investors (we have a giant database of this). If you mistreat founders, we don't invite you to Demo Day. This isn't permanent--if you stop mistreating founders we start inviting you again. Also, it's possible that our founders are wrong in their assessment of how a particular investor is treating them, but investors have enough advantages in the system and we unashamedly take the side of our founders.
EDIT: I also never think these things are black and white, and that all of us have good and bad parts. I've heard from plenty of founders that Jason has been very helpful to their companies.
Excluding Jason is perplexing to me. For context I've started 6 companies, one went public and was a unicorn. I've worked with Jason as an angel in my companies and I've been on a board with him. Jason has been an awesome throughout several years of doing business with him. I can't envision a scenario where he wouldn't be founder friendly and I'd love to have him as an investor in any future project I pursue. Any first time founder would be lucky to work with Jason.
Since Jason gets a lot of flak (not that he cares):
Jason was one of the first and most helpful investors in Rapportive (YCS10, acq LinkedIn). He believed in us when there was no obvious reason to.
Jason was one of the first investors I went back to for Superhuman. (He negotiated hard, but then so do I — that's just part of each side getting what they want.)
I'd work with Jason again in a heartbeat for my next company.
Wait until you see the product -- it's AWESOME. I've been using it for two weeks and I'm addicted. I think this will be 100x bigger than Rapportive! excited for it!
This is not our experience. Actually, Jason is the most founder-friendly investor that I have ever worked with. He really cares about founders.
He was the very first investor that invested in us, and has become our biggest champion since our very early days.
Most investors look for traction and only decide to invest when you have traction. Jason sees the fire and the determination in us (first time founders), and decides to support us, and helps us grow as a person and as a company.
Some other investors just put in money and disappears. But Jason truly cares and whenever we need help, he's always there. He gives us frank feedback that we really need, he challenges us and pushes us to be better. He helps us with intros. He sends product feedback and recommendations without being asked.
I know dozens of other founders that Jason had invested in and I know that they all feel the same way I do about Jason.
The traction I saw in https://leadiq.io/ was NOT in the product as much as the founder... it was clear to me that you were a winner who knew how to execute at a high level -- even if the product was a little awkward and round around the edges when we met.
Truth is, we're all a little awkward at the start... Uber and Thumbtack were both a little awkward when I did those angels rounds too.
The job of an angel investor is to look at the promise of the startup -- not the problems.
Sam and Jason, this is something that should be done and resolved 1-on-1. The entire ecosystem collectively gets distracted when these happen. Imagine the cost of this (gazillion followers spending gazillion man-decades of brain cycles). Also this gets you and him to be distracted as well and compound it by NOT tweeting/snap chatting stuff that is net +ive.
Banning someone for calling YC out is bad enough, but bad mouthing him afterwards and claiming that he mistreated founders (or YC founders saying that he did) is such a cheap shot.
There is absolutely no history of Jason being known for mistreating founders. The opposite is true. AngelForum, free Launch tickets for founders and so on. He wouldn't get in the deals he's getting in if it were any different.
As it currently stands I'd never enter YC as a founder. Your comment cries of hypocrisy and falseness.
Either you honestly think he's mistreating founders then ban him and tell it like it is (and back it up with proof) or you don't think he's mistreating founders and think the feedback is unsubstantiated (if it exists) then man up and do what's best for YC founders.
I can confirm this is true, because YC staff members have explained to me that they bring in a small group of investors to mentor -- and because founders have confirmed it.
This is something I talked about on This Week in Startups, and frankly I think it has something to do with my "ban."
We collect feedback from YC founders on investors (we have a giant database of this). If you mistreat founders, we don't invite you to Demo Day. This isn't permanent--if you stop mistreating founders we start inviting you again. Also, it's possible that our founders are wrong in their assessment of how a particular investor is treating them, but investors have enough advantages in the system and we unashamedly take the side of our founders.
EDIT: I also never think these things are black and white, and that all of us have good and bad parts. I've heard from plenty of founders that Jason has been very helpful to their companies.