TECHNICAL DUE DILIGENCE
An independent read on the technology behind the deal
Most deals are decided on commercials and team. The technology itself only gets a serious look when something goes wrong post-close. Technical due diligence brings that look forward, in language a non-technical decision maker can act on.
WHAT IS COVERED
Six lenses on the target technology
Each diligence is shaped to the deal, but these are the dimensions that almost always need an honest read.
Architecture and technical debt
System design quality, scalability ceilings, and the debt that will slow the next 12-18 months.
Engineering practices
Delivery discipline, code quality signals, testing, and how repeatable the team actually is.
Security and compliance
Security posture and compliance readiness, including POPIA and other obligations where they apply.
Team and key-person risk
Team structure, knowledge concentration, and the people-side risks a deal usually surfaces too late.
Infrastructure and cost
Resilience, scalability headroom, disaster recovery, and whether the cost base scales sensibly.
AI and data capability
Where AI or machine learning is material to the target, an honest read on capability versus claims.
DELIVERABLE
Clear findings, severity, and implications
A report a deal team can actually use, not a 60-page technical document with no punchline.
- Written report
Typically 15-30 pages depending on scope, structured around the questions the deal team needs answered.
- Executive summary
A short, plain-language summary written for non-technical stakeholders and the decision committee.
- Prioritised findings
Findings ranked by severity so the deal team can see what is critical, what is fixable, and what is noise.
- Remediation estimates
Order-of-magnitude estimates where the economics of fixing something matter to the decision.
- Walk-through call
A follow-up call to walk through conclusions, answer questions, and surface anything the report cannot.
Typical engagements run 1-2 weeks from kickoff to final report and are priced from R75k-R200k depending on scope.
WHO THIS IS FOR
Independent technical judgment before a material decision
Diligence is commissioned by the people whose decision is on the line.
- Venture capital
Pre-investment technical diligence on a target before a term sheet is signed.
- Private equity
Independent evaluation of tech-enabled targets where the technology is material to the thesis.
- M&A acquirers
Diligence inside an acquisition process, including platform fit, integration risk, and key-person exposure.
- Boards
Independent technical reviews commissioned by a board that needs an outside read on the technology function.
- Founders pre-raise
Founders preparing for a funding round who want to pre-empt investor diligence and walk in informed.
Discuss a diligence briefLooking for an ongoing CTO engagement?