From a "cold hard cash" standpoint, it's a really good idea.

For example: Africa is currently going through a mobile phone revolution. Want to see staggering growth numbers? Look at mobile banking in Nigeria and Kenya. Look at what Sproxil is doing to combat counterfeit prescriptions.

Hell, in lots of places mobile phone air time is becoming as important as local currencies. Think a lily-white Stanford graduate would see a market in top up cards? I bet you they wouldn't!

"Think a lily-white Stanford graduate would see a market in top up cards? I bet you they wouldn't!"

Maybe you don't realize but your comment is quite racist. So, you think by virtue of being black, every African-American somehow has an inherent understanding of African nations.

Here's a excerpt from Jumpa Lahiri's book The Namesake about similar sentiments for a second generation Indian-American man talking to friends of his white girlfriend about getting sick while visiting India:

  "But you must be lucky that way"
  "What do you mean?"
  "I mean, you must never get sick."

"Actually that's not true," he says, slightly annoyed... "We get sick all the time. We have to get shots before we go. My parents devote the better part of a suitcase to medicine."

"But you're Indian," Pamela says frowning, "I'd think the climate wouldn't affect yo, given your heritage."

"Pamela, Nick's American," Lydia says ... "He was born here."

> So, you think by virtue of being black, every African-American somehow has an inherent understanding of African nations.

I never mentioned African Americans in my comment. It seems that you're taking "black" to mean "African American", but that's not what my comment said. Nor the article, for that matter.

So what group do you use the word black to refer to? It is commonly used to refer to African-Americans in the US. Since YC's target is predominantly US applicants the intended group is understood to be African-Americans.

The article says:

"It's adding black colleges to its recruiting swing this fall, as well as reaching out to groups with strong ties to the black community to increase the pool of applicants, Altman said."

I very much doubt that when Altman said "the black community" and "black colleges" he had in mind people from African countries or black skinned people from India.

> So what group do you use the word black to refer to?

African Americans in the US. African entrepreneurs that come to American colleges, like Ashifi Gogo of Sproxil that I mentioned before. "Black skinned people from India"? Sure, them too.

All those groups are underrepresented in technology and could bring valuable perspective to what matters to the African American community, the Nigerian community, the Indian community, the Afro-Caribbean community, ...

But we've gone down a rabbit hole here. The point I was making through example was that underrepresented groups - blacks, Hispanics, women - have different perspectives that deserve attention, because there are damn good ideas there.