Will this disrupt how the company runs?#
No. The buyer handles the copying, and the company keeps using its systems throughout. The company's part is mainly giving access and answering questions.
Data licensingBefore a filing
Liquidity from the records your company already holds.
AI labs are paying companies six and seven figures to license their internal records. If your company is under financial pressure but hasn’t filed, the board can decide on its own, the funds arrive within weeks of signing, and the company pays nothing.
Estimate your data's valueYour estimate
About three minutesData value estimate
- The company
- The records
- Language and access
- The licence
- Check your answers
Why license before a filingWhy before a filing
The same licence is simpler and faster before any proceeding begins, and the decision stays with the company.
QuestionBefore a filingAfter a filing
Who decidesThe board aloneThe trustee or receiver, or the company with its monitor, often with court approval
Where the money goesTo the company, to use as it needsTo the company or the estate, for creditors
Time to fundsWeeks after signingWeeks after signing, plus any approval
The recordsStill running, with the staff who know themOften at risk as subscriptions end and staff leave
Cost to the companyNoneNone
How it compares with other sources of liquidityHow it compares
| Feature | Data licence | Bridge loan | New equity | Selling assets |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cost to the company | None | Interest and fees | None in cash | Advisers' and sale costs |
| Security or collateral | None | Usually | None | Not applicable |
| Dilution | None | None | Yes | None |
| Keep the asset | Yes: ownership and use | Yes | Yes | No |
| Repayable | No | Yes | No | No |
| Typical time to funds | Weeks | Weeks | Months | Weeks to months |
General characteristics of each option, not the terms of any particular deal.
From estimate to payment
The company applies to the buyer and signs with it directly. We explain the options and help with the application, at no cost to the company.
Estimate
Answer the questions above. You'll see an indicative value range, and whether the company's data fits what buyers are looking for.
A conversation about the options
We're happy to talk it through first: what buyers look for, how the process works, and what to expect. There's no commitment.
The application
The company applies to the buyer directly, through our introduction. We help prepare the application so it presents the records well and answers the buyer's likely questions.
Offer
The buyer reviews the application and samples of the records, then makes a detailed offer. The company can review samples of what would be used.
Signing and access
The company signs directly with the buyer and gives it access to the systems that hold the records. After that, the buyer does all the technical work, for its own AI.
Payment
The buyer pays the company as the contract sets out. It pays our fee separately, so the company pays nothing.
A worked example
How a licence typically comes together for a company that hasn’t filed. The board decides, and we help along the way. This is a composite example, not a real company.
- Week 0
The CFO runs the estimate
Ten questions, about three minutes. The estimate comes back at $300K–$600K.
- Week 1
A conversation about the options
We walk the CEO and CFO through what buyers look for, why an exclusive licence pays more, and how little the process asks of the team.
- Week 1
The application
The company applies to the buyer through our introduction. We help prepare the application, covering the systems, the years of history and the headcount over time.
- Weeks 2–4
Review and offer
The buyer reviews samples of the records and offers an exclusive licence, within the estimated range.
- Week 5
The board signs
The board approves. The company signs directly with the buyer and gives it access to its systems. Staff keep working as before.
- Weeks 6–8
Extraction and payment
The buyer copies and anonymizes the records for its own AI, and pays the company when the data is accepted. It pays our fee separately.
The outcome
Liquidity in about eight weeks, with no debt, no dilution and no change to how the company runs. It still owns its records and keeps using them, and it paid nothing for our help.
Questions, answered
Read the full guideThe business
Does the company lose its data, or control of it?#
No. It's a licence, not a sale. The company keeps ownership and keeps using its records, and the buyer gets the right to use a copy on the terms of the contract. If the licence is exclusive, the records go to the buyer only. Most labs want this, which is why it pays more.
Is the company involved after signing?#
Only to give the buyer access to the systems that hold the records, so it can take a copy. The buyer does all the technical work, at its own cost, and uses the records to train its own AI.
Is this a loan?#
No. Nothing is repaid, no security is taken, and nothing is owed if the buyer decides not to proceed.
Does anyone have to know?#
What you tell Proceedings stays with us until the company decides to apply. Confidentiality between the company and the buyer is set out in their contract.
Working with Proceedings
Does the company apply to the buyer itself?#
Yes. The company applies to the buyer directly, through our introduction, and signs with the buyer directly. Before that, we explain the options, help prepare the application, and answer questions through to signing.
What does it cost the company?#
Nothing. The buyer pays Proceedings a percentage of what the company receives, separately from what it pays the company. Before anything is signed, we tell you who pays us and how our fee is calculated.
What about employees' and customers' personal information?#
Anonymization is the buyer's responsibility. Its team removes personal and identifying details before anything is used, and its lawyers decide what can be used. That is written into the company's contract.
Why does Proceedings offer this?#
We follow companies under financial pressure every day. For many of them, their records are now an asset they didn't know they had. Helping them turn it into liquidity is useful work, and the buyer pays for it.
Money and timing
How quickly is the company paid?#
The estimate takes minutes, and a first conversation can happen this week. The buyer's review and offer usually take a few weeks. Payment follows signing, usually once the data is delivered or accepted.
How is the price set?#
The buyer sets the final figure after reviewing the records. Our estimate is a guide. It places the company in a range based on what buyers look at: how many people, over how many years, in how many connected systems, in which industry and language, and whether the licence is exclusive.
Published buyer tiers start at $100K for qualified companies, rise to $500K+ for large datasets, and reach $1M+ for highly unique data.
What if the company has fewer than 30 employees?#
Buyers' enterprise programs look for companies that had 30 or more employees, so smaller companies usually aren't a fit today. Email us anyway. If that changes, we'll let you know.
What if the company files later?#
A licence is a contract like any other, so tell your advisers about it. If you're already working with restructuring advisers, bring them in. We're glad to walk them through it too.
What if some records are in French?#
Buyers are licensing English-language records today, so the estimate counts only the English share. Tell us the mix, and we'll let you know if that changes.
Happy to start with a conversation.
We'll explain the options, what buyers look for and what to expect before the company commits to anything. The buyer pays us. The company pays nothing.