# YCLead AI — Y Combinator Startups & Founder Outreach Scraper (`automation_studio/yc-startup-founder-scraper`) Actor

Scrapes 6,200+ Y Combinator startups directly via public Algolia search. Extract company profiles, pitch, batch, funding status, direct founder LinkedIn/Twitter handles, and hiring jobs. Zero browser overhead, blazing fast.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/automation\_studio/yc-startup-founder-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [Automation Studio](https://apify.com/automation_studio) (community)
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $3.00 / 1,000 enriched yc startup & founder leads

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.
Actors are written with capital "A".

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.
The best way to integrate Actors is as follows.

- **AI agents and MCP clients** — the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md) at `https://mcp.apify.com` (remote, streamable HTTP, OAuth on first use).
- **Agentic workflows and local Actor development** — [Agent Skills](https://apify.com/.well-known/agent-skills/index.json) with the [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): `npm install -g apify-cli`, then `apify login`.
- **JavaScript/TypeScript projects** — the official [JS/TS client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): `npm install apify-client`.
- **Python projects** — the official [Python client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): `pip install apify-client`.
- **Any other language** — the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md).

For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below.

For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt).

# README

## 🚀 YCLead AI — Y Combinator Startups & Founder Outreach Scraper

> **The definitive lead intelligence scraper for Y Combinator startups.** Extract over 6,200+ YC companies directly through official Algolia search index endpoints with direct founder LinkedIn profiles, Twitter/X handles, team sizes, locations, and hiring roles.

***

#### 💼 The Business Opportunity: Why Scrape YC Startups?

Every Y Combinator startup receives **$500,000+ in fresh seed capital** upon joining a batch. The second a batch is announced, these founders are:

- **Buying B2B SaaS & Dev Tools**: Cloud infrastructure, APIs, CRM, logging, security, analytics.
- **Hiring Fast**: Sourcing engineering, product, and design leads to scale quickly.
- **Contracting Agencies**: Retaining UI/UX designers, growth marketing agencies, legal counsel, and recruiters.

***

#### ⚡ Technical Superiority

- **Zero Browser Overhead**: Hits YC's production Algolia index directly. Scrapes 100+ startups in ~3 seconds.
- **100% Authentic Live Data**: Direct platform data from Y Combinator. Zero synthetic or fake fallbacks.
- **Deep Founder Intelligence**: Automatically resolves founder full names, roles, direct LinkedIn profiles, and Twitter/X handles.
- **Open Roles & Jobs**: Identifies companies actively hiring and extracts open positions.

***

#### ⚙️ Input Parameters

| Parameter | Type | Default | Description |
| :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- |
| `batch` | `select` | `ALL` | Filter by batch (`Winter 2026`, `Summer 2026`, `Summer 2024`, `Winter 2024`, etc.). |
| `status` | `select` | `Active` | Filter by operational status (`Active`, `Public`, `Acquired`, `Inactive`). |
| `industry` | `select` | `ALL` | Filter by vertical (`B2B`, `Fintech`, `Healthcare`, `Artificial Intelligence`, etc.). |
| `is_hiring_only`| `boolean` | `false` | Only return companies actively hiring. |
| `search_query` | `string` | `""` | Search by keywords (e.g. `agent`, `workflow`, `security`). |
| `enrich_founders`| `boolean` | `true` | Extract founder LinkedIn/Twitter profiles and active job postings. |
| `max_results` | `integer` | `30` | Maximum companies to extract (up to 5,000). |

***

#### 📊 Dataset Output Fields

- `companyName`: Official legal/brand name
- `batch`: YC cohort (e.g., `Winter 2026`, `Summer 2024`)
- `status`: Current status (`Active`, `Public`, `Acquired`)
- `oneLiner`: Official one-line pitch
- `website`: Company homepage URL
- `teamSize`: Current team headcount
- `location`: Headquarters city & country
- `industry` / `subindustry`: Target industry category
- `founders`: Array of founder profiles with names, titles, and bios
- `founderLinkedIns`: Direct founder LinkedIn URLs
- `founderTwitters`: Direct founder Twitter/X handles
- `isHiring`: Boolean indicator if currently hiring
- `openJobs`: List of open job positions with titles and locations
- `companyLinkedIn`, `companyTwitter`, `companyGithub`, `companyCrunchbase`: Official social handles
- `ycUrl`: Direct Y Combinator directory profile page
- `isAuthenticLive`: Verified authentic platform flag

***

#### 💰 Transparent Pay-Per-Event Pricing

- **Actor Start**: $0.001
- **Per Enriched YC Startup**: $0.003
- *No hidden fees. 98% cheaper than competitors.*

# Actor input Schema

## `batch` (type: `string`):

Select a specific Y Combinator cohort (e.g. Winter 2026, Summer 2026, Summer 2024, or ALL).

## `status` (type: `string`):

Filter by operational status.

## `industry` (type: `string`):

Filter by target vertical.

## `is_hiring_only` (type: `boolean`):

Only return companies that are currently hiring team members.

## `search_query` (type: `string`):

Search by product keyword, technology, or niche (e.g., 'agent', 'workflow', 'developer', 'energy').

## `enrich_founders` (type: `boolean`):

Deep crawl company profile pages to extract founder names, titles, direct LinkedIn URLs, Twitter handles, and active job postings.

## `max_results` (type: `integer`):

Maximum number of startup records to harvest.

## `proxyConfiguration` (type: `object`):

Apify Proxy ensures reliable extraction at massive scale.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "batch": "ALL",
  "status": "Active",
  "industry": "ALL",
  "is_hiring_only": false,
  "enrich_founders": true,
  "max_results": 30,
  "proxyConfiguration": {
    "useApifyProxy": false
  }
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `dataset` (type: `string`):

Dataset containing verified YC company profiles, founder contact details, socials, and hiring opportunities.

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("automation_studio/yc-startup-founder-scraper").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("automation_studio/yc-startup-founder-scraper").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{}' |
apify call automation_studio/yc-startup-founder-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,automation_studio/yc-startup-founder-scraper"
        }
    }
}
```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/rWELjRPadR7zfVnjV/builds/nvUtgG42gZWzXVja6/openapi.json