Is YC worth it at $1M ARR?
I went on-site in SF to find out why a startup doing $1M ARR would "downgrade" to join YC. And what I found changed my perspective on scaling entirely.
Most founders think YC is just a launchpad for ideas. They tell me, "I’m already at $1M ARR, it’s too late for me." In this vlog, I’m catching up with the founders of Gojiberry AI (P26) who did the unthinkable: they joined the batch with seven figures in revenue and traded 7% of a working machine.
I wanted to see if the "YC effect" was still real at this stage. Turns out, they didn't just maintain, they doubled. In 30 days, they went from $1M to $2M ARR. This is a raw look at the "Big Cake" vs. "Small Cake" philosophy and why the best founders never stop seeking an edge.
In this vlog, you’ll see:
The $1M Paradox: Why Gojiberry AI ignored the "too late" consensus.
Hyper-growth in real-time: How they added $1M in revenue in just 4 weeks.
The "Repeat Founder" Secret: Why billion-dollar founders are sitting in the same room.
SF Ground Truth: Why they moved to the city to build their GTM engine.
The 7% Reality Check: Is it a dilution or a multiplier?
LinkedIn: / gabrieljarrosson
X: https://x.com/GJarrosson
Substack: https://substack.com/@lobstercap
Check Gojiberry AI here: https://gojiberry.ai/
TIMESTAMPS:
00:00 Is YC Too Late
01:04 Meet The 1M ARR Team
01:28 What Codeberry AI Does
02:11 Why Give Up 7%
02:34 Growth Inside YC
03:10 New Targets For Demo Day
03:57 Was YC Worth It
04:32 How To Try The Product
04:48 Final Takeaways And CTA