Yeah, I've seen startups do this. I wouldn't attribute it to malice, just inexperience. Keep applying and remember finding a good job is a numbers game!
A startup I worked for wanted to collect applications for all jobs it might post in the next 12 months. I explained that high quality candidates are only on the market for a few weeks (sometimes less than a week), so they were going to end up with a pool of low quality candidates.
A startup I worked for wanted to collect applications for all jobs it might post in the next 12 months. I explained that high quality candidates are only on the market for a few weeks (sometimes less than a week), so they were going to end up with a pool of low quality candidates.