I happened to interview with this company, Eons, a year or so ago. At the time they were looking to do a RoR knockoff of their existing site. I'm not sure where they went with that.

I'm wondering about a few things. The founder I believe was involved with Monster, .ie. has a track record. How do startups with this kind of capital succeed? The money itself is going to attract all sort of folks who won't necessarily add value. Does it come down to just leadership?

How this contrast with the approach of Y Combinator, where S,K, and I with a large dose of youthful energy provide a complete basis :)

when you say "... money is going to attract all sort of folks..." are you talking about employees? end-users? useless affiliates? all of the above?

all of the above, in that a corporation is a collection of interests. Depending on the capital structure, different players have different interests. Managing all of those in a way that promotes collaboration towards a common goal is a fine art, as they certainly will not all be aligned.

This is what intrigues me about the Y combinator approach. Anyone with 50K can fund a couple of kids out of school and if the chemistry is right, the idea has some merit, and a dash of luck (hard work always brings some luck), it can fly.