diff --git a/docs/showcase/starplex.mdx b/docs/showcase/starplex.mdx new file mode 100644 index 0000000..4c06647 --- /dev/null +++ b/docs/showcase/starplex.mdx @@ -0,0 +1,113 @@ +--- +title: StarPlex | AI-Powered Startup Intelligence Platform +description: An AI-powered startup intelligence platform that helps entrepreneurs validate their business ideas and find the right resources to succeed +sidebar_position: 26 +keywords: [StarPlex, Sonar Pro, business ideas, Perplexity, Sonar Pro, 3D globe, market validation, competitor research] +--- + +**StarPlex** is an AI-powered startup intelligence platform that helps entrepreneurs validate their business ideas and connect with the resources they need to succeed. Powered primarily by **Perplexity Sonar Pro**, it features an interactive **3D globe interface** as its main UI. Simply enter your startup idea, and watch as the AI engine analyzes and visualizes insights directly on the globe—mapping out competitors, markets, demographics, VCs, and potential co-founders across the world in real-time. + + + +## Features + +* **Market Validation Analysis** with AI-proof scoring, market cap estimation, and growth trend analysis +* **Interactive 3D Globe Interface** for visualizing global startup intelligence data +* **Competitor Research** with threat scoring and competitive landscape mapping +* **VC & Investor Matching** based on investment thesis and portfolio alignment +* **Co-founder Discovery** with compatibility scoring and expertise matching +* **Demographic Research** with heatmap visualization of target audience locations +* **AI Pitch Deck Generation** creating investor-ready presentations +* **Context-Aware Chatbot** with RAG integration across all research data + +## Prerequisites + +* Node.js 18+ and npm +* Python 3.8+ and pip +* Perplexity API key (Sonar Pro) +* Mapbox token and SERP API key + +## Installation + +```bash +# Clone the repository +git clone https://github.com/JerryWu0430/StarPlex.git +cd StarPlex + +# Backend setup +cd backend +pip install -r requirements.txt + +# Frontend setup +cd ../frontend +npm install +``` + +## Configuration + +Create `.env` file in the backend directory: +```ini +PERPLEXITY_API_KEY=your_perplexity_api_key +MAPBOX_TOKEN=your_mapbox_token +SERPAPI_KEY=your_serpapi_key +``` + +## Usage + +1. **Start Backend**: + ```bash + cd backend + python main.py + ``` + +2. **Start Frontend**: + ```bash + cd frontend + npm run dev + ``` + +3. **Access Application**: Open http://localhost:3000 and enter your startup idea + +4. **Explore Intelligence**: Use the 3D globe to visualize competitors, VCs, demographics, and co-founders + +5. **Generate Assets**: Create pitch decks and chat with the AI assistant about your analysis + +## How StarPlex Uses Perplexity Sonar API + +StarPlex leverages Perplexity's Sonar API through a **multi-module intelligence architecture**: + +**Market Analysis Engine** +Uses Sonar Pro for comprehensive market validation, combining Google Trends data with AI analysis to generate market cap estimates, AI-disruption scores, and growth projections with structured JSON outputs. + +**Competitor Intelligence** +Employs multiple concurrent Sonar queries to identify competing companies, funding status, and threat levels. Each competitor receives a 1-10 threat score with detailed competitive positioning analysis. + +**VC & Co-founder Matching** +Leverages Sonar's real-time web knowledge to find relevant investors and potential co-founders, scoring matches based on investment thesis alignment, expertise fit, and geographic proximity. + +**Context-Aware Business Assistant** +Implements RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) by feeding all research data into Sonar conversations, creating a knowledgeable startup advisor that can answer questions about market positioning, competitive threats, and strategic decisions. + +**Geographic Intelligence** +Combines Sonar's demographic insights with Mapbox geocoding to create interactive heatmaps showing where target audiences are concentrated globally. + +## Code Explanation + +* **Backend**: Python FastAPI with AsyncIO for concurrent Perplexity API calls across multiple analysis modules +* **Frontend**: Next.js with React 19, featuring Cobe for 3D globe visualization and Mapbox GL for interactive mapping +* **AI Integration**: Multi-model Perplexity strategy using Sonar Pro for complex analysis and Sonar for faster queries +* **Data Pipeline**: Intelligent caching, structured JSON responses, and real-time streaming for immediate user feedback +* **Visualization**: Dynamic data binding between Perplexity insights and interactive globe/map interfaces + +## Links + +- [GitHub Repository](https://github.com/JerryWu0430/StarPlex) +- [Live Demo](https://starplex.app) +- [Devpost Submission](https://devpost.com/software/starplex) \ No newline at end of file