Hellosaurus YC Application

Summer 2020Acquired

Hellosaurus went through Y Combinator in the Summer 2020 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 2020
Industry: ConsumerContent
Team size: 25
Status: Acquired
Launched: 2020

Founders

James RubenFounder

What Hellosaurus does

[Hellosaurus]( is an interactive video platform for kids filled with stories they can actually play instead of just watch. Top kids media creators and popular YouTube stars are already making content for our platform and transforming screen time into an active and fun experience. Hellosaurus is developing software tools for creators of high-quality kids programming to make truly participatory shows and a single distribution platform to share these creations with families everywhere. Experts in early childhood education have long stressed the importance of play for healthy cognitive and social development, and Hellosaurus supports this by empowering content creators to build enriching, interactive shows that engage kids as active participants rather than passive viewers.

Hellosaurus's YC application, reconstructed

Y Combinator application

Hellosaurus, Summer 2020 batch. The real form questions, answered from public data.

Founders2
Company7
Progress7
Idea4
Equity3
Curious2
Batch Preference1

Company

Company name

Hellosaurus

Describe what your company does in 50 characters or less.

Interactive video platform for kids

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

We're building a platform where kids can play with video stories instead of just watching. Our tools let creators, including top kids media makers and YouTube stars, build shows that actively involve kids. We provide software to make shows truly participatory and an easy way for families to find and enjoy this interactive content.

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

We're based between San Francisco and New York and plan to keep operating in both cities after YC.

Explain your decision regarding location.

Our team split between San Francisco and New York gives us access to tech talent and key media creators in kids content. Both locations are critical to building and distributing the product.

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 Hellosaurus YC application?

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