startup-analysis

Summary

---
name: startup-analysis
description: >
  Analyze a startup from three perspectives — VC investor, job applicant, and
  CEO/founder — covering market, traction, unit economics, team, defensibility,
  runway, equity value, culture, and competitive position, with a verdict for each.
  Use this skill whenever the user wants to evaluate a startup or private tech
  company: due diligence, whether to invest in it or join it, weighing a startup job
  offer, company health, outlook, or competitive position, or open-ended asks such as
  "what do you think of [company]" or "research [company] for me".
---

# Startup Analysis

Produces a multi-perspective analysis of a startup, examining it through three lenses that each reveal different aspects of company health and potential:

1. **VC Investor Lens** — Is this a good investment? Market size, unit economics, growth trajectory, team quality, defensibility
2. **Job Applicant Lens** — Should I work here? Equity value, runway risk, culture signals, career growth, compensation fairness
3. **CEO/Founder Lens** — How healthy is this company? Product-market fit, burn efficiency, competitive moat, organizational health

Each perspective surfaces insights the others miss. A company can be a great investment but a terrible place to work (or vice versa). The goal is to give the user a 360-degree view so they can make informed decisions.

---

## Step 1: Gather Information

Before analyzing, collect as much public information as possible about the startup. Use web search, the company's website, Crunchbase data, press coverage, and any other available sources.

**Key data to gather:**

| Category | What to find |
|----------|-------------|
| **Basics** | Founded year, HQ location, employee count, what the product does |
| **Funding** | Total raised, last round (size, date, valuation if known), key investors |
| **Product** | What they sell, who buys it, pricing model, key competitors |
| **Traction** | Users, revenue (if public), growth signals, notable customers |
| **Team** | Founders' backgrounds, key hires, LinkedIn headcount trends |
| **Market** | Industry, market size estimates, tailwinds/headwinds |
| **News** | Recent press, product launches, partnerships, layoffs, pivots |

If certain data isn't publicly available (e.g., revenue for private companies), note the gap and infer what you can from indirect signals (hiring pace, customer logos, web traffic proxies, job postings).

### When information is insufficient

Many startups — especially early-stage or niche ones — have limited public presence. If web search does not return enough information to produce a meaningful analysis (e.g., you can't determine what the company does, who founded it, or how it's funded), **ask the user to provide the company's website URL** before proceeding. The company website is often the single most information-dense source, and reading it directly (about page, pricing page, team page, blog) can fill most gaps.

You can also ask the user for:
- The company's website or landing page URL
- A Crunchbase, LinkedIn, or PitchBook link
- Any pitch deck, job listing, or press article they have
- Specific context they already know (e.g., "they just raised a Series A from Sequoia")

It is better to ask for a URL and produce an accurate analysis than to guess and produce a misleading one.

---

## Step 2: Determine Which Perspectives to Cover

By default, produce all three perspectives. If the user specifies a particular angle (e.g., "I'm considering joining them" or "should I invest"), emphasize that perspective but still include the others as context — they often reveal relevant information.

| User's situation | Primary perspective | Still include |
|-----------------|-------------------|---------------|
| Considering investing | VC Investor | Job Applicant (talent signal), CEO (operational health) |
| Considering a job offer | Job Applicant | VC Investor (funding runway), CEO (strategic direction) |
| Running the company / advisory | CEO/Founder | VC Investor (how investors see you), Job Applicant (talent attractiveness) |
| General curiosity / research | All equally | — |

---

## Step 3: Analyze from Each Perspective

Read the relevant reference files for the detailed framework for each perspective. These contain the specific criteria, metrics, and red/green flags to evaluate.

### VC Investor Analysis

Read `references/vc-framework.md` for the full evaluation framework.

Core areas to assess:
- **Market opportunity** — TAM/SAM/SOM, market timing, secular trends
- **Product & traction** — Product-market fit signals, growth metrics, retention
- **Unit economics** — CAC, LTV, margins, burn multiple, path to profitability
- **Team** — Founder-market fit, technical depth, hiring ability
- **Defensibility** — Moats (network effects, switching costs, data, brand, regulatory)
- **Deal terms context** — Stage-appropriate valuation, comparable exits

Produce a clear **Investment Thesis** (bull case) and **Key Risks** (bear case). End with a verdict: Strong Pass / Lean Pass / Lean Invest / Strong Invest, with reasoning.

### Job Applicant Analysis

Read `references/job-applicant-framework.md` for the full evaluation framework.

Core areas to assess:
- **Financial stability** — Runway, burn rate, funding trajectory, revenue health
- **Equity value** — Option/equity package analysis, dilution risk, liquidation preferences, realistic exit scenarios
- **Career growth** — Role scope, learning opportunity, resume value, mentorship
- **Culture & work-life** — Glassdoor signals, employee tenure data, leadership style
- **Product & market risk** — Is PMF real? What happens if the startup fails?
- **Red flags** — High turnover, constant pivots, vague metrics, founders cashing out

Produce a clear **Why Join** (pros) and **Watch Out For** (risks). End with a verdict: Strong Pass / Lean Pass / Lean Join / Strong Join, with reasoning.

### CEO/Founder Analysis

Read `references/ceo-framework.md` for the full evaluation framework.

Core areas to assess:
- **Product-market fit** — Retention curves, organic growth, Sean Ellis test proxy
- **Growth efficiency** — Burn multiple, CAC payback, magic number
- **Competitive position** — Moat strength, competitive dynamics, market share trajectory
- **Organizational health** — Hiring pipeline, attrition, team capability gaps
- **Fundraising readiness** — Metrics vs. benchmarks for next round, investor narrative
- **Strategic risks** — Platform dependency, customer concentration, regulatory exposure

Produce a clear **Strengths to Double Down On** and **Urgent Areas to Address**. End with a health grade: Critical / Struggling / Stable / Strong / Exceptional, with reasoning.

---

## Step 4: Synthesize Cross-Perspective Insights

After the three analyses, add a synthesis section that highlights:

1. **Where perspectives agree** — If all three lenses flag the same strength or weakness, it's probably real
2. **Where perspectives diverge** — A company can be VC-attractive (huge market) but employee-risky (high burn, low runway). Call these out.
3. **The bottom line** — One paragraph summary: what kind of company is this, what's its most likely trajectory, and what should the user do based on their stated (or implied) situation

---

## Step 5: Present the Report

Write it as a scannable report titled `[Company Name] — Startup Analysis`:

- **Summary** — a short overview that states the three verdicts up front.
- **One section per perspective**, in the order that fits the user's situation from Step 2. Each covers the core areas from Step 3 with the evidence behind every judgment, and ends with its verdict on the scale defined there — Investment Verdict (Strong Pass / Lean Pass / Lean Invest / Strong Invest), Employment Verdict (Strong Pass / Lean Pass / Lean Join / Strong Join), or Health Grade (Critical / Struggling / Stable / Strong / Exceptional) — followed by the reasoning.
- **Cross-perspective synthesis** — where the lenses agree, where they diverge, and the bottom line.

Scale each section to the evidence: where financials or other areas are opaque, say so in a line and spend the space on what's observable, rather than filling a heading for its own sake. Don't fabricate metrics; make informed inferences and state your confidence level.

---

## Reference Files

- `references/vc-framework.md` — VC due diligence checklist with metrics, benchmarks, and red/green flags
- `references/job-applicant-framework.md` — Job seeker evaluation framework with equity analysis and culture assessment
- `references/ceo-framework.md` — CEO self-assessment framework with operational metrics and strategic analysis

Read these when you need the detailed criteria and benchmarks for each perspective.

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