VC Intel App

A sleek, modern web app for researching VC firms before investor meetings. Built for early-stage software company CEOs who need comprehensive intelligence on potential investors.

Features

• VC Firm Profiles: Get detailed information about venture capital firms
• Key Partners: Senior partners and investors relevant to your company's tech category
• Notable Investments: 10 major portfolio companies with exit status and valuations
• Recent News: Latest press coverage and announcements with real citations
• Investment Analysis: Recent portfolio investments and funding rounds
• Competitive Intelligence: Color-coded analysis of portfolio companies that might compete with yours
• Alternative Recommendations: Discover similar VC firms that might be a good fit
• PDF Export: Professional print-to-PDF functionality for meeting preparation
• Real-time Web Search: Powered by Perplexity AI for accurate, up-to-date information

Tech Stack

• Frontend: Next.js 15 with TypeScript
• Styling: Tailwind CSS
• AI Research: Perplexity AI with real-time web search
• Deployment: Vercel

Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Node.js 18+
• Perplexity API key (for real data - optional for demo)

Installation

1. Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/carryologist/vc-intel-app.git
cd vc-intel-app

2. Install dependencies:

npm install

3. Set up environment variables (optional for demo):

cp .env.example .env.local

For Real VC Research Data: Add your Perplexity API key to .env.local:

PERPLEXITY_API_KEY=your_perplexity_api_key_here

For Demo Mode: The app works without an API key using realistic mock data. Perfect for testing the interface and features.

4. Run the development server:

npm run dev

5. Open http://localhost:3000 in your browser.

Perplexity API Setup (For Real Data)

Why Perplexity?

Perplexity AI provides several advantages over traditional LLMs for VC research:

• Real-time web search: Access to current information, not just training data
• Citation support: Every fact comes with verifiable sources
• Reduced hallucination: Web-grounded responses prevent made-up information
• Recent news access: Can find articles from the last month
• Domain filtering: Focuses on reputable financial and tech news sources

Getting Your API Key

1. Create Perplexity Account:

   • Visit perplexity.ai
   • Sign up for a Pro account
   • Navigate to API settings

2. Generate API Key:

   • Go to the "API" section in your dashboard
   • Click "Create new API key"
   • Copy the key (store it securely!)

3. Cost Information:

   • Each research report costs approximately $0.02-0.08
   • More expensive than traditional LLMs but provides real-time, cited information
   • You only pay for what you use
   • Significantly reduces hallucination risk

Adding the API Key

Local Development:

# Add to .env.local file
PERPLEXITY_API_KEY=pplx-your-actual-api-key-here

Vercel Deployment:

1. Go to your Vercel project dashboard
2. Navigate to Settings → Environment Variables
3. Add PERPLEXITY_API_KEY with your key as the value
4. Redeploy your application

Data Quality Comparison

Feature	Demo Mode (No API Key)	Real Data Mode (With Perplexity)
VC Firm Profiles	Realistic mock data	Real, current firm information with citations
Recent News	Sample headlines	Actual recent press coverage with source links
Investments	Famous portfolio companies	Current portfolio and recent deals with verification
Partners	Generic partner info	Real partners with current roles and backgrounds
Competitive Analysis	Template analysis	AI-powered competitive insights based on real data
Alternative VCs	Sample recommendations	Tailored recommendations based on recent activity
Citations	None	Full source citations for every claim
Recency	Static data	Information from the last month

Usage

1. Enter the name of the VC firm you want to research (case insensitive)
2. Enter your company name for competitive analysis
3. Optionally enter a specific contact name for personalized insights
4. Click "Start Research" to generate a comprehensive report
5. Use the "Export to PDF" button to save for meetings
6. Review the six key sections:
   • Firm Profile with Key Partners (with citations)
   • Notable Portfolio Investments (with exit status and sources)
   • Recent News (with source links)
   • Recent Investments (with verification)
   • Color-Coded Competitive Analysis (based on real portfolio data)
   • Alternative VC Recommendations (based on recent activity)

Anti-Hallucination Features

This app is specifically designed to minimize AI hallucination:

• Web-grounded responses: All information comes from real web search
• Citation requirements: Every fact must have a verifiable source
• Domain filtering: Only searches reputable financial and tech news sources
• Recency filters: Prioritizes recent information (last month)
• Validation checks: Warns if AI response doesn't match requested firm
• Empty over fake: Returns empty sections rather than fabricated information
• Source transparency: All sources are listed for manual verification

Deployment

This app is optimized for deployment on Vercel:

1. Push your code to GitHub
2. Connect your repository to Vercel
3. Add your PERPLEXITY_API_KEY environment variable
4. Deploy and start researching!

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.

Updated to use Perplexity API with environment variable