Accepted applicants articulated their idea & company better than non-accepted applicatns as per YC scale. If you aren't accepted by YC, shouldn't it be same as getting rejected from a VC?. In most cases VCs are investing in companies that are rejected by other VCs. How one perceives opportunities for an idea/investment, is very subjective. YC and YC Reject will not be same even though offer is similar ($12,000-20,000 for about 6% of the company).