Y Combinator Demo Day: Why some investors are sitting out

Startup accelerator Y Combinator has long had a good reputation for picking companies that go on to be home runs for investors. And to get those investments, VCs have watched the accelerator’s biennial Demo Days to get a peek at the startups that could go on to become the next Instacart or Airbnb.

But anecdotally some of the lore surrounding Demo Day — and YC in general — has faded in recent years. Some investors don’t like that the cohorts have gotten larger and less selective, while others think the base valuations and round sizes have become too inflated. Demo Day doesn’t seem to come with the same pomp and circumstance as it used to.

Though it appears that more VCs have decided to sit out the festivities in recent years, we wanted to know if that’s really the case. So we asked them to weigh in! Here’s how 15 investors are thinking about Demo Day.