Community Data vs StartupDB

Community Data is a free, open database of more than 1 million people and companies, initially focused on the startup ecosystem. Its records are collaboratively maintained in an open-source repository as JSON documents that follow JSON Schema definitions. Schemas cover people, companies, locations, sectors, funding stages, and curated collections. A public GraphQL API lets developers query the data and build applications.

Anyone can contribute by creating or editing a JSON file. Commits are checked against the matching schema, and invalid documents cause a commit to be rejected. A proof-of-concept Next.js editor uses the GitHub API and requires contributors to authenticate with GitHub. Enhancer scripts can use public APIs or websites to structure information for the schemas and import it. Verified document owners are recorded by GitHub username, and their pull requests are automatically merged without review. Schema changes are proposed by pull request and reviewed by core contributors during monthly governance calls. The project uses the MIT License, copyright 2025.

StartupDB is a free database of startups, investors and people, organized around investment relationships and funding rounds. Company records can include funding dates, amounts, investor roles and source URLs, and facts link to sources for checking. Its data draws on reviewed public investor portfolio pages, public news, company and investor websites, and edits by staff, founders and investors. The database is available through a read-only MCP server and REST API, without an account or API key. The MCP server has six tools for searching investors, startups and people and retrieving individual records. The REST API provides GET endpoints for searches, individual records, investor portfolios and company funding activity, returning JSON. Both interfaces allow 120 requests per minute per IP address, with no daily cap. StartupDB says coverage is not complete, so a missing round or investor means only that the information is absent from the database. Dataset facts and compilation are licensed under CC BY 4.0 for commercial reuse with attribution; third-party logos, photos and site text are excluded. Founders and investors can claim and correct pages, and staff review reported issues. StartupDB says it was built at Workshop.