Paul Graham Steps Down as President of Y Combinator Sam Altman, previously a co-founder and CEO of the location-based social networking mobile application Loopt, will take the reins when Graham departs.

By Laura Entis

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Y Combinator, the prestigious seed accelerator that has spawned an impressive list of big-name tech companies (Dropbox, Reddit, Airbnb and Weebly, to name just a few) is getting a new president.

Paul Graham, who co-founded the accelerator, announced in a blog post that he is passing the reins to Sam Altman, a current Y Combinator partner.

In the post, Graham directly addressed his decision to step down. "YC needs to grow, and I'm not the best person to grow it," he wrote. "Sam is what YC needs at this stage in its evolution."

Related: At Startup Accelerators, Expect the Unexpected

Altman was one of the founders in the first batch of startups the accelerator funded back in 2005. (He co-founded the location-based social networking mobile application Loopt). In his post, Graham claimed he has been trying to recruit Altman for the job since 2012.

"He's one of those rare people who manage to be both fearsomely effective and yet fundamentally benevolent -- which, though few realize it, is an essential quality in early stage investing," he wrote. "Sam is one of the smartest people I know, and understands startups better than perhaps anyone I know, including myself. He's the one I go to when I want a second opinion about a hard problem."

Graham said he will continue to work with the accelerator as an advisor, and expects Y Combinator to continue to grow: "There will be a lot more startups in 10 years than there are now, and if YC is going to fund them, we'll have to grow proportionally bigger."

Related: Calling All Dreamers: Disney Is Launching a Startup Accelerator Program

Laura Entis is a reporter for Fortune.com's Venture section.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Buying / Investing in Business

Former Zillow Execs Target $1.3T Market

Co-ownership is creating big opportunities for entrepreneurs.

Business Ideas

70 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2025

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2025.

Life Hacks

Turn Downtime Into Personal Growth With Headway Premium

This $60 lifetime subscription to Headway Premium lets you learn in your spare time forever.

Starting a Business

I Had 'Too Much Experience' to Find a Job. So I Used Facebook to Start a Small Business That's Making About $500,000 a Year.

After Amber Starling moved to Manhattan, Kansas, a frustrating job search led to a life-changing business opportunity.

Side Hustle

She Started a Creative Side Hustle While Working 'Dead-End' Jobs — Then Grew It From $10,000 to Over $50,000 a Month: '[It] Became Magnetic'

Alyssa O'Toole, 35, juggled "mismatched uniforms and odd hours" to turn her passion into a business.

Business News

The U.S. Mint Announced It Will Stop Making Pennies. Here's How It Will Affect Businesses and Consumers.

Can you still pay with pennies? How will businesses make exact change? Here's what we know.