Y Combinator is quadrupling the amount it invests in the companies it incubates.
The Mountain View-based startup accelerator is bumping up the standard amount it invests in such startups from $125,000 to $500,000, it said in a blog post.
"This sum will enable founders to focus on launching, building, and scaling their company. It will remove the immediate pressure to fundraise and accept less than favorable terms," Y Combinator President Geoff Ralston said in the post. "We also hope that this deal will encourage more founders of any age and from every demographic group and geographic location to take the leap into the startup world, apply to YC, and build their own successful startup."
The announcement comes after 10 of the accelerator's portfolio companies, including San Francisco-based Amplitude Inc. and Embark Trucks Inc., went public via initial public offerings last year.
Under its revised deal terms, YC will continue to give companies that go through its accelerator program $125,000 in exchange for a 7% stake in them. But it will also give them another $375,000 in exchange for future shares. The number of shares it will receive will be determined by the pricing of the startups' shares when they raise their next round of funding.
