About Orange Collective
YC founders backing YC founders
Over 150+ YC alumni investing together in each batch
Joe GreensteinInnerSpace (S15)Co-founder at InnerSpace, a wisdom community for startup founders. Previously co-founded Flixster and Rotten Tomatoes (acq'd by Warner Bros.)
Gillian O'BrienCherry (W19)Founded Cherry (W17), enabling employees to choose their own perks. GM at Remote.com. Venture Scout at CRV and Mentor at 500 Global.
Dave YenRoomblocker (S15)Founded Roomblocker (S15), hotel booking for groups and events. Former product leader at Shopify and Rigetti Quantum Computing (S14), and product marketer at Salesforce.
Anna Joo FeeGoodfin (W22)Co-founder at Goodfin (W22), building the future of wealth management. 2X fintech founder and former regulatory lawyer. Harvard College and Harvard Law School alum.
Ryan BednarRankScience (W17), TutorSpree (W11)CEO of RankScience (W17), automating SEO for startups. Previously Co-founder of Tutorspree (W11), and first employee at SeatGeek (valued at $1B+).
Jake SteinCommon Paper (W23)Co-founder/CEO of Common Paper (W23), the SAFE for commercial contracts. Previously co-founder of RJMetrics (acq'd by Magento, then Adobe) and Stitch (acq'd by Talend).
Joe GreensteinInnerSpace (S15)Co-founder at InnerSpace, a wisdom community for startup founders. Previously co-founded Flixster and Rotten Tomatoes (acq'd by Warner Bros.)
Gillian O'BrienCherry (W19)Founded Cherry (W17), enabling employees to choose their own perks. GM at Remote.com. Venture Scout at CRV and Mentor at 500 Global.
Dave YenRoomblocker (S15)Founded Roomblocker (S15), hotel booking for groups and events. Former product leader at Shopify and Rigetti Quantum Computing (S14), and product marketer at Salesforce.
Anna Joo FeeGoodfin (W22)Co-founder at Goodfin (W22), building the future of wealth management. 2X fintech founder and former regulatory lawyer. Harvard College and Harvard Law School alum.
Ryan BednarRankScience (W17), TutorSpree (W11)CEO of RankScience (W17), automating SEO for startups. Previously Co-founder of Tutorspree (W11), and first employee at SeatGeek (valued at $1B+).
Jake SteinCommon Paper (W23)Co-founder/CEO of Common Paper (W23), the SAFE for commercial contracts. Previously co-founder of RJMetrics (acq'd by Magento, then Adobe) and Stitch (acq'd by Talend).
Joe GreensteinInnerSpace (S15)Co-founder at InnerSpace, a wisdom community for startup founders. Previously co-founded Flixster and Rotten Tomatoes (acq'd by Warner Bros.)
Gillian O'BrienCherry (W19)Founded Cherry (W17), enabling employees to choose their own perks. GM at Remote.com. Venture Scout at CRV and Mentor at 500 Global.
Dave YenRoomblocker (S15)Founded Roomblocker (S15), hotel booking for groups and events. Former product leader at Shopify and Rigetti Quantum Computing (S14), and product marketer at Salesforce.
Anna Joo FeeGoodfin (W22)Co-founder at Goodfin (W22), building the future of wealth management. 2X fintech founder and former regulatory lawyer. Harvard College and Harvard Law School alum.
Ryan BednarRankScience (W17), TutorSpree (W11)CEO of RankScience (W17), automating SEO for startups. Previously Co-founder of Tutorspree (W11), and first employee at SeatGeek (valued at $1B+).
Jake SteinCommon Paper (W23)Co-founder/CEO of Common Paper (W23), the SAFE for commercial contracts. Previously co-founder of RJMetrics (acq'd by Magento, then Adobe) and Stitch (acq'd by Talend).
Jose AcainAstroForge (W22)Founder/CTO at AstroForge (W22), an asteroid mining company. Previously at SpaceX, served as deputy Chief Engineer on the 1st Falcon 9 and lead engineer & mission operator on the Dragon vehicles.
Cam UrbanJellyfish Art (W12)Co-founder at Jellyfish Art (W12), live pet jellyfish and jellyfish tanks. Founder/CEO at Roxy Device (acq'd Twitter). Product @ Google, Twitter, and Microsoft.
Shreya JagarlamudiPledge Health (W23)Cofounder/CEO at Pledge Health, automating patient billing for healthcare clinics. Previously ML/AI Software Engineer at Microsoft.
Quinn Wang, MDQuadrantEye (W21)Founder/CEO at QuadrantEye (W21), breaking new ground in online eyecare. Former cataract surgeon. Received MD from Duke University School of Medicine.
Jacob FortinskyNovig (S22)Cofounder at Novig, the first high-frequency, commission-free sports betting exchange. Previous experience in investment banking, legislative research, and financial trading.
Scott SmithFizz (S21)Co-founder at Fizz (S21), the debit card for college students that helps build credit. Backed by Kleiner Perkins, SV Angel, Liquid 2 Ventures, Cherry Ventures, and more.
Jose AcainAstroForge (W22)Founder/CTO at AstroForge (W22), an asteroid mining company. Previously at SpaceX, served as deputy Chief Engineer on the 1st Falcon 9 and lead engineer & mission operator on the Dragon vehicles.
Cam UrbanJellyfish Art (W12)Co-founder at Jellyfish Art (W12), live pet jellyfish and jellyfish tanks. Founder/CEO at Roxy Device (acq'd Twitter). Product @ Google, Twitter, and Microsoft.
Shreya JagarlamudiPledge Health (W23)Cofounder/CEO at Pledge Health, automating patient billing for healthcare clinics. Previously ML/AI Software Engineer at Microsoft.
Quinn Wang, MDQuadrantEye (W21)Founder/CEO at QuadrantEye (W21), breaking new ground in online eyecare. Former cataract surgeon. Received MD from Duke University School of Medicine.
Jacob FortinskyNovig (S22)Cofounder at Novig, the first high-frequency, commission-free sports betting exchange. Previous experience in investment banking, legislative research, and financial trading.
Scott SmithFizz (S21)Co-founder at Fizz (S21), the debit card for college students that helps build credit. Backed by Kleiner Perkins, SV Angel, Liquid 2 Ventures, Cherry Ventures, and more.
Jose AcainAstroForge (W22)Founder/CTO at AstroForge (W22), an asteroid mining company. Previously at SpaceX, served as deputy Chief Engineer on the 1st Falcon 9 and lead engineer & mission operator on the Dragon vehicles.
Cam UrbanJellyfish Art (W12)Co-founder at Jellyfish Art (W12), live pet jellyfish and jellyfish tanks. Founder/CEO at Roxy Device (acq'd Twitter). Product @ Google, Twitter, and Microsoft.
Shreya JagarlamudiPledge Health (W23)Cofounder/CEO at Pledge Health, automating patient billing for healthcare clinics. Previously ML/AI Software Engineer at Microsoft.
Quinn Wang, MDQuadrantEye (W21)Founder/CEO at QuadrantEye (W21), breaking new ground in online eyecare. Former cataract surgeon. Received MD from Duke University School of Medicine.
Jacob FortinskyNovig (S22)Cofounder at Novig, the first high-frequency, commission-free sports betting exchange. Previous experience in investment banking, legislative research, and financial trading.
Scott SmithFizz (S21)Co-founder at Fizz (S21), the debit card for college students that helps build credit. Backed by Kleiner Perkins, SV Angel, Liquid 2 Ventures, Cherry Ventures, and more.
Daniel AhmadizadehRiley (W17)Cofounder/CEO at Riley (W17), MailChimp for SMS. Grew three YC startups to over $1m in ARR, hired as CEO of PersistIQ (S14) and chief of staff of Haystack (W21).
Chris FrantzLoops (W22)Cofounder/CEO at Loops (W22), email sending for startups. Previously sold Snazzy AI to Unbounce, led growth at Biteable and strategy at Curiosity.
Niama El BassunieWaystoCap (W17)Founder/CEO at WaystoCap (W17, acq'd), the B2B marketplace for Africa. Technology Pioneer at World Economic Forum, board member and advisor to various startups.
Zachary KimFloat (S21)Cofounder/CTO at Float (S21), supply chain finance for consumer brands. Managing Partner at Surf Club Ventures. Former CTO at Zaarly.
Chase AdamWatsi (W13)Cofounded Watsi (W13), the first global crowdfunding platform for medical treatments. Board Member at Leaders in Tech. Partner at Very Serious Ventures.
Maokai LinSmarking (W15)Founder/CTO at Smarking (W15, acq'd), digitizing the $655B parking industry. Former data scientist at Meta. Received MS and PhD from MIT.
Daniel AhmadizadehRiley (W17)Cofounder/CEO at Riley (W17), MailChimp for SMS. Grew three YC startups to over $1m in ARR, hired as CEO of PersistIQ (S14) and chief of staff of Haystack (W21).
Chris FrantzLoops (W22)Cofounder/CEO at Loops (W22), email sending for startups. Previously sold Snazzy AI to Unbounce, led growth at Biteable and strategy at Curiosity.
Niama El BassunieWaystoCap (W17)Founder/CEO at WaystoCap (W17, acq'd), the B2B marketplace for Africa. Technology Pioneer at World Economic Forum, board member and advisor to various startups.
Zachary KimFloat (S21)Cofounder/CTO at Float (S21), supply chain finance for consumer brands. Managing Partner at Surf Club Ventures. Former CTO at Zaarly.
Chase AdamWatsi (W13)Cofounded Watsi (W13), the first global crowdfunding platform for medical treatments. Board Member at Leaders in Tech. Partner at Very Serious Ventures.
Maokai LinSmarking (W15)Founder/CTO at Smarking (W15, acq'd), digitizing the $655B parking industry. Former data scientist at Meta. Received MS and PhD from MIT.
Daniel AhmadizadehRiley (W17)Cofounder/CEO at Riley (W17), MailChimp for SMS. Grew three YC startups to over $1m in ARR, hired as CEO of PersistIQ (S14) and chief of staff of Haystack (W21).
Chris FrantzLoops (W22)Cofounder/CEO at Loops (W22), email sending for startups. Previously sold Snazzy AI to Unbounce, led growth at Biteable and strategy at Curiosity.
Niama El BassunieWaystoCap (W17)Founder/CEO at WaystoCap (W17, acq'd), the B2B marketplace for Africa. Technology Pioneer at World Economic Forum, board member and advisor to various startups.
Zachary KimFloat (S21)Cofounder/CTO at Float (S21), supply chain finance for consumer brands. Managing Partner at Surf Club Ventures. Former CTO at Zaarly.
Chase AdamWatsi (W13)Cofounded Watsi (W13), the first global crowdfunding platform for medical treatments. Board Member at Leaders in Tech. Partner at Very Serious Ventures.
Maokai LinSmarking (W15)Founder/CTO at Smarking (W15, acq'd), digitizing the $655B parking industry. Former data scientist at Meta. Received MS and PhD from MIT.
Our investments
We aim to invest in the top 5% of each YC batch, selected and voted on by YC alumni.
Why Orange Collective
Walking in the shoes of founders
YC founders have a unique journey filled with highs, lows, and everything in between. We understand this journey intimately because we've lived it ourselves.
Orange Collective is not just about co-investing; it's about creating a supportive ecosystem where YC alumni can thrive together while helping the next generation of YC founders.
🦄6.5% of Y Combinator startups become unicorns
"About 6.5% of recent YC batches become worth $1B or more.
About 25% of those go on to become worth $10B or more.
There is no other place you can go where you have this kind of ability to meet these outliers all in one place four times a year: YC Demo Day."
— Garry Tan, President & CEO of Y Combinator
Unicorn Ratio Model"Sometimes people think Y Combinator has big ideas about themes. But really, YC just funds the best startups."
Sam AltmanFounder, OpenAI
"At YC, we were challenged to do things that don't scale -- to start with the perfect experience for one person, then work backwards and scale it to 100 people who love us. This was the best piece of advice we've ever received."
Brian CheskyFounder, Airbnb
"I doubt that Stripe would have worked without YC. It's that simple. Acquiring early customers, figuring out who to hire, closing deals with banks, raising money -- YC's partners were closely involved and crucially helpful."
Patrick CollisonFounder, Stripe
"YC is the most successful investment firm that has ever existed in the history of investing—just by pure numbers, period... what YC has created has never existed before, and maybe never again will exist elsewhere besides YC."
Garry TanPresident, Y Combinator