If your pitch was compelling enough to spark VC interest, congrats—you’ve entered the due diligence zone. Now comes the real test: your data room.
The data room is where startups win or lose deals behind the scenes. It’s not just a Dropbox folder with pitch decks. It’s your startup’s story, risk profile, and roadmap—all packaged in a way that investors can understand quickly.
Here’s how to build a data room that doesn’t just pass inspection—but speeds up conviction.
1. What Is a Data Room, Really?
A digital folder (usually Google Drive, Dropbox, or Notion) where you share key documents with investors during due diligence.
But don’t mistake it for a dump zone. It’s more like a curated museum exhibit of your startup. Every file answers a key question VCs have before they wire money.
2. Core Folders Every Digital Health Startup Needs
🗂 1. Corporate Documents
- Certificate of incorporation
- Cap table (current + post-round)
- Shareholder agreements
- Board minutes (if any)
🗂 2. Team & Hiring
- Bios of founders/key team
- Org chart (current and 12-month forecast)
- Hiring plan tied to raise
🗂 3. Product & Tech
- Product roadmap
- Screenshots or demo video
- Architecture overview (high-level)
- Key integrations (e.g. EHRs, APIs)
🗂 4. Market & GTM
- Customer personas
- Go-to-market plan
- Pipeline or traction to date
- Sales decks or outbound messaging samples
🗂 5. Regulatory & Compliance
- HIPAA compliance documentation
- Any FDA guidance/classification
- GDPR strategy (if applicable)
- Security protocols
(If you read our Healthcare Regulations 101, you’ll know why this matters.)
🗂 6. Financials
- Historical P&L (if any)
- 18–24 month projections
- Assumptions behind the model
- Burn rate & runway
🗂 7. Legal
- IP ownership & licenses
- Customer contracts (redacted)
- NDAs, MSAs, or LOIs
3. The Must-Have: Founder Notes
Founders who win deals often include a short note or Loom video explaining:
- What’s in the room
- What matters most
- How to navigate it quickly
This saves investors hours—and makes you look like a pro.
4. Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Dumping too much irrelevant info
- Sharing editable documents (read-only always!)
- Forgetting to update filenames (e.g., “VC_Financials_Dec2023.pdf” > “Financials_2025_Projection.pdf”)
- Being vague on regulatory exposure
- Overengineering: don’t turn it into a maze
5. What VCs Say (But Don’t Always Admit)
- “A tight data room shows operational maturity.”
- “We don’t expect perfection—but we do expect preparedness.”
- “If they’re sloppy here, they’ll be sloppy later.”
6. Pro Tips for Digital Health Founders
- Use metadata or a doc index so investors know what’s inside
- Match your room to your stage (no need for audited financials at pre-seed)
- Add an FAQ doc based on what most VCs ask
Want to get really polished? Use platforms like DocSend or Notion to build visual, navigable data rooms.
Final Word: Your Data Room Is Your Silent Co-Founder
It speaks when you’re not in the room. It shapes perception. And it can accelerate—or destroy—momentum.
Build it early, update it often, and treat it like a fundraising asset. Because it is.
Want to know what VCs are scanning for when they open it? See:
He has invested in startups including American Well, Neuronation, Mimi, and most notably mySugr – which was recently acquired by Roche. Min-Sung is also a contributing writer for mediums including TechCrunch and Tech.EU and studied Business Economics at Witten/Herdecke, Harvard, St.Gallen, and in Seoul.