Automatic YC Application

Summer 2011Acquired

Automatic went through Y Combinator in the Summer 2011 batch as a Consumer company. Below: what the company does, who founded it, and its application to YC, reconstructed question by question in the real YC form.

YC batch: Summer 2011
Industry: ConsumerConsumer Electronics
Team size: 51
Status: Acquired
Launched: 2012

Founders

Jerry JFounder

What Automatic does

Our Mission: To empower drivers with knowledge about themselves and their cars so they can be safer and drive smarter. We believe you shouldn’t have to buy a new car to have a better driving experience, and that the phone in your pocket can bring the future of driving to today’s automobiles. Who We Are: Automatic is based in San Francisco, but our team comes from every corner of the world. We obsess about creating beautiful and well-engineered products that make a real difference in people’s lives. We’re big on ideas, low on ego, and love working together.

Automatic's YC application, reconstructed

Y Combinator application

Automatic, Summer 2011 batch. The real form questions, answered from public data.

Founders2
Company7
Progress7
Idea4
Equity3
Curious2
Batch Preference1

Company

Company name

Automatic

Describe what your company does in 50 characters or less.

Connects your car to your digital life

What is your company going to make? Please describe your product and what it does or will do.

We build a device and app that connect your existing car to your phone, giving drivers information about their driving habits and vehicle health. This lets drivers improve safety and efficiency without buying a new car.

Where do you live now, and where would the company be based after YC?

We live in San Francisco and the company is based here today and will stay here after YC.

Explain your decision regarding location.

San Francisco is where we are based because this is where our team is, and it's the best place to build consumer connected products right now.

21 more answers in the full application

Founders, Progress, Idea, Equity, Curious, Batch Preference are in the full version. Create a free account to open it in YC Insights, next to every other YC batch.

See full application

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this the real Automatic YC application?

No. Y Combinator keeps submitted applications private. This is a reconstruction: the real YC form questions, answered from Automatic's public data (launch notes, founder backgrounds, product description). It shows how a company like Automatic would present itself to YC, not the text they submitted.