There are an impressive number of startups and, by extension, potential solutions. While it is impossible to include every single startup in these databases, they do provide a good overview of the available potential.
Although the search systems may be more or less efficient or user-friendly from one database to another, they are certainly more efficient than a Google or LinkedIn search.
In reality, startups evolve rapidly, so it’s very difficult to keep the information in the databases up to date. That’s why it’s important to supplement and cross-check the information via other digital channels, such as LinkedIn or the startup’s website, or by contacting the companies directly.
It should be noted that these features apply rather rudimentary selection criteria and only use the information that is in the database, which is usually insufficient. In any case, it’s preferable to have an evaluation done by a person and a recommendation made by experts in the field, such as open innovation consultants.
To access startup databases, you have to pay a certain amount of money, which varies according to the type of database and its functionalities.
The question that comes up regularly is: what is the best database?
The answer to this question is complex, because no one database is better than the others. There are several that stand out, such as Crunchbase, Pitchbook, CB Insights, Tracxn or DealRoom, but their performance depends on your needs.
These databases may fit your needs depending on the geolocation and maturity of the startups you’re looking for, your budget, your industry or the number of startups that fit your search. For example, Pitchbook has more mature startups than Crunchbase.
On the other hand, the startups that come up will not necessarily be the same from one database to another.
As a concrete example, during the Collision Lab team scouting for the 5G program with Verizon and Bell, we would not have been able to find all the selected startups in a single database.
Of the startups selected for this program, we noted the following statistics:
are not in CB Insight
are not in Crunchbase
are not in Pitchbook
are found in the three databases mentioned above
This example shows that having access to several databases allows you to broaden your horizons when looking for startups and that, in reality, no one database is better than the others.
Furthermore, having access to these databases does not necessarily allow you to select the best startups. To do so, you need to set up many precise evaluation criteria, retrieve the relevant information and perform an exhaustive evaluation and selection. This requires specific expertise.