01What happened
The story, straight
A solo developer launched StartupWiki, a free startup database designed as an open alternative to Crunchbase. The site requires no accounts or subscriptions and lets users browse startup profiles, search and filter companies, and access categorization data — styled after Wikipedia's frictionless access model. A public API is currently in progress.
a developer got tired of Crunchbase's paywalls and built StartupWiki — basically Wikipedia for startups. no accounts, no subscriptions, no weird metrics, just search and browse. still early-stage with a public API coming.
02Spread timeline
Where it actually started
03Source receipts
Every claim, linked
04What's solid, what isn't
What's solid and what isn't
- StartupWiki is live with startup profiles, search/filtering, and company categorization.
- The project requires no accounts or subscriptions.
- A public API is in progress.
- The total number of startups currently indexed in the database.
- Whether the data is sourced from public filings, user submissions, or scraping.
- The project is self-described as 'still very early' — sustainability and data quality remain open questions.
05Why it matters
The editorial take
Crunchbase has long dominated startup research data with a freemium model that gates core functionality behind subscriptions. StartupWiki enters a gap where founders, journalists, and investors need frictionless access to early-stage company data — the exact tier Crunchbase paywalls most aggressively.
the entire startup ecosystem runs on Crunchbase data and most of it is paywalled. a free Wikipedia-style alternative targeting early-stage companies is the exact thing that would make VCs nervous and founders relieved.