Y Combinator companies are using AI to do the work of 20 people with teams of 4. Here's how any business can follow the same playbook — no engineers required.
Gary Tan, president of Y Combinator, recently made a bold claim: the best startups in YC's current batch aren't just using AI — they're replacing entire departments with it.
He calls them "20X companies" — startups where a team of 4-5 people produces the output of a company 20 times their size. Not by working harder. By deploying AI agents across every function of the business.
The examples are striking. GigaML built an AI sales agent that closed DoorDash — with 4-5 engineers. Legion Health grew 4x without hiring a single new person. Phase Shift runs with 12 people doing what would normally require hundreds.
But here's the catch: these are elite YC startups with world-class engineering teams. What about the other 33 million small businesses in America?
Dooza is built on OpenClaw — the same open-source AI agent framework powering YC startups — and packages it into ready-to-deploy AI employees for any business. No engineering team. No YC backing required. Six AI employees. $29/month.
In Gary Tan's words, a 20X company is one where "every single function in the company is being automated with AI." Not just customer support. Not just marketing. Everything.
The concept is simple: instead of hiring a person for every role, you deploy an AI agent. The result? A team of 5 can compete with — and beat — companies with 100+ employees.
"Every single function in the company is being automated with AI. Sales, marketing, support, legal, HR — all of it. These companies are doing the output of 20 companies their size."
— Gary Tan, President of Y Combinator
engineers at GigaML closing enterprise deals
growth at Legion Health — zero new hires
people at Phase Shift doing the work of hundreds
These aren't hypotheticals. These are real companies from Y Combinator's portfolio, referenced in Gary Tan's talk, that are proving the 20X model works.
A team of 4-5 engineers built "Atlas," an AI sales agent that autonomously handles outbound sales. The result? They closed DoorDash as a customer — the kind of enterprise deal that normally requires a 20+ person sales team.
A mental health company that grew 4x without hiring a single new person. Their secret: one person per department, each augmented by AI agents that handle the operational load. The human provides judgment; the AI handles volume.
Running with just 12 people, Phase Shift builds custom AI agents for each employee's specific role. Every team member has AI handling their repetitive tasks, letting them focus on high-value work. The result: they avoided hiring entire teams that their competitors needed.
The 20X playbook sounds incredible. But there's a massive gap between hearing about it and actually doing it.
GigaML's team has PhDs in machine learning. Legion Health has YC funding and mentorship. Phase Shift has engineers who can build custom AI agents from scratch.
Most businesses? They have a founder who's already wearing 6 hats and a tech stack that starts and ends with Gmail and Canva.
This is the gap Dooza was built to close.
Dooza takes OpenClaw — the same AI agent framework YC companies use — and wraps it in a managed platform any business can use. No YC deal required.
Dooza is built on OpenClaw — the open-source AI agent framework — and uses it to power pre-built AI employees that any business can deploy. No custom engineering. No months of R&D. Here's how Dooza's AI employees map to the exact strategies YC companies are using:
AI Email Manager
Reads, prioritizes, responds, and follows up on email — autonomously.
Legion Health's 1-person departments? Eva is your email department.
AI Social Media Manager
Creates content, posts on schedule, and monitors engagement across platforms.
Phase Shift's custom agents per role? Somi is your social media agent.
AI Receptionist
Answers every call, qualifies leads, and books appointments — 24/7.
85% of callers won't leave voicemail. Rachel captures them all.
AI Lead Generator
Finds prospects, sends personalized outreach, and nurtures leads through your pipeline.
GigaML built Atlas for sales. Dooza gives you Stan.
AI SEO Specialist
Writes optimized content, manages Google Business Profile, monitors rankings.
120% increase in organic traffic — without hiring an SEO team.
AI Legal Assistant
Handles compliance, reviews contracts, and monitors regulatory changes.
Every 20X company automates legal. Linda does it for you.
6 AI employees. $29/month. No engineers required.
The same automation YC companies spend months building — ready in 30 minutes.
In 30 minutes, our team learns your business, identifies which AI employees you need, and configures them to match your brand voice and workflows.
Eva starts managing email. Somi begins posting to social media. Rachel answers calls. Stan generates leads. Seomi writes SEO content. Linda handles compliance. All working 24/7.
Track performance through your dashboard. Adjust instructions as needed. Add more AI employees as your business grows — all at the same flat rate.
OpenClaw is the open-source AI agent framework that powers many YC startups. Dooza uses OpenClaw as its foundation and adds the layers businesses actually need: multi-tenancy, security, cron scheduling, billing, and a managed UI. Think of OpenClaw as the engine — Dooza is the car you can drive without being a mechanic.
You don't need to transform overnight. Here's a practical roadmap to building your 20X business:
List every task in your business. How many hours does each take? Which ones are repetitive? Which don't require human judgment?
Start with your biggest bottleneck. For most businesses, that's email (Eva) or missed calls (Rachel). Book your free onboarding call and go live.
Track hours saved, leads captured, and response times. Most businesses see 15-25 hours/week back immediately. Use those hours on high-value work.
Activate more AI employees. Add Somi for social media. Deploy Stan for lead generation. Turn on Seomi for SEO. Go from 1 AI employee to a full 20X operation.
Stop competing with one hand tied behind your back. Get the same AI superpowers YC companies use — in 30 minutes, for $29/month.
A 20X company is a term coined by Y Combinator president Gary Tan to describe startups that use AI to automate every internal function — not just one. Instead of hiring large teams, 20X companies use AI agents to handle sales, marketing, support, legal, and operations, allowing tiny teams of 4-12 people to produce the output of companies 20 times their size.
By deploying AI employees across every operational function — email, social media, phone calls, lead generation, SEO, and legal compliance. Platforms like Dooza give small businesses the same AI superpowers that elite YC startups build with engineering teams, but without needing any technical skills. Six AI employees cost $29/month.
OpenClaw is the open-source AI agent framework that many YC startups build on. Dooza uses OpenClaw as its foundation and adds the managed infrastructure businesses need — multi-tenancy, security, cron scheduling, billing, and a dashboard UI. You get enterprise-grade AI employees powered by the same technology YC companies use, without needing to build or maintain anything yourself.
Not at all. Dooza is designed for non-technical business owners. You book a free 30-minute onboarding call, and our concierge team configures your AI employees to match your business, brand voice, and workflows. They start working immediately.
A human virtual assistant costs $1,000-2,600/month and works limited hours. Dooza's AI employees work 24/7, handle six different job functions simultaneously, never take PTO, and cost $29/month total. They handle the repetitive 80% of work so humans can focus on the 20% requiring judgment and creativity.
You don't need YC. You don't need engineers. You need Dooza.
Built on OpenClaw. 6 AI employees. $29/month. 24/7. The 20X playbook — for everyone.
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