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Y Combinator API on Rapid's API Hub

Sat Mar 04 2023

The YC Hacker News API is a powerful tool for developers and data scientists seeking access to a wealth of information from one of the most vibrant and influential online communities in the world. Developed by Y Combinator, the platform that has launched some of the most successful startups of the last decade, Hacker News is a community-driven site where users share news, insights, and commentary on technology and entrepreneurship.

The YC Hacker News API allows developers to tap into this vast trove of data, providing programmatic access to the site's stories, comments, user profiles, and more. Whether you're building a new app, conducting research, or seeking insights into the latest trends in tech, the YC Hacker News API offers an unparalleled resource for anyone looking to stay ahead of the curve. YC Hacker News site provides great content for tech people. The website offers a perfect public API for your projects. In this post, you will get an explanation of the API, how to use it in your project, and what kind of projects you might use it for; you will be amazed by the results. 

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Details of the API endpoints

The API provides amazing endpoints for users to create hacker news clones or projects. Here is what the API provides for you: Those endpoints will show you up to 200 of the latest posts. The Hacker News API provides access to three main types of content: "Ask," "Show," and "Jobs."

  • "Ask" posts are questions submitted by the community for discussion and feedback.
  • "Show" posts are work submissions like websites, hardware, or books.
  • "Jobs" posts are job listings from startups supported by Y Combinator.

The API has several endpoints that show up to 500 of the latest posts and submissions.

  • The "New" endpoint shows the new stories posted on the website.
  • The "Top" endpoint shows the top stories on the website.
  • The "Best stories" endpoint shows the best stories and most ranked.

Additional endpoints

  • The "Updates" endpoint lists recently changed items and profiles.
  • The "Max Item ID" endpoint returns the ID of the latest submission made to the site.

Note

  • The data is being served by firebase, which you can subscribe to the data and check the updates.
  • The API has no rate limits for usage.

Sample apps that you can build with this API

Here is a list of a few projects you can work on using this API; the projects are listed from less to most challenging.