Crossing the valley of death in technology-based ventures: amended protocol for a mechanism-based systematic literature review (v2)

This document is version 2 of the protocol for a systematic literature review on how commercial, technical, organisational and financial uncertainties interlock as technology-based ventures (new technology-based firms, deep-tech start-ups and academic spin-offs) attempt to cross the “valley of death” between invention and market viability. It amends the original protocol registered on OSF on 12 June 2026 (https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/3AU7M). The amendment revises the time window (2003–2026), the search strategy (Scopus and Web of Science Core Collection, searched on 21 October 2026; 1,476 records identified, 1,082 after deduplication), the eligibility criteria (population–concept–evidence, exclusion codes E1–E7), the screening procedure (calibration round with κ ≥ 0.70 before independent dual screening) and the synthesis plan (mechanism-based synthesis with a cross-domain linkage matrix). All deviations from version 1 are listed and justified in Section 10. This amendment was deposited before title/abstract re-screening began. Reporting follows PRISMA 2020 and the Reporting Expectations in Management Reviews (REMR).