Right - 17 year olds are unlikely to have enough experience of business or negotiation to know (for example) what conventions protect themselves from exploitation.

But, on the other hand, can learn that as quickly as anyone else.

The amazing thing is that Silicon Valley doesn't take advantage of young founders in this way (at least much less than in the East Coast/other environments I've seen). YC did a lot to change the culture of VC in Silicon Valley — I think almost everyone has shifted to playing infinite iterated games where screwing over a newcomer is disadvantageous because you don't know where they'll go in the future.

This is a pervasive myth. Young founders get pr because it’s notable and drives clicks, but the average age of a successful founder is older. The average age of a YC founder is 30. According to a Harvard Business Review article I remember reading, the average age is 45.