Book Synopsis A behind-the-scenes look at how tomorrows hottest startups are being primed for greatness Investment firm Y Combinator is the most sought-after home for startups in Silicon Valley. Twice a year, it funds dozens of just-founded startups and provides three months of guidance from Paul Graham, YCs impresario, and his partners. Receiving an offer from YC creates the opportunity of a lifetime. Acclaimed journalist Randall Stross was granted unprecedented access to Y Combinator, enabling a unique inside tour of the world of software startups. Over the course of a summer, we watch as a group of founders scramble to make something people want. This is the definitive story of a seismic shift in the business world, in which coding skill trumps experience, undergraduates confidently take on Goliaths, and investors fall in love. Review Quotes Y Combinator is a national treasure, a Silicon Valley seed fund that is mass-producing new startups. Randall Strosss behind-the-scenes look at YC offers a rare glimpse into what it really takes to conceive an idea and get it to market as quickly as possible. The Launch Pad is a must-read for anyone interested in the realities of modern entrepreneurship. --Eric Ries, author of the New York Times bestseller The Lean Startup The Launch Pad is an intimate look at the white-hot center of the new Silicon Valley star tup ecosystem. Strosss account of the best new entrepreneurs and the exciting companies theyre building at startup schools is a great read for founders and would-be founders alike. --Marc Andreessen, cofounder, Andreessen Horowitz About the Author Randall Stross writes the Digital Domain column for the New York Times and is a professor of business at San Jose State University. He is the author of several acclaimed books, including eBoys, Planet Google, and The Wizard of Menlo Park . He has a Ph.D. in history from Stanford University.