yc

CLI for YC Startup School, a16z Speedrun, SPC, and startup program discovery — weekly updates, dashboard, applications, accelerator deadlines

lucasygu@lucasygu

Install

openclaw skills install @lucasygu/yc

YC CLI — YC Startup School, a16z Speedrun, SPC & Startup Discovery

CLI tool for managing your YC Startup School journey, submitting a16z Speedrun and SPC applications, and discovering 24+ accelerators, fellowships, and incubators — all from the terminal.

Prerequisites

Node.js 22+
For YC commands: Logged into startupschool.org in Chrome, macOS
For Speedrun commands: No auth required (public API)
For SPC commands: Chrome browser (for form auto-fill via Chrome automation)

Quick Reference

bash

# YC Startup School
yc whoami                    # Test connection, show user info
yc dashboard                 # Show streak, curriculum, weekly status
yc updates                   # List all weekly updates
yc show <id>                 # Show a single update in detail
yc new                       # Submit new weekly update (interactive)
yc new --metric 5 --morale 7 --talked-to 3   # Non-interactive

# a16z Speedrun
yc speedrun template         # Generate JSON template
yc speedrun apply            # Interactive application
yc speedrun apply --from-json app.json   # Submit from JSON file
yc speedrun apply --from-json app.json --dry-run  # Validate without submitting
yc speedrun upload-deck deck.pdf   # Upload pitch deck

# South Park Commons
yc spc info                  # Show form URLs and program details
yc spc template              # Generate JSON template (fellowship)
yc spc template --type membership  # Template for community membership
yc spc apply                 # Interactive application
yc spc apply --from-json app.json  # Fill from JSON file
yc spc apply --from-json app.json --dry-run --headed  # Preview
yc spc open                  # Open form in browser

# Discover Programs
yc discover                  # Overview — deadlines + rolling programs
yc discover list             # Browse all 24+ programs
yc discover list --type fellowship   # Filter by type
yc discover list --stage pre-seed    # Filter by stage
yc discover deadlines        # Upcoming deadlines sorted by date
yc discover show yc          # Full details for a program
yc discover search "deep tech"       # Search by name/focus/description
yc discover open yc          # Open application page in browser

YC Startup School Commands

`yc whoami`

Test your connection and display user info (name, track, slug).

`yc dashboard`

Show your Startup School dashboard:

Current streak (consecutive weeks of updates)
Curriculum progress (completed/required)
Next curriculum item
Recent weekly update status (submitted/missing)

`yc updates`

List all your weekly updates with metric values, morale scores, and highlights.

`yc show <id>`

Display a single update in full detail including goals and their completion status.

`yc new`

Submit a new weekly update. Runs in interactive mode by default (prompts for each field).

Interactive mode:

bash

yc new
# Prompts for: metric value, morale, users talked to, changes, blockers, goals

Flag mode (for automation):

bash

yc new \
  --metric 10 \
  --morale 8 \
  --talked-to 5 \
  --change "Shipped MVP to first 10 users" \
  --blocker "Payment integration delayed" \
  --learned "Users want simpler onboarding" \
  --goal "Launch public beta" \
  --goal "Set up analytics"

a16z Speedrun Commands

`yc speedrun template`

Generate a JSON template for a Speedrun application. Save it, fill in your details, then submit with --from-json.

`yc speedrun apply`

Submit a Speedrun application. Two modes:

Interactive mode (prompts for all fields):

bash

yc speedrun apply

From JSON file (for automation / repeat submissions):

bash

# Generate template, edit it, submit
yc speedrun template > my-app.json
# ... edit my-app.json with your details ...
yc speedrun apply --from-json my-app.json

# Dry run first to validate
yc speedrun apply --from-json my-app.json --dry-run

`yc speedrun upload-deck <file>`

Upload a pitch deck PDF and get the GCS URL to include in your application.

bash

yc speedrun upload-deck pitch.pdf

Speedrun Categories

text

B2B / Enterprise Applications
Consumer Applications
Deep Tech
Gaming / Entertainment Studio
Infrastructure / Dev Tools
Healthcare
GovTech
Web3
Other

Global Options

YC Startup School commands support:

--cookie-source <browser> — Browser to read cookies from (chrome, safari, firefox). Default: chrome
--chrome-profile <name> — Specific Chrome profile directory name
--json — Output raw JSON (for scripting)

South Park Commons Commands

SPC uses Airtable Interface forms. The CLI fills and submits via Playwright (headless Chromium).

`yc spc info`

Show available SPC programs and their Airtable form URLs.

`yc spc template`

Generate a JSON template for an SPC application.

bash

yc spc template                    # Founder Fellowship (default)
yc spc template --type membership  # Community Membership

`yc spc apply`

Fill and submit an SPC application via Playwright (headless browser).

bash

yc spc apply                                          # Interactive
yc spc apply --from-json my-app.json                  # From JSON file
yc spc apply --from-json my-app.json --dry-run        # Fill but don't submit
yc spc apply --from-json my-app.json --headed         # Show browser window
yc spc apply --from-json my-app.json --dry-run --headed  # Visual review

`yc spc open`

Open the SPC application form in your default browser.

bash

yc spc open                    # Founder Fellowship
yc spc open --type membership  # Community Membership

SPC Programs

Program	Funding	Duration
Founder Fellowship	$400K for 7% + $600K follow-on	Cohort-based (Spring/Fall)
Community Membership	No funding	Up to 6 months

Discover Commands

Browse 24+ curated accelerators, fellowships, and incubators with deadlines, terms, and application links.

`yc discover`

Overview of programs with open/upcoming deadlines plus rolling programs. Default command.

`yc discover list`

Browse all programs in a table format. Filter with options:

--type <type> — Filter: accelerator, fellowship, incubator, community
--stage <stage> — Filter: pre-idea, pre-seed, seed
--focus <focus> — Filter by focus area: ai, deep-tech, fintech, etc.
--tier <tier> — Filter: 1 (elite), 2 (major), 3 (notable)
--json — Output as JSON

`yc discover deadlines`

All upcoming deadlines sorted by closing date.

`yc discover show <slug>`

Full details for a specific program — investment terms, equity, deadlines, focus areas, application URL.

`yc discover search <query>`

Search programs by name, focus area, or description.

`yc discover open <slug>`

Open a program's application page in the default browser.

Workflows

Weekly Update Routine

bash

yc dashboard            # Check status
yc new                  # Submit if needed
yc updates              # Verify

Speedrun Application via Claude Code

When the user asks to apply to a16z Speedrun, generate a JSON template, fill it with their info, and submit:

bash

yc speedrun template > /tmp/speedrun-app.json
# ... Claude fills in the JSON ...
yc speedrun apply --from-json /tmp/speedrun-app.json --dry-run  # Validate first
yc speedrun apply --from-json /tmp/speedrun-app.json            # Submit

SPC Application via Claude Code

bash

yc spc template > /tmp/spc-app.json                        # Generate template
# ... Claude fills in the JSON ...
yc spc apply --from-json /tmp/spc-app.json --dry-run --headed  # Preview in browser
yc spc apply --from-json /tmp/spc-app.json                     # Submit

Program Discovery

bash

yc discover                         # What's open right now?
yc discover list --type fellowship  # Browse fellowships
yc discover show yc                 # Deep dive on YC
yc discover open yc                 # Open YC application

Authentication

YC Startup School: Extracts session cookies from Chrome — log in at startupschool.org first.
a16z Speedrun: No authentication needed. The API is public.
South Park Commons: No auth needed. Uses Playwright (headless Chromium) to fill Airtable forms.