Public log

    Failure database — changelog

    Every material change to the dataset, taxonomy and methodology is logged here. No silent edits. When we correct a fact, we say what we changed and why.

    Read the methodologyBrowse the database
    1. Added

      Cause hubs, public changelog, correction workflow, annual PDF

      • New /cause/:slug hubs group every case by root cause (no market need, ran out of cash, etc.)
      • Public changelog (this page) — every material dataset change is logged from now on
      • "Report a correction" form on every case study, routed to the editorial queue
      • Downloadable annual report PDF ("State of Startup Failures 2025") built from the live dataset
    2. Improved

      Full-text search + SEO coverage for 55 flagship cases

      • Search now tokenises across name, industry, reason, investors, lessons and analysis (AND-matching)
      • Custom title/description for 55 flagship failures (FTX, Theranos, WeWork, Byju's, Northvolt, SVB…)
      • Dataset JSON-LD now advertises real CSV + JSON downloads
      • Downloadable CSV/JSON (1,028 records, CC BY 4.0) gated behind email capture
    3. Methodology

      Causal chain + per-field provenance for 10 flagship cases

      • Introduced root_cause / contributing_factors / proximate_cause / terminal_event separation
      • /methodology page documents entity types, event types, evidence levels and loss methodology
      • Confidence table + provenance-per-field rendered on flagship case studies
    4. Added

      "True failures only" toggle + honest stats engine

      • New taxonomy separates shutdowns / bankruptcies from valuation collapses and restructurings
      • Hero copy now reports one honest number with a link to methodology
      • Removed misleading "7.5× risk" and "predictive signals" marketing claims
    5. Added

      50 famous US/UK failures (WeWork, Theranos, Quibi, Jawbone…)

      • Two new curated batches, each entry with timeline, FAQs, sources and lessons
      • Homepage marquee updated with the new logo cloud
      • Filter toolbar redesigned into compact Select dropdowns
    6. Improved

      Verified funding + insolvency dates for Italy/DE/FR expansion

      • Web-sourced facts replace placeholders for Scalapay, Everli, Infarm and 40 more
      • Peak valuation and last-round-before-failure added where public
    7. Fixed

      FAQ + sources rendering across all cases

      • Normalised inconsistent data keys (q/a vs question/answer, url vs link)
      • FAQs and sources now render correctly on every case study
    8. Added

      Initial public release — 900+ documented failure events

      • Country, industry, cause and year filters
      • Radar-chart failure scores + visual timelines
      • JSON-LD Dataset schema for Google Dataset Search

    Spotted an error?

    Every case study has a "Report a correction" button. Submissions go straight to the editorial queue and land in a future changelog entry.

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