Michael Seibel
InvestorPartner Emeritus at Y Combinator
San Francisco, CA
Writes $150K checks
About
Michael Seibel spent more than 12 years at Y Combinator, serving as CEO of its accelerator and as a group partner who worked with over a thousand startups, before transitioning to partner emeritus in 2025 with an eye toward public-sector work. He co-founded Justin.tv, which became Twitch, and Socialcam, and became one of the most recognizable startup advisors of his generation through YC's videos and office hours.
Michael Seibel @mwseibel
@kvogt @justinkan @eshear 20 years ago: https://t.co/OBaePIWMrK
Jul 30, 2026 Β· β₯ 189
Michael Seibel @mwseibel
Some of the best men Iβve ever known - @kvogt @justinkan @eshear
Jul 30, 2026 Β· β₯ 75
Michael Seibel @mwseibel
Look at these old men :) JTV / Twitch 20 year founder reunion https://t.co/i5H5zuIhef
Jul 30, 2026 Β· β₯ 1432 Β· β 11
Invests in
AI & Machine LearningDeep TechDeveloper ToolsFintechHardwareSaaS
Beyond investing
- Founded
- Co-founded Justin.tv, which grew into Twitch and sold to Amazon for $970m in 2014. Co-founded Socialcam, which sold to Autodesk for $60m in 2012.
- Education
- Graduated from Yale University in 2005 with a bachelor's degree in political science.
- Boards
- Serves on the board of Reddit. Serves on the board of Dropbox. Serves on the board of Kalshi.
- Hobbies
- Spends much of his free time cooking, reading, traveling, and going for long drives. Runs CooksLarder.com featuring his favorite cooking ingredients and recipes. Runs JonathansApps.com featuring his favorite iOS apps for kids.
- Family
- Lives in San Francisco with his wife Sarah, son Jonathan, and daughter Jessica.
- More
- Co-produced the startup podcast 'Dalton + Michael' with Dalton Caldwell. Created the 'Life, Work, and Startups' podcast series of shorts with his brother Jason Seibel in 2021. Has lived and worked in the Bay Area since 2006.
From Michael's own website β common ground for a warm intro.
Experience
- Y CombinatorPartner Emerituscurrent2025 β present
- Y CombinatorPartner2014 β 2025
- Y CombinatorPart-time Partner2013 β 2014San Francisco
- SocialcamCEO2011 β 2014San Francisco, CA
- Justin.tvCEO2006 β 2011
- Mfume for US Senate 2006Finance Director2005 β 2006
Education
- Yale UniversityBA, Political Science2000 β 2005
Skills & more
+12 more
E-commerceOnline MarketingDigital StrategyWeb AnalyticsStrategic PartnershipsNew MediaWordPressSEOWeb DevelopmentMobile ApplicationsMobile DevicesCSSFrom Michael's professional profile.
Same school
Also attended Yale University493
+ 487 more
Shared employers
Also worked at Y Combinator66
+ 60 more
Investments
Investor
AgentnoonBellabeatBishop FoxBotcoBrexCaptain 401kClipboard HealthConcourseCruiseDripOSEasypostEquipment ShareFigmaGive CampusLuggMattermostMotionNashPanorama EducationPayFazzPaystackPine Park HealthPlayers LoungePromiseReach LabsReadyRetell AIRipplingScentbirdSimple AISoftmaxSquireSuperorderVitable HealthVoriWaveYhangry
Per the investor's own website.
Podcasts & interviews
featuring Michael SeibelY Combinator ex CEO Michael Seibel β What Makes the Top 10% f Founders Different?
Finance & Tech Career Advice
Y Combinator Head Michael Seibel: The ONE Mistake Killing Startups #yc #twitch
Summation with Auren Hoffman
How To Perfectly Pitch Your Seed Stage Startup With Y Combinator's Michael Seibel
SaaStr AI
Experience Interviewing With Michael Seibel of Y Combinator
Tyler Bryden