Starting a tech company is so cheap that funding should never be the bottleneck. If your idea is too expensive to start with a laptop and cheap hosting, think of another idea.
Web software at that. HNot to pile on (I saw the comment below about sloppy wording), but there are a lot of other business models besides 'online service that does one thing really well'. If you want to create the next Photoshop or Excel, for example, you need to deliver a lot of functionality right from the get-go, which will take longer to build.
This is true for some startup ideas, but not others. By saying "think of another idea" you eliminate many useful types of startups.
I see your point, which is that you don't need a fancy office and an HR staff to get a company off the ground, but that doesn't mean every company can get to profitability on a laptop and cheap hosting.
You're only looking the smallest of expenses. It also depends on how far along you already are with the company. For any non-trivial idea that you're trying to implement from scratch, (especially if you're doing all the work yourself) you're going to want to be able to work on it full time, which means you have living expenses. Depending on where you live, those can be quite high. You might need to pay for training materials as well. There are also software licenses that might be required. I'm sure people with more experience can think of other costs. Hell, if you're just talking about iOS development then you might have to pay for devices, the Apple developer program and a Mac. Not saying these are insurmountable but not as inconsequential as you seem to be implying.
If you need living expenses, save up. If you live somewhere too expensive, move. "If your idea is too expensive to start with a laptop and cheap hosting, think of another idea."
Sorry to be somewhat flip, but starting a tech company isn't complex, it's just difficult. These start-up costs are the easy part and if you can't solve them on your own, then a 10K infusion from the government isn't going to help you solve the actually difficult problems down the road.
Sorry to be somewhat flip, but starting a tech company isn't complex, it's just difficult.
I think you're over-generalizing here. There's a big difference between a "tech company" that's an online TODO list monetized with Google Adwords, and a "tech company" that's selling enterprise knowledge management software to Fortune 2000 companies.
These start-up costs are the easy part
For some classes of startups, that's probably true. I argue that it's not true for all of them.
and if you can't solve them on your own, then a 10K infusion from the government isn't going to help you solve the actually difficult problems down the road.
Money is money for a startup... I don't see how it matters where founders "self funding" money comes from... stored savings, or this program. If you're self-funding / bootstrapping, you're self-funding/bootstrapping, full-stop.
I have my own issues with this program, being a libertarian who believes that the proper roles of government should be very limited... but within the context of the system we have, I can see this being very beneficial to certain would-be entrepreneurs.
Suppose you're working on a product that is time sensitive. In other words, if you don't start full time on it three months ago, you'll be too late to market. Also suppose that you see this opportunity while you're a student. Finally, consider that skilled programmers tend to be concentrated in high cost of living areas. In that case, you never had the opportunity to save up and you probably need to be where the potential cofounders and employees are, so you've no choice but to look for funding.
I'll tell you what: since it's so easy, why don't you make a list of 100% guaranteed ways to make money on the internet. Lord knows I'd rather be in my own business than working for a huge corporation.
