Do YC Startup founders become millionaires?

It takes roughly a decade to IPO, so figure at least that long. Oftentimes there are buyouts before then, but those usually come with a pair of golden handcuffs which extend the time period. And then of course there are all the failures that don't find traction or product-market fit. But are great learning opportunities. A FAANG job is more reliable to get you to millionaire status eventually, but a ton of luck at a startup could get you in the tens of millions. Is it possible? Absolutely, yes, just look at the successes. Is it realistic? What's important is that you believe.

Startups have a power-law of returns, so founders should also have a power-law.

It is hard to find any good data - YC is a VC so why would they want to tell you that the median return is zero? I am disappointed that YC sell a dream, but don’t provide any data on historical results for founders.

This is a good analysis for historic YC companies: https://jaredheyman.medium.com/on-the-life-and-death-of-y-co...

> Is the 'millionaire dream' still an impossible feat for most? And if having a good startup can't guarantee it, what could?

Having a net worth over a million dollars is completely normal for middle-aged professionals, at least in the developed world: in the US it puts you at about the 90th percentile. Having a million in liquid assets is much rarer, but still easily attainable on a FAANG salary.