One open-source API for startup data across Y Combinator AND a16z - 6,600+ companies with funding, stage, IPO/M&A exits, and founders. Filter by VC (yc/a16z/all), batch, industry, country, or search. Grab a free API key, read the docs (curl/Node/Python + Swagger), and build in 30 seconds. Plus the full web app: map, analytics, funding data, a live hiring board, and AI tools.
hey PH - we're back! 👋
I'm Konstantin. We first launched ExploreYC - here as a web app for exploring Y Combinator's portfolio, and the response was awesome — thank you 🙏. Ever since, the
#1 request has been the same one thing: "Can I get the data through an API?"
So this launch is exactly that. This is ExploreYC's open-source + API edition - the same cleaned, enriched dataset, now something you can query, script, and build on. And it grew up: it now covers a16z's portfolio alongside YC.
👉 New here? Welcome. Caught our first launch? This is the developer edition you asked for. 🎉
✨ What's new since our first launch:
- A public REST API - YC + a16z, filter by VC (`source=yc | a16z | all`)
- The entire project is now **open source**
- Developer accounts, API keys, rate limits, docs & a usage dashboard
- a16z portfolio data (exits, acquirers, founders, tickers) sitting next to YC
🔌 The API (the star of this launch):
- One base URL, JSON over HTTPS: `https://api.exploreyc.com/api/v1`
- Filter by VC - `source=yc | a16z | all` — plus batch, industry, country, hiring status, or full-text search
- Company detail by id or slug: funding, stage, **IPO/M&A exits**, acquirer, founders, ticker
- Portfolio stats, sources, geo/map data, and batch "Wrapped" analytics
- Get an API key in 30 seconds - non-expiring, with per-key rate limits (`X-RateLimit-*` headers, `Retry-After`)
- A full docs site with copy-paste curl / Node / Python examples + interactive Swagger
- A developer dashboard to manage keys, watch your usage (7-day charts + top endpoints), and set a profile
```bash
curl -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_KEY" \
"https://api.exploreyc.com/api/v1..."
```
🌐 And the whole thing is open source → github.com/KonstantinMB/exploreyc
🎯 Why: researching startups means jumping between YC's directory, a16z's site, Crunchbase, LinkedIn, and 20 browser tabs. I cleaned + enriched all of it into one dataset — and now anyone can build on it.
🧰 Everything the API powers is also a polished web app:
🔍 Search & filter 6,800+ YC + a16z companies
🗺️ Interactive global map
🤖 AI company research
📊 Analytics + funding data
💼 Live hiring board (1,400+ companies hiring)
💡 Startup idea validator
🎁 Batch "Wrapped" shareables
Would love your feedback - especially from anyone building tools for founders, investors, or the startup ecosystem.
What would you build with this API?
But this isn't authorized by YC, and you didn't license the right to use "YC" in the product name, did you?
The hiring insights and batch analytics stand out since most YC directories focus on basic company search. How often is the underlying data refreshed, and do you surface historical changes so users can spot trends over time rather than just a snapshot?
This is really cool! I’ve seen a few people built this exact thing over the years. They’ve all shut it down after YC asked them to.
I’m sure they’ve asked you too by now.
Will this stay up?
Really useful tool — love the simplicity of the UI.
How are you planning to monetize this long term?
Open-sourcing the API for YC and a16z data is an interesting positioning move, most tools in this space keep the data layer proprietary. Curious what the actual business model is if the API is free and open-source, does the web app and AI tools layer carry the monetization or is there something else going on?
I like that you exposed the same dataset as an API instead of only a UI — the `source=yc|a16z|all` filter is the bit I'd probably reach for first. Curious if rate limits are per key only, or also per endpoint when people build public dashboards?
going from web app to a real API is the right move, that was always going to be the limiting factor for anyone who wanted to build something on top of the data instead of just browsing it. adding a16z alongside YC is a nice bonus too, cross-referencing overlap between the two portfolios could surface some interesting patterns. how fresh is the data kept, is it a scheduled scrape or closer to real time when a company updates their info
An open-source API across YC + a16z with a 30-second free key is exactly the data layer I would rather hit than scrape and babysit myself for founder/sourcing research. The one thing I would test first: how fresh is the funding/exit/hiring data, is it re-crawled on a schedule (and roughly how often), or is a chunk of it a static snapshot from launch that drifts over time? And what are the rate limits on the free key before I would need to self-host the open-source side?
This looks awesome! I love data viz/aggregation like this. What are some things people have built with this data?
The open-source plan mentioned in the comments is the interesting part to me is that just the app layer, or the enriched dataset too? Curious how you're thinking about keeping funding/hiring data in sync once other people are touching the codebase.
the api layer is the right play. everyone building founder-facing tools rebuilds this dataset every time and it's silly.
real q: does exploreyc distinguish "raised $X" from "shipped something users pay for"? because those have drifted a mile apart and the data layer that solves the second one eats the first.
Open-sourcing the YC and a16z dataset is handy. Where's the underlying data sourced from, and how often does it refresh? Trying to gauge how stale the funding and status fields get between updates.
Very intrigued and looking forward to using this. What use case potential are you most excited about?
Would love a heatmap of YC batches by problem space over time e.g. how many fintech vs. dev-tool vs. climate companies per batch. Founders could instantly see which spaces are getting crowded vs. underexplored before pitching a similar idea.
Love seeing you turn the original web app into an API after listening to users. Curious, how do you handle entity resolution when the same company appears differently across YC and a16z datasets?
Merging YC and a16z into one dataset, the part I'd want documented before building on it is entity resolution. Last time I stitched company data across two sources, matching 'same company, different record' ate most of the effort: OpenAI vs OpenAI Inc vs matching on domain, then deciding which source wins when the funding stage disagrees. Do you expose a stable canonical company ID across both, and when YC and a16z conflict on a field, is there a documented precedence?
Congrats on the launch! Looks really useful and a nice addition to the original launch.
One thing I'd want to know is how often the data is refreshed and how quickly funding or hiring updates make it into the API.
About ExploreYC on Product Hunt
“Open-source API for Y Combinator & a16z company data”
ExploreYC launched on Product Hunt on July 8th, 2026 and earned 727 upvotes and 65 comments, earning #1 Product of the Day. One open-source API for startup data across Y Combinator AND a16z - 6,600+ companies with funding, stage, IPO/M&A exits, and founders. Filter by VC (yc/a16z/all), batch, industry, country, or search. Grab a free API key, read the docs (curl/Node/Python + Swagger), and build in 30 seconds. Plus the full web app: map, analytics, funding data, a live hiring board, and AI tools.
ExploreYC was featured in API (98.4k followers), Open Source (68.6k followers), Developer Tools (516.2k followers) and GitHub (41.3k followers) on Product Hunt. Together, these topics include over 127k products, making this a competitive space to launch in.
Who hunted ExploreYC?
ExploreYC was hunted by Konstantin Borimechkov. A “hunter” on Product Hunt is the community member who submits a product to the platform — uploading the images, the link, and tagging the makers behind it. Hunters typically write the first comment explaining why a product is worth attention, and their followers are notified the moment they post. Around 79% of featured launches on Product Hunt are self-hunted by their makers, but a well-known hunter still acts as a signal of quality to the rest of the community. See the full all-time top hunters leaderboard to discover who is shaping the Product Hunt ecosystem.
Want to see how ExploreYC stacked up against nearby launches in real time? Check out the live launch dashboard for upvote speed charts, proximity comparisons, and more analytics.
Konstantin Borimechkov