A RootData alternative for finding people in Web3
Short answer: RootData is a database of crypto projects, funds and funding rounds, with team lists on project pages. It is good for research. When you need a person to write to, the BD lead, the listing manager, a KOL in a country, a recruiter, it often shows a team list without that role, people who already left, or an organisation with no contact. Firsay searches X and crypto Telegram for the person, proves the current role from their own profile and gives a public contact.
Try one of the test requests yourself, no signup: "Find the BD lead at Jupiter".
Run this search freeThe test: the same 20 requests in both tools
We typed the same 20 people searches into RootData on November 3, 2026 and into Firsay on November 5, 2026. A result counted only when the person's current role matched the request. Where RootData has no search for a request, we used its project pages and categories by hand.
| Request | RootData | Firsay | Better answer |
|---|---|---|---|
| BD lead at Jupiter | Team list, no BD role | @RomDotSol, Institutional BD, from his own X BIO | Firsay |
| Listing manager at Gate | Executives only | Nearest contact (BD at Gate, own Telegram BIO) plus the official business email; nobody states the exact title | Firsay, partly |
| Founder of Hyperliquid | Correct founders | Correct founder, named by 7 X profiles | Tie |
| 10 BD managers at crypto exchanges | 4, all former | 11 current BD people with a Telegram or X contact | Firsay |
| 10 founders of DePIN projects | 3, one project opened by hand | 8 across different projects | Firsay |
| 10 founders of Solana launchpads | 3 | 1 | RootData |
| Head of Partnerships at Arbitrum | 0 | Official project contact only | Tie, both weak |
| 10 recruiters at Web3 projects | 3 | 10 | Firsay |
| 10 market makers for small-cap tokens | Firms without people | 6 firms with their official accounts | Firsay, partly |
| 10 Solana KOLs with 5k to 20k followers | Not supported | 20, inside the follower range | Firsay |
| 10 crypto KOLs from Nigeria | No country filter | 10, location confirmed | Firsay |
| 10 pre-seed VC funds in AI x crypto | 0 people | 6 funds and angels | Firsay |
| 10 Web3 marketing agencies | Organisations, no contacts | 10 with their own X profile | Firsay |
| 10 community managers at L2 projects | 0 | 0 | Tie, both zero |
| CMO of a Base ecosystem project | 0 | 0 | Tie, both zero |
| Projects that need KOLs right now | Not supported | 10 live requests with the message and a contact | Firsay |
| 10 founders of RWA projects | 4 | 8 | Firsay |
| 10 Telegram admins of crypto trading groups | No Telegram data | 5 group owners | Firsay |
| Ex-Binance employees who are now founders | 1 | 10, but mixed (includes a current Binance executive) | Firsay, partly |
| Developer relations at Sui | 4, three of them current Sui DevRel heads | 1, weak | RootData |
Score: Firsay 11, Firsay partly 3, ties 4, RootData 2. Both tools found nobody for community managers at L2 projects and the CMO of a Base project. Firsay is our product.
Where RootData is the better choice
For research on projects: funding rounds, investors, token data and the founding team of a known project. In our test it was clearly better for developer relations at Sui, where it listed three current DevRel heads, and for founders of Solana launchpads. If you study a market before you reach out, RootData is useful.
Where Firsay is the better choice
You need the person who does the job now. RootData showed four exchange BD people, all of whom had left. Firsay found eleven current ones, each with the line from their own BIO.
You need a contact. Firsay returns a public Telegram or X contact it can prove. In our test RootData had no Telegram contacts.
You filter by things a project database does not hold: KOLs by follower range or country, recruiters, Telegram group admins, people asking for KOLs this week.
You work in Telegram. Firsay reads thousands of public crypto chats and channels and says which groups you can post in.
How teams use both
Use RootData to pick the projects worth contacting, then Firsay to find the right person at each one and write to them on Telegram or X.
Questions
Is Firsay a RootData alternative? For finding people to contact, often yes. For project and investor research, RootData is stronger.
Does RootData have Telegram contacts? Not in our test. Firsay gives a Telegram or X contact when it can prove one.
How was the comparison done? The same 20 requests in both tools, two days apart; a result counted only with a matching current role.
Check the proof yourself. Ask for any role at any crypto project.
Try "10 BD managers at crypto exchanges"Related: Apollo alternative · Firsay vs Clay · Find crypto KOLs · Pricing · FAQ