40%
Startups Accelerating
222
Decelerating
15
Sectors Positive
Key Finding: Engineering Velocity Landscape
In Q3 2026, 147 of 369 tracked startups (40%) showed positive engineering velocity acceleration, while 222 startups (60%) decelerated. The market is bifurcating between accelerating breakout teams and slowing incumbents.
The Healthcare sector leads with an average velocity change of +802%.
+507%
Average acceleration
+802%
Highest sector (Healthcare)
+713%
Second highest (Supply Chain)
Sector Rankings by Average Velocity Change
| # | Sector | Startups | Accel | Avg Δ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Healthcare | 26 | 8/26 | +802% |
| 2 | Supply Chain | 24 | 10/24 | +713% |
| 3 | PropTech | 16 | 9/16 | +683% |
| 4 | HR Tech | 17 | 9/17 | +680% |
| 5 | Robotics | 28 | 11/28 | +652% |
| 6 | Web3 | 42 | 13/42 | +556% |
| 7 | Social & Community | 19 | 6/19 | +556% |
| 8 | AgTech | 11 | 9/11 | +553% |
| 9 | E-commerce Infrastructure | 26 | 9/26 | +505% |
| 10 | Enterprise SaaS | 31 | 10/31 | +428% |
| 11 | Legal Tech | 22 | 10/22 | +427% |
| 12 | EdTech | 37 | 11/37 | +422% |
| 13 | Data Infrastructure | 35 | 11/35 | +369% |
| 14 | Gaming | 17 | 12/17 | +209% |
| 15 | Space Tech | 18 | 9/18 | +193% |
Methodology
Data from the VC Deal Flow Signal dataset. Engineering velocity is calculated from public GitHub commit activity across tracked startup orgs. "Accelerating" means the 14-day commit velocity exceeded the previous period. Data refreshed weekly. Full methodology: SSRN 6606558.