Firebase YC Application

Summer 2011Acquired

Firebase went through Y Combinator in the Summer 2011 batch as a B2B 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: B2BInfrastructure
Team size: 500
Status: Acquired
Launched: 2012

Founders

James TamplinFounder/CEO
Andrew LeeFounder

What Firebase does

Firebase is a mobile platform that gives developers the tools and infrastructure to build better apps and grow successful businesses Firebase was acquired by Google in October, 2014. Learn more at firebase.google.com

Firebase's YC application, reconstructed

Y Combinator application

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

Founders2
Company7
Progress7
Idea4
Equity3
Curious2
Batch Preference1

Company

Company name

Firebase

Describe what your company does in 50 characters or less.

Build and grow iOS, Android, and Web apps.

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

We're building a backend platform for mobile and web app developers to handle real-time data syncing, user authentication, and hosting. Our product gives developers the tools and infrastructure to build apps faster without managing servers or building their own backend from scratch.

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

We live in Mountain View, CA, and the company would remain based here after YC.

Explain your decision regarding location.

We are in Mountain View because it's where we live and close to the ecosystem of developers we serve. Staying local keeps us close to early users and future talent.

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 Firebase YC application?

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