Data rooms for deep tech startups.
Deep tech startups, such as those in quantum, advanced materials, semiconductors or photonics, are judged on technical risk and the path to a product. Investors want milestone evidence, lab and test data, the IP position, licences and government funding records, export control analysis and a realistic capital plan to each technical milestone.
Deep tech room
- 01 Corporate
- 02 Technology overview
- 03 Lab and test data
- 04 Roadmap and capital plan
- 05 IP
- 06 Licences
- 07 Government funding
How it works for a startup.
Deep tech rounds often bring in technical advisers who read data, not slides. They ask what has been demonstrated, at what scale and under what conditions, and what still needs to be proven. Technology readiness levels, a scale originally developed at NASA, are a common shorthand, but reviewers want the evidence behind any level you claim.
These companies often grow out of universities or national labs and rely on grants. That brings licence terms, government rights in inventions, reporting duties and sometimes rules on manufacturing in the US. Export controls under the EAR or ITAR can limit who may see technical data, including foreign investors and their staff.
Capital needs are large and timelines long, so the plan matters: what each round funds, which milestones it reaches and what partners or non-dilutive funding fill the gaps.
Top 10 data rooms for this job.
Our five measures, re-weighted for deep tech. Places 11 to 17 are listed below the cards.
- Setup speed 20%
- Investor experience 16%
- Access control 29%
- Diligence tools 21%
- Startup pricing 14%
- 1 9.2/10First-rate
- $149 monthly
- 14-day free trial
- 8/12 feature checks
- Investor Q&A
- NDA e-signing
- Dynamic watermarks
- View-only and download control
- SOC 2 (hosting)
- 2 8.4/10Strong pick
- Quote only
- Free trial offered
- 9/12 feature checks
- Investor Q&A
- Dynamic watermarks
- View-only and download control
- Viewer activity log
- SOC 2
- ISO 27001
- GDPR
- 3 8.2/10Strong pick
- Quote only
- Demo, no trial
- 10/12 feature checks
- Investor Q&A
- Dynamic watermarks
- View-only and download control
- Viewer activity log
- SOC 2
- ISO 27001
- GDPR
- 4 8.1/10Strong pick
- Quote only
- Free trial offered
- 8/12 feature checks
- Investor Q&A
- Dynamic watermarks
- View-only and download control
- Viewer activity log
- SOC 2
- ISO 27001
- 5 8.1/10Strong pick
- Quote only
- Free trial offered
- 7/12 feature checks
- Investor Q&A
- Dynamic watermarks
- View-only and download control
- Viewer activity log
- SOC 2
- ISO 27001
- 6 7.9/10Strong pick
- $250 monthly
- Free trial offered
- 8/12 feature checks
- Investor Q&A
- NDA e-signing
- Dynamic watermarks
- View-only and download control
- SOC 2
- 7 7.8/10Strong pick
- Quote only
- Demo, no trial
- 8/12 feature checks
- Investor Q&A
- Dynamic watermarks
- View-only and download control
- Viewer activity log
- SOC 2
- ISO 27001
- GDPR
- 8 7.8/10Strong pick
- Quote only
- Demo, no trial
- 8/12 feature checks
- Investor Q&A
- Dynamic watermarks
- View-only and download control
- Viewer activity log
- SOC 2
- ISO 27001
- 9 7.7/10Good option
- $299 monthly
- Free trial offered
- 7/12 feature checks
- Investor Q&A
- Dynamic watermarks
- View-only and download control
- Viewer activity log
- SOC 2
- 10 7.7/10Good option
- Quote only
- Demo, no trial
- 7/12 feature checks
- Investor Q&A
- Dynamic watermarks
- View-only and download control
- Viewer activity log
- SOC 2
- ISO 27001
Show places 11 to 17
- Citrix ShareFile 7.7
- DealRoom 7.5
- ShareVault 7.4
- Onehub 7.0
- Digify 6.7
- Venue by DFIN 6.7
- DocSend 6.2
Folder index.
A starting structure for this room. Rename folders to fit your company and keep the numbers.
Charter, cap table, financing documents.
Plain technical summary, milestone history, readiness assessment with evidence.
Experimental results, test protocols, third-party validation.
Technical milestones, cost and time to each, funding sources.
Patent families, trade secret policy, publications.
University and national lab licences, sponsored research agreements.
Grants and contracts, invention reporting, government rights.
Classification of technology, licence requirements, access controls for foreign persons.
Joint development agreements, foundry or fab access, pilot customers.
Key scientists, advisory board, publication records, assignment agreements.
Need every file by stage? Use the startup data room checklist.
Must-have features.
| Provider | View-only and download control | Dynamic watermarks | Viewer activity log | Investor Q&A | Two-step login |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ellty | |||||
| iDeals | |||||
| Datasite | |||||
| Ansarada | |||||
| Firmex | |||||
| SecureDocs | |||||
| Drooms | |||||
| Intralinks | |||||
| CapLinked | |||||
| SmartRoom |
- View-only and download control
- Set each file to view only, print or download, and change it later without resending anything.
- Dynamic watermarks
- Stamps the viewer email and the time across every page, so a forwarded screenshot points back to its source.
- Viewer activity log
- Shows which investor opened which file, for how long and when, and exports the record.
- Investor Q&A
- Funds and buyers ask questions against a file; you assign, answer and publish replies, and the thread stays on record.
- Two-step login
- Every login needs a one-time code or an app approval as well as the password.
Set up the room in 6 steps.
- 1
Write for non-specialists first
Start with a plain summary of what works today and what is still unproven, then link to the detailed data.
- 2
Back every milestone
For each milestone claimed, link the data and, where possible, an external validation.
- 3
Check export rules first
Classify your technology before sharing technical data, especially with foreign investors.
- 4
Summarise government rights
List funded inventions, reporting status and any rights or obligations that follow.
- 5
Protect detailed data
View-only, watermarked access to lab data and designs, with download blocking.
- 6
Plan capital to milestones
Show what this round funds and the next milestone it reaches.
Common mistakes.
- Claiming a readiness level without data that supports it.
- Sharing controlled technical data with foreign persons without an export review.
- Ignoring invention reporting duties under federal awards.
- A capital plan that runs out before the next proof point.