Y Combinator, one of the most prominent startup accelerators, has officially returned to in-person Demo Days, kicking off with an Alumni Demo Day on Sunday, November 26, for the Fall 2024 class of startups. The event saw a strong turnout, with 93 startups pitching to an audience of investors, entrepreneurs, and press.

The in-person format was praised by attendees, including Squad founder Esther Crawford, who described the event as having "high energy." Avni Patel Thompson, founder and CEO of Milo, echoed this sentiment, calling it "a dress rehearsal for the founders but also a beautiful pay-it-forward for alums to come back and support the current batch." The "dress rehearsal" is likely a reference to the main Demo Day, where founders will pitch to a larger audience of investors and press.

The main Demo Day is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, December 4, and will feature an invite-only audience of around 1,500. For those unable to attend in person, Y Combinator will provide a Demo Day website with information on the companies that presented. This marks a significant shift away from virtual Demo Days, which were a lingering artifact of the switch to remote during the pandemic.

In September, Y Combinator CEO Garry Tan announced that the virtual Demo Days would be coming to an end, saying that the presentations would be the last ones held entirely online. It seems that promise has been fulfilled, with Y Combinator now describing Demo Day as "back to being in-person."

The return to in-person Demo Days is a significant development for the startup ecosystem, as it allows for more meaningful connections and interactions between founders, investors, and entrepreneurs. It also signals a return to normalcy after a period of virtual events, which, while necessary during the pandemic, lacked the energy and spontaneity of in-person gatherings.

As the startup world continues to evolve, it will be interesting to see how Y Combinator's in-person Demo Days shape the future of startup accelerators and entrepreneurship. One thing is certain, however: the energy and excitement of in-person events are back, and that's a welcome development for the entire tech community.