I don’t think a mere mortal startup founder: someone w/o Stanford and Harvard buddies, prior “exits”, and other “serial entrepreneur” regalia and connections has a choice whether to play those money-churning games or start self-funded and grow through honest sales. In my own experience (of being nobody in that “serial entrepreneur club”) no one approached me with any funding scheme. I don’t have connections. Nor MIT or CalTech diploma. Not even ex-Googler credentials. And I am just an engineer, not a “scientist”. Specializing in an unglamorous enterprise software that is still in the stone age compared to flashy consumer tech. Trying to change that.

To be honest I’ve never applied to any accelerator like 500 Startups. I’ve always been invisible for the system with my non-existing credentials and unpopular (among “tech” investors) targeted business software niche. Not all of the funded stuff is vaporware — at least half. Like Hollywood running out of ideas and either doing remakes of old movies or accepting talentless scripts about nothing — from the insiders of course. Besides, Silicon Valley funding games are deeply rooted in the American culture of living on credit cards and using the house as an ATM.