Frequently asked questions

Answers about what Custard does, how it works, and who it is for.

What makes Custard different from running discovery myself or through I-Corps?

Confidence in the answer. Every recommendation is traceable back to specific conversations, weighted against sixteen readiness dimensions, and stress-tested against alternatives. You finish with a recommendation you can support with evidence.

Do I have to be technical to use it?

No. If you can describe your research in a paragraph, Custard takes it from there. The product is built for faculty, postdocs, grad students, and tech transfer staff, not engineers.

What does Custard actually produce?

A Commercialization Evidence Report with a buying-group graph, persona research, interview transcripts and synthesis, sixteen readiness scores, and a recommended path: license, spin out, partner, pivot, or stop. All exportable.

Will the AI talk to my customers for me?

No. The conversations stay yours. Custard does everything around them: finding the right people, drafting outreach in your voice, scheduling, recording, transcribing, and synthesizing. You stay in the human seat.

Is my unpublished research safe?

Your project data is private to your account by default and we never train models on your project content. Check with your tech transfer office before entering sensitive pre-disclosure material.

What if I decide not to commercialize?

That is a valid outcome. Custard surfaces stop criteria early so you can stop, pivot, or reframe before you spend a year on the wrong market.

Can I bring my own list of people to interview?

Yes. Upload a CSV or paste contacts and Custard will work alongside its own sourced lists. Outreach, scheduling, and synthesis all run the same way.

Does Custard work for non-deep-tech research?

Yes. The discovery process applies to any research with a possible end user, including social science, education, public health, and applied humanities work.

Can universities use Custard across multiple teams?

Yes. Custard supports program, cohort, and institutional use. Contact us to discuss program pricing.