<h2 id="8ca5" class="pw-subtitle-paragraph sd gs rn bg b se sf mp sg sh mt si sj sk sl sm sn so sp sq pv dv" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-top: 0.92em; margin-bottom: 24px; font-weight: 400; font-family: sohne, &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(107, 107, 107); line-height: 28px; font-size: 22px;">From saturated domains to untapped opportunities — the data every founder needs to see before choosing their market.</h2><div><p data-pm-slice="1 1 []"><span style="color: rgb(36, 36, 36); font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; font-size: 20px; letter-spacing: -0.003em;">I analyzed every single company in YC’s 2025 cohorts and found something shocking: the biggest opportunities aren’t where everyone’s looking.</span></p></div><div><p id="7870" class="pw-post-body-paragraph xg xh rn xi b se xj xk xl sg xm xn xo xp xq xr xs xt xu xv xw xx xy xz ya yb go bl" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-top: 2.14em; margin-bottom: -0.46em; color: rgb(36, 36, 36); word-break: break-word; line-height: 32px; letter-spacing: -0.003em; font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; font-size: 20px;">Most AI founders are building in markets with 90+ competitors. But I discovered entire billion-dollar industries with fewer than 3 AI startups total.</p><p id="1ded" class="pw-post-body-paragraph xg xh rn xi b se xj xk xl sg xm xn xo xp xq xr xs xt xu xv xw xx xy xz ya yb go bl" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-top: 2.14em; margin-bottom: -0.46em; color: rgb(36, 36, 36); word-break: break-word; line-height: 32px; letter-spacing: -0.003em; font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; font-size: 20px;">With this analysis, I wanted to understand:</p><ul class="" style="box-sizing: inherit; list-style: none none; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8); font-family: medium-content-sans-serif-font, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, &quot;Segoe UI&quot;, Roboto, Oxygen, Ubuntu, Cantarell, &quot;Open Sans&quot;, &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;, sans-serif;"><li id="87c5" class="xg xh rn xi b se xj xk xl sg xm xn xo xp xq xr xs xt xu xv xw xx xy xz ya yb yc yd ye bl" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: rgb(36, 36, 36); line-height: 32px; letter-spacing: -0.003em; font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; margin-bottom: -0.46em; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 30px; font-size: 20px; margin-top: 2.14em;"><span class="xi mn" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-weight: 700;">what problems people are solving,</span></li><li id="1bdb" class="xg xh rn xi b se yf xk xl sg yg xn xo xp yh xr xs xt yi xv xw xx yj xz ya yb yc yd ye bl" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: rgb(36, 36, 36); line-height: 32px; letter-spacing: -0.003em; font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; margin-bottom: -0.46em; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 30px; font-size: 20px; margin-top: 1.14em;"><span class="xi mn" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-weight: 700;">what type of AI agents are being built,</span></li><li id="165c" class="xg xh rn xi b se yf xk xl sg yg xn xo xp yh xr xs xt yi xv xw xx yj xz ya yb yc yd ye bl" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: rgb(36, 36, 36); line-height: 32px; letter-spacing: -0.003em; font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; margin-bottom: -0.46em; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 30px; font-size: 20px; margin-top: 1.14em;"><span class="xi mn" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-weight: 700;">which industries are the most common and get easily accepted in YC,</span></li><li id="1a16" class="xg xh rn xi b se yf xk xl sg yg xn xo xp yh xr xs xt yi xv xw xx yj xz ya yb yc yd ye bl" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: rgb(36, 36, 36); line-height: 32px; letter-spacing: -0.003em; font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; margin-bottom: -0.46em; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 30px; font-size: 20px; margin-top: 1.14em;"><span class="xi mn" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-weight: 700;">which industries are oversaturated,</span></li><li id="b8ff" class="xg xh rn xi b se yf xk xl sg yg xn xo xp yh xr xs xt yi xv xw xx yj xz ya yb yc yd ye bl" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: rgb(36, 36, 36); line-height: 32px; letter-spacing: -0.003em; font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; margin-bottom: -0.46em; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 30px; font-size: 20px; margin-top: 1.14em;"><span class="xi mn" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-weight: 700;">gaps(opportunities) are worth exploring,</span></li><li id="a67d" class="xg xh rn xi b se yf xk xl sg yg xn xo xp yh xr xs xt yi xv xw xx yj xz ya yb yc yd ye bl" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: rgb(36, 36, 36); line-height: 32px; letter-spacing: -0.003em; font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; margin-bottom: -0.46em; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 30px; font-size: 20px; margin-top: 1.14em;"><span class="xi mn" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-weight: 700;">latest tech people are developing,</span></li><li id="6fbe" class="xg xh rn xi b se yf xk xl sg yg xn xo xp yh xr xs xt yi xv xw xx yj xz ya yb yc yd ye bl" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: rgb(36, 36, 36); line-height: 32px; letter-spacing: -0.003em; font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; margin-bottom: -0.46em; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 30px; font-size: 20px; margin-top: 1.14em;"><span class="xi mn" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-weight: 700;">positioning strategies used by winners,</span></li><li id="98dc" class="xg xh rn xi b se yf xk xl sg yg xn xo xp yh xr xs xt yi xv xw xx yj xz ya yb yc yd ye bl" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: rgb(36, 36, 36); line-height: 32px; letter-spacing: -0.003em; font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; margin-bottom: -0.46em; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 30px; font-size: 20px; margin-top: 1.14em;"><span class="xi mn" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-weight: 700;">how to validate idea looking at the selected companies.</span></li></ul><p id="148d" class="pw-post-body-paragraph xg xh rn xi b se xj xk xl sg xm xn xo xp xq xr xs xt xu xv xw xx xy xz ya yb go bl" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-top: 2.14em; margin-bottom: -0.46em; color: rgb(36, 36, 36); word-break: break-word; line-height: 32px; letter-spacing: -0.003em; font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; font-size: 20px;">While&nbsp;<span class="xi mn" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-weight: 700;">88% of founders</span>&nbsp;are building&nbsp;<span class="xi mn" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-weight: 700;">AI companies</span>, most are fighting brutal competition in oversaturated markets.</p><p id="337c" class="pw-post-body-paragraph xg xh rn xi b se xj xk xl sg xm xn xo xp xq xr xs xt xu xv xw xx xy xz ya yb go bl" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-top: 2.14em; margin-bottom: -0.46em; color: rgb(36, 36, 36); word-break: break-word; line-height: 32px; letter-spacing: -0.003em; font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; font-size: 20px;">Developer tools alone attracted 94 companies — that’s one new competitor every 4 days.</p><p id="e133" class="pw-post-body-paragraph xg xh rn xi b se xj xk xl sg xm xn xo xp xq xr xs xt xu xv xw xx xy xz ya yb go bl" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-top: 2.14em; margin-bottom: -0.46em; color: rgb(36, 36, 36); word-break: break-word; line-height: 32px; letter-spacing: -0.003em; font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; font-size: 20px;">But here’s what’s shocking: the biggest opportunities aren’t where the crowds are.</p><p id="90ab" class="pw-post-body-paragraph xg xh rn xi b se xj xk xl sg xm xn xo xp xq xr xs xt xu xv xw xx xy xz ya yb go bl" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-top: 2.14em; margin-bottom: -0.46em; color: rgb(36, 36, 36); word-break: break-word; line-height: 32px; letter-spacing: -0.003em; font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; font-size: 20px;">We found entire billion-dollar industries with almost zero AI competition.</p><ul class="" style="box-sizing: inherit; list-style: none none; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8); font-family: medium-content-sans-serif-font, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, &quot;Segoe UI&quot;, Roboto, Oxygen, Ubuntu, Cantarell, &quot;Open Sans&quot;, &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;, sans-serif;"><li id="6a53" class="xg xh rn xi b se xj xk xl sg xm xn xo xp xq xr xs xt xu xv xw xx xy xz ya yb yc yd ye bl" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: rgb(36, 36, 36); line-height: 32px; letter-spacing: -0.003em; font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; margin-bottom: -0.46em; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 30px; font-size: 20px; margin-top: 2.14em;">Government tech has 600+ billion in spending but only 1 YC company.</li><li id="fb54" class="xg xh rn xi b se yf xk xl sg yg xn xo xp yh xr xs xt yi xv xw xx yj xz ya yb yc yd ye bl" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: rgb(36, 36, 36); line-height: 32px; letter-spacing: -0.003em; font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; margin-bottom: -0.46em; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 30px; font-size: 20px; margin-top: 1.14em;">Insurance processes 1.4 trillion annually with virtually no AI startups.</li><li id="e865" class="xg xh rn xi b se yf xk xl sg yg xn xo xp yh xr xs xt yi xv xw xx yj xz ya yb yc yd ye bl" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: rgb(36, 36, 36); line-height: 32px; letter-spacing: -0.003em; font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; margin-bottom: -0.46em; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 30px; font-size: 20px; margin-top: 1.14em;">Construction wastes 2 trillion yearly on delays that AI could easily prevent.</li></ul><p id="c702" class="pw-post-body-paragraph xg xh rn xi b se xj xk xl sg xm xn xo xp xq xr xs xt xu xv xw xx xy xz ya yb go bl" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-top: 2.14em; margin-bottom: -0.46em; color: rgb(36, 36, 36); word-break: break-word; line-height: 32px; letter-spacing: -0.003em; font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; font-size: 20px;">Companies succeeding in crowded markets aren’t winning with better algorithms. They’re winning by understanding one industry deeply instead of trying to solve everything for everyone.</p><p id="4ea5" class="pw-post-body-paragraph xg xh rn xi b se xj xk xl sg xm xn xo xp xq xr xs xt xu xv xw xx xy xz ya yb go bl" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-top: 2.14em; margin-bottom: -0.46em; color: rgb(36, 36, 36); word-break: break-word; line-height: 32px; letter-spacing: -0.003em; font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; font-size: 20px;">This complete analysis shows you exactly which markets are oversaturated, which are wide open, and how 16 companies positioned themselves to dominate despite fierce competition.</p><p id="ed04" class="pw-post-body-paragraph xg xh rn xi b se xj xk xl sg xm xn xo xp xq xr xs xt xu xv xw xx xy xz ya yb go bl" data-selectable-paragraph="" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-top: 2.14em; margin-bottom: -0.46em; color: rgb(36, 36, 36); word-break: break-word; line-height: 32px; letter-spacing: -0.003em; font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; font-size: 20px;">If you’re building an AI company, you’ll find this analysis super insightful.</p></div>

Inside Y Combinator: Analysis of 400+ Startups and Market Trends

<span style="color: rgb(36, 36, 36); font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; font-size: 20px; letter-spacing: -0.06px;">Almost 90% of the companies are building with AI which clearly tells you that you’ve got to be solving problems with AI.</span><div><span style="color: rgb(36, 36, 36); font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; font-size: 20px; letter-spacing: -0.06px;"><br></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(36, 36, 36); font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; font-size: 20px; letter-spacing: -0.06px;">YC is focusing more on AI apps that are NOT assistants rather are building AI systems that completely replace expensive job functions like legal analysis, accounting, or customer service</span><span style="color: rgb(36, 36, 36); font-family: source-serif-pro, Georgia, Cambria, &quot;Times New Roman&quot;, Times, serif; font-size: 20px; letter-spacing: -0.06px;"></span></div>