Worked for couple of YC startups at key roles like lead engineer and product designer. But a lot of apps, I mean 6 projects in 6 months. Worked with Antler India residency and got offer from Entrepreneur First, but in their residency programs I didn't see any funding.
I am tired of the pedigree shit where I am getting told on my face that if I had some IVY league university on my resume or some FAANG, I could get the funding.
Working on my biggest project yet, a totally open-source alternative to perplexity where devs can not only play around with APIs but can build plugins too. But without any funding I am tired. Completely tired of the VCs rejecting me left and right.
For the rest of us, when it comes time to seek funding, the first question investors will ask is “Who is asking for my money? Why should I care?” You can say you have a great idea. You can outline how millions of developers will definitely hop on board, and it’ll be the next big thing. You can do all of that, but you’re not the first one to make those claims.
The old adage of “it’s not what you know, it’s who you know” is certainly true. Who do you know? Who can vet you to these investors? If they saw that an Ivy league university liked you enough to accept you, or that a reputable company liked you enough to hire you, that’s a great first step. You have neither. The odds are against you.
You can keep trying — I encourage you to keep trying — and if this idea fails, try another idea. Keep trying. It may take years, which is a shame, but it’s what we’re talking about here. It may never happen.
Being “tired of the pedigree shit” isn’t going to do you any favors. You and I, and thousands of other entrepreneurs, are not entitled to VC money. We have to make the case for ourselves, and our ideas.