Why Paul Graham's 'How to Earn a Billion Dollars' Blew Up to 1,329 HN Comments
On the morning of June 14, Paul Graham posted the transcript of his early-June Oxford Union talk, “How to Earn a Billion Dollars.” Hacker News had it at 478 points and 1,329 comments by evening; as of writing it’s 480+ points, 183 root comments, and 369 unique replies. Why does a talk on becoming a billionaire produce one of the longest threads in HN history? PG himself wouldn’t be surprised — he opens by saying the talk distills 21 years of watching YC’s 6,500 portfolio companies. But the 1,329 commenters are not buying what he’s selling. So what’s actually under the table? ...