# Techstars Portfolio Companies Scraper (`parseforge/techstars-portfolio-scraper`) Actor

Scrapes the full Techstars portfolio page and returns each company as a flat row with its name, program, sector, location, and description. Filter by program or sector substring.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/parseforge/techstars-portfolio-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [ParseForge](https://apify.com/parseforge) (community)
- **Categories:** Lead generation, Automation
- **Stats:** 3 total users, 1 monthly users, 90.3% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $7.50 / 1,000 results

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.
Actors are written with capital "A".

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.
The best way to integrate Actors is as follows.

- **AI agents and MCP clients** — the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md) at `https://mcp.apify.com` (remote, streamable HTTP, OAuth on first use).
- **Agentic workflows and local Actor development** — [Agent Skills](https://apify.com/.well-known/agent-skills/index.json) with the [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): `npm install -g apify-cli`, then `apify login`.
- **JavaScript/TypeScript projects** — the official [JS/TS client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): `npm install apify-client`.
- **Python projects** — the official [Python client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): `pip install apify-client`.
- **Any other language** — the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md).

For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below.

For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt).

# README

[![ParseForge](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ParseForge/apify-assets/main/banner.jpg)](https://apify.com/parseforge?fpr=vmoqkp)

### Techstars Portfolio Companies Scraper

**Scrape every company from the Techstars portfolio, filtered by program or sector, up to a million per run.** Each row returns the company name, program, sector, location, and description. Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.

Techstars publishes its accelerator portfolio on a single page, but scrolling through hundreds of company cards by hand is slow and you cannot export the data. This Actor reads the full portfolio feed, applies your program and sector filters as it goes, and returns a clean dataset of every matching company. No API key, no browser extension, no copy-paste.

| Who uses it | What they scrape Techstars for |
|---|---|
| Venture capital analysts | Build a deal-flow watchlist of Techstars graduates in a specific sector. |
| Startup founders | Research competitors that went through the same Techstars program. |
| Sales and partnership teams | Generate a lead list of funded startups by industry and cohort year. |
| Market researchers | Track which sectors and cities Techstars is investing in over time. |

### What it does

This Actor collects Techstars portfolio companies from the official portfolio page and returns each one as a flat row with its program, sector, and description.

- 🏷️ **Program filter:** narrow results to a specific Techstars program by name, such as 'Boulder' or 'Seattle'.
- 🏭 **Sector filter:** return only companies tagged with a particular industry, like 'Healthtech' or 'Fintech'.
- 🔢 **Volume control:** set a hard cap on the number of companies collected per run, from one to one million.

Results export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML, or straight from the API.

### What you can do with Techstars data

**📋 Build a Techstars lead list.**

A B2B sales team scrapes all Healthtech companies from the last three years, filters by program, and loads the list into their CRM for outreach.

**📈 Map accelerator trends.**

A market researcher runs the Actor monthly, groups companies by sector and location, and tracks how Techstars investment themes shift over time.

**🔍 Find competitors in your cohort.**

A founder scrapes the full portfolio, filters by their own program name, and reviews every company description to spot direct and adjacent competitors.

**💰 Source deal flow.**

A VC analyst scrapes the entire portfolio, filters by Fintech, and cross-references the list with Crunchbase to prioritize companies that have not raised a Series A yet.

### Why choose this scraper

|  | What you get |
|---|---|
| **No API needed** | Reads the public portfolio page directly, no registration or token required. |
| **Fixed flat schema** | Every company lands as one row with the same columns, ready for a spreadsheet or database. |
| **Filter early** | Program and sector filters discard non-matching cards before they reach your dataset, saving time and compute. |
| **Runs on Apify** | Schedule daily or weekly runs, integrate with Make, Zapier, or the Apify API, and store results in the cloud. |

### How it compares

Two other Apify actors also scrape the Techstars portfolio. Here is how they compare on the capabilities a buyer typically evaluates.

| Feature | ParseForge | Techstars Scraper | Techstars Scraper with Emails |
|---|---|---|---|
| Program filter | Yes, substring match on program name | Not listed | Yes |
| Sector filter | Yes, substring match on sector | Not listed | Yes |
| Maximum items cap | Yes, configurable up to 1,000,000 | Not listed | Not listed |
| Email addresses | Not listed | Not listed | Yes |
| Social media links | Not listed | Not listed | Yes |
| Runs on Apify platform | Yes | Yes | Yes |

### Configure the run

Drive the Actor from the main Techstars portfolio URL and narrow the output with optional program and sector substring filters that run as each company card is read. The Input tab lists every parameter.

A first run with the defaults:

```json
{
  "startUrl": "https://www.techstars.com/portfolio",
  "maxItems": 10
}
```

A larger pull:

```json
{
  "startUrl": "https://www.techstars.com/portfolio",
  "maxItems": 200
}
```

### Pricing

Pay-per-result: **$0.0085 per result** collected. You pay only for the results written to your dataset.

| Results collected | Approximate cost |
|---|---|
| 100 results | $0.85 |
| 1,000 results | $8.50 |
| 10,000 results | $85.00 |

New Apify accounts start with $5 in free credit.

### Free users

Free-plan runs return up to 10 results as a preview. [Upgrade your Apify plan](https://console.apify.com/sign-up?fpr=vmoqkp) to collect up to 1,000,000 results per run.

### Run it

1. [Create a free Apify account with $5 in credit](https://console.apify.com/sign-up?fpr=vmoqkp).
2. Open the [Techstars Portfolio Companies Scraper](https://apify.com/parseforge/techstars-portfolio-scraper?fpr=vmoqkp).
3. Set your inputs and any filters, then click **Start**.
4. Export the results as CSV, Excel, JSON, or XML from the **Dataset** tab.

Run it programmatically through the [Apify API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2) (`run-sync-get-dataset-items`) or the [ApifyClient](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js) for JavaScript and Python.

### Use with AI agents (MCP)

Give an AI agent live access to Techstars through the Model Context Protocol. Add the Actor to Claude, Cursor, or any MCP client:

```bash
claude mcp add --transport http apify "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=parseforge/techstars-portfolio-scraper"
```

Then prompt it in plain language to run the scraper and read back the results.

### Troubleshooting

**Why am I getting no results?**

Check your Program or Sector filter. The filters do a substring match, so a typo or a value that does not appear in any company card will return an empty dataset. Try running without filters first to confirm the page loads.

**The Actor stops before collecting all companies.**

Increase the 'Maximum companies' input. The Actor stops when it reaches that number, even if more companies exist on the page. Set it to a high value like 1000000 to get everything.

**Some company cards are missing data in certain fields.**

The Actor can only return what the portfolio page displays. If a company card does not list a sector or program, that field will be empty in your dataset. This is a limitation of the source data, not the scraper.

**The run fails with a timeout error.**

The portfolio page is large and may take time to scroll. Try increasing the Actor's timeout in the run settings, or reduce the maximum companies to collect fewer cards per run.

**Can I get founder names, funding amounts, or social links?**

The public portfolio page does not include founder names, funding rounds, or social media links. This Actor returns only the fields visible on the main portfolio listing. For deeper company data, consider a Crunchbase or LinkedIn scraper.

### FAQ

| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Does this Actor need a Techstars login or API key? | No. It reads the public portfolio page at techstars.com/portfolio, so no account, API key, or OAuth flow is required. |
| What data fields does each row contain? | Each row includes the company name, program, sector, location, and a short description. The exact field list is shown in the sample output on the Actor's page. |
| Can I filter by a specific Techstars city or program? | Yes. Use the Program input to match a program name like 'Boulder' or 'Austin'. It is a substring match, so 'New York' will catch 'New York City' as well. |
| How do I filter by industry or vertical? | Use the Sector input. Type a substring like 'Health' to return companies tagged Healthtech, Digital Health, or Healthcare. |
| Can I scrape the entire portfolio in one run? | Yes. Set the maximum companies field to a high number, such as 1000000, and the Actor will keep scrolling until it has collected every company on the page. |
| What output formats are supported? | You can export your dataset as CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML from the Apify storage tab, or push it directly to a webhook or cloud storage. |
| Can I schedule this Actor to run automatically? | Yes. Apify lets you schedule runs daily, weekly, or on a custom cron expression. Each run produces a fresh dataset you can download or forward. |
| Does the Actor handle pagination and infinite scroll? | Yes. It scrolls the portfolio page automatically and collects every visible company card until it hits your maximum items limit or the end of the list. |
| Is this Actor affiliated with Techstars? | No. This is an independent scraper that reads publicly available data from the Techstars website. It is not built or endorsed by Techstars Central, LLC. |
| What happens if Techstars changes their portfolio page layout? | The Actor relies on the page structure. If the layout changes, the scraper may need an update. We monitor for breakage and publish fixes, but you can also report issues through the Actor's support tab. |

### Related actors

Browse the full [ParseForge collection](https://apify.com/parseforge?fpr=vmoqkp) for more scrapers.

🆘 **Need help?** Email parseforge@protonmail.com with your run ID, your input, and what you expected.

⚠️ **Disclaimer.** This Actor is unofficial and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Techstars Central, LLC. It collects only publicly available data. You are responsible for using the collected data in compliance with the source's terms of service and applicable data-protection laws, including GDPR, CCPA, and PIPL. Do not use it to collect personal data unlawfully.

# Actor input Schema

## `startUrl` (type: `string`):

Techstars portfolio page URL.

## `maxItems` (type: `integer`):

How many portfolio companies to collect per run.

## `program` (type: `string`):

Filter by program name (substring match).

## `sector` (type: `string`):

Filter by sector (substring match).

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "startUrl": "https://www.techstars.com/portfolio",
  "maxItems": 10
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

No description

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "startUrl": "https://www.techstars.com/portfolio",
    "maxItems": 10
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("parseforge/techstars-portfolio-scraper").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {
    "startUrl": "https://www.techstars.com/portfolio",
    "maxItems": 10,
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("parseforge/techstars-portfolio-scraper").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "startUrl": "https://www.techstars.com/portfolio",
  "maxItems": 10
}' |
apify call parseforge/techstars-portfolio-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,parseforge/techstars-portfolio-scraper"
        }
    }
}

```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/x5Smv30E9FYRHobJd/builds/L1dxJttza7WtglKv9/openapi.json