Is "Silicon Valley" now a short-hand euphemism for all startups worldwide? So if you're in say Chicago or Baltimore or Bangladesh and you're a startup trying to raise money, are you participating in Silicon Valley's most grueling ritual? Yes, I know this article is SPECIFICALLY about the YCombinator demo day which IS in Silicon Valley. But is the side-read here that it's like this (or most likely harder) for startups everywhere outside of Silicon Valley? And is this even representative of how things are really done for everyone outside of YC in Silicon Valley?
Maybe this should really be titled: Inside one of Silicon Valley's top Accelerators: the grueling YC Demo Days. TL;DR: This is not the reality that most startups face when they raise money, but an insight into a unique process at a unique accelerator in a unique part of the ecosystem.
I agree. We replaced that rather sketchy title with something accurate and flat. If anyone has a better idea, we can change it again.
The phrase "Silicon Valley" is becoming less and less meaningful as it gets slapped on more and more things. Presumably that only happens because it generates clicks, so at this point it's probably just generic linkbait and we should take it off everything.
If that's the case, then the article reads wrong because there's really nothing like this process for startups everywhere outside of Silicon Valley, and probably even inside Silicon Valley. It's a false metonymy in that case.
Maybe this should really be titled: Inside one of Silicon Valley's top Accelerators: the grueling YC Demo Days. TL;DR: This is not the reality that most startups face when they raise money, but an insight into a unique process at a unique accelerator in a unique part of the ecosystem.