The shift in tone has been impossible to ignore for YC leadership. Partner Pete Koomen noted that the use of em dashes, particularly those formatted with spaces, spiked in mid-2025, aligning closely with the release of Anthropic’s Opus 4. While the term "delve" was initially flagged as a hallmark of ChatGPT-assisted writing, its actual prevalence in applications remained under 2%. The word "wedge," however, saw a dramatic rise, appearing in over 20% of submissions by the summer of 2026.
Internal perspectives on the trend remain divided. Current CEO Garry Tan admits to using AI for his own writing, describing the process as a "high-bandwidth conversation" rather than a replacement for thought. Conversely, cofounder Paul Graham views the influx of AI-penned emails as a breach of trust. He has publicly criticized the "hard-hitting journalistic style" common to LLM outputs, noting that it feels like being lied to. Despite this friction, Y Combinator continues to fund startups dedicated to the very tools currently reshaping its own intake process.
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