For investors: Expanded Tech Due Diligence
Can the technology carry the plan your investment is funding?
I start from your investment thesis, find where the technology could break it, and give you a clear verdict on each risk, with what it means for the deal.
How an engagement works
We start from what your investment thesis needs to be true. I map how the company creates value, find where the thesis could fail, and we settle the key questions together. Then I check the claims and give you a verdict on each risk, with what to do about it.
Your input
Investor: Thesis
What must be true, and the risks your committee sees
From the company
Data room
Documents, code and configuration
From the company
Founders and CTOs
Interviews and claims
My research
Value chain
How value is created, mapped from research and the data room
Risk location
Where the thesis could fail, including risks you did not raise
Together
Key questions
Three to six, each linking a thesis assumption to a risk
- Margin
- Growth
- New market
- Execution
My assessment
Evidence
Interview claims checked against documents, code and configuration
Verdict
- Holds
- Holds with a condition
- Red flag
What to do
- Fix before closing
- Fix after closing
- Monitor
Back to the investment committee
Verdict, what to do, and a Q&A on the key questions
Typical key questions
Each links a thesis assumption to a risk, and ends in a verdict.
Does technology cost per euro of revenue fall as the company grows?
Can the platform carry the customer numbers in the plan without a rebuild?
Does the product meet the security and compliance bar of the customers the plan targets?
Can the team deliver the roadmap the plan depends on, with the hires budgeted?
What you receive
- A short report on your key questions
- Cost and time to close each gap
- A Q&A session with your committee or co-investors
- Shareable under a non-reliance letter
Where I am strongest
- Data platforms and cloud products
- Earth observation, space downstream
- Enterprise readiness: security, compliance, reliability
- Technology cost and unit economics
One contract, one report
A scientist, hardware engineer or industry expert from my network joins when a question needs one, under my contract. Nobody for you to coordinate.
I never assess a company I have advised, and I will disclose any earlier contact.
Engagements
Fixed fee, agreed in writing after a free 30-minute scoping call
Snapshot
Fast verdicts, before or after the term sheet
Founder and engineer interviews, plus existing documents.
Assessment
Confirmatory, once systems access is granted
Claims checked against read-only access to code, cloud and configuration.
Deep Dive
Larger rounds and acquisitions
Every key question checked against systems and data.
I fit the scope to your deal schedule. When time is short, every material risk is still checked and the depth goes where it matters most. Starting before the term sheet leaves the most room.
When to start
Starting before the term sheet leaves the most room.
Investors bring me in at three points:
- Before a term sheet, to see whether technical risks should affect the price or the structure of the deal.
- During confirmatory diligence, alongside the financial and legal review.
- After closing, to turn the findings into a 100-day plan with clear owners.
The right depth depends on the transaction: a minority stake needs a different depth than a majority buyout or a carve-out.
New to the topic? Read What is technical due diligence.
About me
25 years in the software industry. Over five years at LiveEO, where I built the cloud infrastructure from zero and ran infrastructure and IT behind its satellite data products, with imagery ingested at petabyte scale. I took the company through ISO 27001 and SOC 2 and was the technical contact for investor due diligence in several financing rounds. Before that, seven years at F5 Networks developing its web application firewall. BSc Computer Science, Executive MBA (ESCP). Interviews in English, German, Hebrew and Hungarian.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where does an engagement start?
- With your investment thesis: what must be true, and the risks your committee already sees. I map how the company creates value and find where the thesis could fail, including risks you did not raise. Then we settle three to six key questions together.
What is a key question?
- A question that links a thesis assumption to a risk, and ends in a verdict. For example: can the platform carry the customer numbers in the plan without a rebuild?
What does a verdict look like?
- Each key question gets one of three verdicts: holds, holds with a condition, or red flag. Each finding comes with a recommendation: fix before closing, fix after closing, or monitor. You also see the cost and time to close each gap.
Which engagement fits my deal?
- It depends on the access you have and the deal moment. A Snapshot gives fast verdicts, before or after the term sheet, from founder and engineer interviews plus existing documents. An Assessment is confirmatory: once systems access is granted, claims are checked against read-only access to code, cloud and configuration. A Deep Dive, for larger rounds and acquisitions, checks every key question against systems and data.
What if the deal timeline is short?
- I fit the scope to your deal schedule. When time is short, every material risk is still checked and the depth goes where it matters most. Starting before the term sheet leaves the most room.
What if a question needs a specialist?
- A scientist, hardware engineer or industry expert from my network joins when a question needs one, under my contract. You have one contract and one report, and nobody to coordinate.
Can I share the report with co-investors?
- Yes. The report is shareable under a non-reliance letter, and the Q&A session can include your committee or co-investors.
What do you need from the target company?
- Time with the founders and engineers, and the documents that already exist. For an Assessment or a Deep Dive, also read-only access to code, cloud and configuration.
What is not included?
- This is decision support for investors. It is not legal or investment advice, penetration testing, certification or a full code audit.
Do you work outside Germany?
- Yes. I am based in Berlin and work with investors and companies across Europe. Interviews can be held in English, German, Hebrew or Hungarian.
How is an engagement priced?
- As a fixed fee, agreed in writing after a free 30-minute scoping call.
From the Playbook
- Edition 1: Deal-Maker, Not Checkbox
The purpose of Technical Due Diligence and using a risk register as a deal-making tool
- Edition 2: One Size Never Fits All
Right-sizing Technical Due Diligence scope by transaction type: minority stake, majority buyout, and carve-out
- Edition 27: The Post-Close 100-Day Tech-Value Plan
Turning diligence findings into a sequenced, owned 100-day plan that reduces priced-in risk and builds the value thesis
- Edition 29: Continuous Due Diligence
Watching a handful of agreed tech signals between two diligences: what to track, information rights, a quarterly one-page note and signs it is not working
Preparing a transaction?
Please pick a time for a free 30-minute scoping call, or send me a few lines about your deal by email.