B2B SaaS Dominates Newest Y Combinator Class

More than 130 startups have been chosen to join Y Combinator’s Summer 2018 class, and according to reports, B2B software is dominating the roster.

Of the 132 startups that launched at Y Combinator’s two-day pitching event, Demo Day, 30 percent are B2B software firms — more than any other vertical. Healthcare startups followed at 28 percent of the pitches.

The B2B companies include Tall Poppy, which provides employees with software training tools on topics like security and incident response, as well as Ixora, which enables film studios to create digital environments affordably.

Anti-fraud software Berbix also pitched, as did Dataform, a data management company targeting the pharmaceutical space.

Mutiny is a startup helping other B2B Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) companies create better websites, while Sterblue has developed software that empowers drones to inspect large outdoor structures. There was also hotel software developer Canary Technologies; logistics company Viaopt, which created software to become the “uberPOOL for shipping” and Regology, which created software for financial service providers to maintain compliance.

Y Combinator has emerged as one of the most familiar names among startup incubators. In recent years, it has begun to move towards later-stage investments. In 2015, Y Combinator raised $700 million to fund startups, a move that drew some criticism and doubt.

YC’s president, Sam Altman, told reporters at The Wall Street Journal that the funds could “change founders’ willingness to tell us really bad things because they’re treating us as a potential investor.”

Earlier reports in Silicon Hills News said Y Combinator suffered a glitch related to its free, online Startup School. This week, an estimated 11,000 startups received acceptance letters into the online program, while about 4,000 received rejections. Two hours later, those 11,000 startups received rejection letters.

“We are deeply sorry to have to send this email, but unfortunately an error occurred in the software that triggers acceptance emails,” the company wrote in its message, adding that the companies had not been accepted into the startup School Advisor Track, but were rather accepted to the audit Startup School.