I appreciate what you're trying to say, but you can't just claim to have 20 years of industry experience after starting in that industry 10 years ago, right? Do you put 20 years of experience on your resume?
I never would put 20 years of experience on my resume. Can't fake it till you make it in tech. :) Years of experience, again aren't the metric alone, its the quality of those years does matter.
If someone has 10 years of experience, and their achievements and skillset are mature and are on par with someone at the top of the pile with 20 years of experience, that might be one way. Does that help clarify?
Either way, I'm not sure where this new literal HN is coming from, and maybe I haven't done a very good job of explaining much.
I agree with your 12 yeaer experience. When I hire or am being hired we look for recent, relevant and hopefully experience that shows a higher level of mastery relative to other candidates.
Still this is a nice reminder of how good HN has been at attracting new entrepreneurs/technologists, and the lowering the average age/experience level on HN. I see it as a positive.