Market research and strategy advisory for pre-seed and seed-stage startups.

We give early-stage founders the market evidence investors expect: defensible market sizing, competitive benchmarks, investor-landscape research and the data behind the market and traction sections of the deck.

Services

Fixed-scope, fixed-fee engagements designed for companies raising their first institutional round.

Market and Competitive Study

2–3 weeks · fixed fee

Market sizing (TAM / SAM / SOM), customer-segment research, competitor benchmarking, pricing and unit-economics comparison, and a positioning memo.

Fundraising Readiness Sprint

4–6 weeks · fixed fee

The market and competitive study plus investor-landscape research and a target list, demand and revenue forecast, market and traction sections of the investor deck, data-room market materials, and two mock investor sessions.

Fractional Research Analyst

Monthly retainer · 3-month minimum

Ongoing market monitoring, competitor tracking, investor-pipeline analytics, research support for investor diligence, and board and investor update materials.

Pitch Preparation

1–2 weeks · add-on

Preparation for investor questions on market, competition and go-to-market; objection handling; rehearsal sessions.

How we work

Every engagement follows the same discipline: a written scope, primary and secondary research, quantitative analysis, and deliverables a founder can defend in a diligence meeting.

Scope
A short statement of work with the questions to answer, data sources, deliverables and a fixed fee.
Research
Public filings, industry and government data, funding databases, product and pricing audits, and structured interviews with customers and operators.
Analysis
Market-size reconstruction, segmentation, competitor benchmarks and forecasts built in spreadsheets and Python, with every assumption documented.
Delivery
A written report, the underlying model and data, and a working session to turn findings into positioning and the investor narrative.

Research program

Alongside client work we publish our own research on the early-stage market in the San Francisco Bay Area. Two studies are in progress for 2026.

Bay Area Pre-Seed and Seed Market-Sizing Benchmark 2026

In progress

How early-stage companies size their markets and how investors test those estimates: standardized TAM / SAM / SOM reconstruction across software, AI infrastructure, fintech and climate, compared against third-party market data, with a sector benchmark table.

Early-Stage Investor Landscape, San Francisco Bay Area, 2026

In progress

A segmentation of pre-seed and seed investors by stage focus, sector thesis, check size, lead/follow behaviour and recent-round data, drawn from public filings, fund websites and funding databases.

About

Huyvin Advisory, Inc. is a California corporation based in San José. The firm was founded by Steven (Fengzhou) Li, a market research analyst with experience in U.S. market-entry research, segment sizing and competitive analysis for technology and energy-storage products, and in early-stage startup research in the Bay Area. He holds an M.S. in Management and Systems from New York University and a B.S. in Data Science from the University of San Francisco.

We work with a small number of clients at a time so that every study gets analyst-level attention from scoping to delivery.

Focus: Pre-seed and seed-stage technology companies
Sectors: Software, AI infrastructure, fintech, climate and energy
Location: San José, California — working with founders across the Bay Area and remotely
Industry: Marketing research and strategy consulting (NAICS 541910)

Contact

Tell us what you are building and when you plan to raise. We reply within two business days.