How we find and check every call
Funding lists go out of date fast. This is exactly how Compass finds calls, reads them, checks them and keeps them current, and what happens when something slips.
Step 1
Where calls come from
Public sources, followed back to the funder
Compass reads funders’ own pages, open databases and listing sites. A listing site is only a map: each call it mentions is followed back to the funder’s page, and that page is what we read.
We also look for funders we do not read yet in the links on the pages we already read, and builders can send us a call we are missing.
Step 2
New sources
A new source earns its place
When we find a site we do not read yet, we first check that its page loads, that its robots.txt allows us, and that it reads like a call for applications.
It then runs on a 21 day trial and stays only if a person approves at least one of its calls. We start at most 20 trials a week, so the review queue never grows faster than we can check it. A call a builder sends us is read at once and, if it is an open call, goes to a person.
Step 3
Reading a call
Every fact comes from the funder’s page
Each page is read for one fixed set of facts: who runs the call, what it offers, the deadline, the link to apply and who can apply.
Every requirement carries the exact sentence it came from. The apply link has to be a link on the funder’s page. If a fact is not on the page, it is flagged for a person, never guessed.
Step 4
Who checks it
A person reviews new calls
A person reviews every new call before it goes live, and any change to who can apply goes back to a person.
A source becomes proven only after a clean record: at least five of its calls approved, nine in ten of its recent calls approved, and few needing a correction. New calls from a proven source go live straight away and we spot check them. Anything uncertain, possible duplicates and calls for individuals still wait for a person. A withdrawn call, a report found right or a recent rejection sends the source back to full review.
Step 5
Staying current
Pages are read again every day
We read each page again daily, and listing sites with a feed every two hours. A page that only changes its clock or adverts is read weekly. An unchanged page refreshes the call’s last checked date. A moved deadline or amount updates the call. A call closes at its deadline.
If we cannot confirm a call on the funder’s page for 21 days, it comes off the board until we can. Every call shows when it was last checked.
Step 6
When something is wrong
Tell us, and a person looks
Every call page has Report a problem. A person reads every report, and the funder’s page is read again straight away, so a closed or changed call is often fixed before the report is opened. A report that turns out to be right counts against the source.
Step 7
What AI does
AI reads and drafts. It never decides who qualifies.
AI reads funders’ pages and drafts answers when you ask for them. Whether a venture fits is a check of each requirement against what you told us, and every call that goes live has been approved by a person or comes from a proven source.