The Evolution of AI Startups at Y Combinator: Strategies and Trends

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In 2025, Y Combinator entrepreneurs have capitalized on the surge in AI technology, with notably younger teams obtaining substantial seed investments.

These entrepreneurs have launched a variety of companies, covering areas from advanced military night vision equipment to automated U.S. work visa processes and AI-centric video meeting software. A prevalent theme is the youthful nature of these founders, many of whom left prestigious institutions like MIT and Stanford, or even completed high school early, to participate in the program. The average age of founders in Y Combinator’s 2025 summer group dropped to 24, a decrease from 30 in 2022.

These founders are leveraging AI to accelerate development processes. Some shared with Business Insider that they needed to present Demo Day with increased customer bases and more defined potential for generating revenue.

Y Combinator reports that their cohorts are experiencing weekly revenue growth rates of about 10%, a figure that has remained stable over the prior six groups.

Below, we offer a glimpse into the pitch presentations from Y Combinator in 2025—offering insight into how new founders are approaching the market in a period when AI is expected to transform industry standards, and the bar for youthful entrepreneurs is quickly rising.