Oct 22, 2025
Mixpanel is a dominant force in product analytics. If you've ever wondered how product teams really know what you're doing inside an app, the answer is often Mixpanel. But before it was a multi-billion dollar company, Mixpanel was just an idea, articulated in a Y Combinator application. That application, for the Summer 2009 batch, was a critical moment that set the company on its path.
The core idea wasn't some far-fetched dream. It was a simple, powerful insight: companies were flying blind, tracking page views instead of user actions. This application shows how a clear problem and a compelling solution can win over the world's most prestigious startup accelerator.
The YC Application
Company
If you have a demo, what's the url? Demo can be anything that shows us how the product works. Usually that's a video or screen recording.
What is your company going to make? Please describe your product and what it does or will do.
Mixpanel is a business intelligence service that helps improve online companies by tracking user interactions, engagement, and optimization avenues instead of just tracking page views.
Founders
Please tell us about an interesting project, preferably outside of class or work, that two or more of you created together. Include urls if possible.
Recently we’ve been working on a music search and on-demand streaming site called SongRaptor (http://songraptor.com). We built it to use as a case study for Mixpanel; we use Mixpanel for all the metrics and we’ve been making design decisions based on this data. Eventually we hope to show the effect that Mixpanel metrics can have on the growth of a site.
We haven’t gotten much farther than the most basic functionality yet. We’ve been spending most of our time on Mixpanel while our other friends continue development.
Please tell us in one or two sentences about something impressive that each founder has built or achieved.
Suhail participated in OpenSocial while it was bleeding edge, developed an application that got over 1 MM installs, and an opensource javascript framework used by recognized application companies such as Serious Business w/ over 300+ downloads.
Tim scored in the top 1% for the PSAT/SAT and became a National Merit Scholar. ASU offered him a full scholarship, and he followed the money.
Please tell us about the time you most successfully hacked some (non-computer) system to your advantage.
Last summer I managed to get an internship at Slide, but a month after accepting their offer I decided I wanted more hourly pay. Before I even started at Slide, I was able to convince the recruiter that I had numerous offers still outstanding from companies like RockYou and Zynga and had in-depth OpenSocial experience that was deserving of a $10/hr raise. Luckily, she was able to get it and pay was very good that summer.
How long have the founders known one another and how did you meet? Have any of the founders not met in person?
I’ve known Tim for just over a year. We were in the same discrete math class, and I noticed that there were quite a few smart CS types and thought that we should get something going. After class one day I introduced myself to them and suggested we could do a startup. Then everyone expressed interest, but only Tim followed up. Since then we’ve been hanging out and talking about startups.
Tim went to Singapore to study last semester, and when he got back I pitched Mixpanel to him. He was interested and I wanted a cofounder so I brought him on board.
If we fund you, which of the founders will commit to working exclusively (no school, no other jobs) on this project for the next year?
Both Tim and I are committed to working exclusively for the next year with some path of success in sight.
Do any founders have other commitments between X and Y inclusive?
We have no commitments between that period and are free to start mid May.
Do any founders have commitments in the future (e.g. finishing college, going to grad school), and if so what?
We’ve invested three years into college so far, but we are willing to take a leave of absence to pursue this startup. We’re entering a market where we can be a serious competitor and we have to move now.
Progress
When will you have a prototype or beta?
We currently already have a alpha build with a variety of clients saying they will or have integrated including some YCombinator companies: Posterous, TicketStumbler, and HeyZap. A beta will likely be finished either before summer starts or soon during. Our alpha version is already earning revenue at a profit and we are working on stream-lining this process.
Idea
What's new about what you're making? What substitutes do people resort to because it doesn't exist yet (or they don't know about it)?
Mixpanel is going to bring the competitive advantage data-driven companies like Facebook and Slide have to everyone. Instead of just tracking page views and referrals, Mixpanel will let people learn about their customers by tracking interactions and engagement.We’re also going to help them identify and track their conversion funnels — the paths visitors take to registrations, purchases or any other goal page designated by the company.
Today, companies have to spend their most scarce resources, time and money, to build out internal analytic systems specific to their application. These homebrew systems are less robust and insightful than the service we are offering.
Who are your competitors, and who might become competitors? Who do you fear most?
Our primary competitor is Google Analytics. Many of the inquiries we receive ask “How are you different from GA?” and a successful solution has been to explicitly say what we offer and how we are different from the beginning. We fear Google the most because of their market penetration and their engineering resources.
Aside from Google, there are a few other companies entering this market: nuconomy, KISSmetrics, Aster Data, and Gumtrail.
What do you understand about your business that other companies in it just don't get?
Working at Slide, known for being data-driven, inspired me to build Mixpanel. While at Slide, I got to work closely with Max Levchin on a specific product where he helped teach me how to truly build and iterate data-driven products from the start.
Mixpanel was conceived from the ground up with companies like Slide in mind as well as the problems people there had to face letting us offer a more compelling solution. We can really say, we’re building an analytics platform the way large data-driven companies expect it to be.
How do or will you make money? How much could you make?
Mixpanel’s business model is a subscription based freemium model. Based on the data logged and analyzed we can scale prices based solely on usage similar to that of Amazon S3.
Our idea is to target small under-served startups before they build out an internal system.During that period, we aim to help, consult, build case studies, and provide a free trial to augment our brand and reputation before targeting larger potential clients.
Equity
Have you incorporated, or formed any legal entity (like an LLC) yet?
No
Legal
Are any of the founders covered by noncompetes or intellectual property agreements that overlap with your project? If so, please explain.
No to both questions.
Who writes code, or does other technical work on your product? Was any of it done by a non-founder? Please explain.
All code written thus far is safe to use based on the licensing.
Others
If you had any other ideas you considered applying with, please list them. One may be something we've been waiting for. Often when we fund people it's to do something they list here and not in the main application.
We’re considering entering other areas of analytics and business intelligence such as Mobile and outsourced data processing through Hadoop.
After looking at your ideas page, we thought it was interesting that we might address #30: Startups for startups.
Please tell us something surprising or amusing that one of you has discovered.
Users have the tendency to defy your expectations all the time. If you don’t listen, you won’t survive.
General advice
Be as concise as possible. 1–2 sentences is best.
For any answers that require more than a couple sentences, the first sentence should act as a TL;DR.
Heavily optimize for clarity. Reviewers shouldn’t need to read a sentence twice, or look anything up to understand your answers.
Avoid marketing-speak and jargon.
Assume the reviewers have little-to-no domain knowledge.
Each answer should make sense on its own. Reviewers may not read every answer, and they may not read them in order.
Be honest. No need to exaggerate you answers, YC accepts companies of all stages and backgrounds.
Improving your company is a better use of your time than improving your YC application. Write your application, then get back to work.
Quick Takeaways
Clarity is King: The application is incredibly direct. There's no fluff. It gets straight to the point and explains the problem and solution in simple terms.
Show, Don't Just Tell: They had an alpha, a demo, and even a case study in the works (SongRaptor). This demonstrated serious commitment and progress.
Founder-Market Fit: Suhail's experience at Slide gave him a unique insight into the problem. This wasn't a random idea; it was born from direct experience.
Know Your Enemy: They clearly identified Google Analytics as their main competitor and had a ready answer for how they were different. This showed they understood the market.
Hustle is a Feature: The story about negotiating a higher salary demonstrates a key founder trait: the ability to "hack" systems and advocate for themselves.
A Clear Business Model: The freemium, usage-based model was simple to understand and demonstrated a clear path to revenue.
Commitment is Non-Negotiable: The founders were willing to take a leave of absence from college, showing they were all in.
The Bottom Line
This application isn't just a historical document. It's a practical guide. It shows that a deep understanding of a problem, combined with a clear and concise presentation, is a winning formula. You don't need to have everything figured out, but you do need to demonstrate a clear vision and the ability to execute.
Your next step is to take an honest look at your own application. Is it as clear as this one? Do you have evidence of progress? Do you have a unique insight into your market? Use this application as a benchmark to refine your own story.
FAQs
1. How important is it to have a demo before applying to YC?
It's extremely important. Having a demo, even a basic one, shows that you can build. It makes your idea tangible and proves you're not just talking about it.
2. What if I don't have impressive achievements like the Mixpanel founders?
Don't worry about it. The key is to show what you have done. It could be a side project, a club you started, or a problem you solved at a previous job. The goal is to demonstrate that you are a person who makes things happen.
3. Is it okay to admit that you're afraid of a competitor like Google?
Yes. It shows you're realistic and have thought about the challenges. The important part is to have a clear explanation of why you can still win.
4. How much progress do I need to have before applying?
There's no magic formula, but the more, the better. Having an alpha or beta version with some early users is a great signal. The key is to show you're not waiting for permission to start building.
5. What's the most important question on the YC application?
They are all important, but the question about what's new about what you're making and the substitutes people use is critical. This is where you prove you understand the problem you're solving and your unique approach to it.
