Custom software and trusted AI for founders and innovation teams — with a clear path from idea to shipped product.
Before you buy code, validate the build
Most early software budgets get wasted before the real build begins — on unclear scope, throwaway prototypes, boilerplate repos, disconnected freelancers, or half-working AI agents that demo well but do not survive real use.
A 2-week Software Planning Sprint ($3k–$5k) gives you a proposal-ready build brief and a clear recommendation: build the first commercializable piece in a 6-Week Fractional CTO Sprint, move into a larger Build Sprint, reduce scope, or pause.
Explore the Software Planning SprintNot ready for a call? Download a practical guide on first steps, AI governance, or Build vs Buy vs Sprint.
What we build
Start with one workflow done reliably — a planning sprint, a governed AI workflow, or a scoped build — then expand from a clear technical path instead of a stack of disconnected vendors. Prototype helps teams move from “we should use AI somehow” to workflow-specific assistants that are designed, governed, implemented, and useful.
When the opportunity is real but the path is unclear, we turn product goals into scope, architecture, risks, sequencing, budget assumptions, and a clear build decision — paid discovery, not guesswork on your dime.
Start with a sprintBuild SaaS products, internal tools, integrations, portals, dashboards, and workflow systems with senior technical oversight from planning through deployment.
Build the softwareDesign and implement AI-supported workflows where privacy, IP, permissions, human oversight, evaluation, and operational clarity matter — from responsible sales research and proposal writing to internal assistants and private knowledge workspaces.
Plan an AI workflowBest for teams that want company knowledge available through a permission-aware private assistant — proposals, SOPs, client notes, policies, project docs, onboarding materials, and repeatable internal workflows.
Install a private workspaceSelected product, platform, and systems work
Proof
Hands-on experience shipping complex software and technical strategy — across large-scale data platforms, SaaS foundations, sensitive workflow systems, wellness technology, and commercialization.
View case studies
Data platform
Build · Large-scale data + architecture
Led architecture and delivery for a cultural data platform, normalizing millions of records across multiple institutions into a searchable public product.
Read case note
SaaS
Build · Retainer · Modern SaaS
Built SaaS workflow infrastructure with authentication, invite systems, client/staff portals, and multi-tenant product architecture.
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Legaltech
Build · Complex domain + ACL/RBAC
Implemented relationship-based ACL/RBAC and onboarding workflows for a legal-tech MVP.
Read case note
Wellness SaaS
Build · Founder + operator proof
Founded and built a mental wellness SaaS with daily reflection, mood tracking, journaling, Stripe integration, launch campaigns, and early user acquisition.
Read case note
Growth
Advisory · Growth + commercialization
Ran paid acquisition campaigns with measurable ecommerce growth and efficient acquisition economics.
Read case noteProduct journey
Prototype builds real software and technical strategies — turning ambiguity into a build plan from early product work through launch and ongoing leadership. Product-market fit, business readiness, regulatory constraints, architecture, sequencing, and hands-on development sit on that path.
Ten milestones from first discovery to established leadership — product, business, compliance, and delivery advance together. Prototype leads the Planning Sprint and Fractional CTO Sprint, then Build Sprint or Retainer.
Framework adapted from Alberta Innovates.
Before you buy code, validate the build — a proposal-ready brief and recommended next step.
Build the first commercializable piece — a demoable prototype, eval toy, workflow, or product slice plus a sell/validate path.
Senior technical ownership when the idea needs proof before a larger build. Explore the Fractional CTO Sprint.
Ship the production-grade software slice — MVP foundation, integration, portal, or implementation-heavy build when scope is approved.
Keep technical leadership in place as the product, team, and roadmap evolve.
Ongoing architecture, delivery governance, and executive technical translation after the build cycles.
Client stories
“Prototype changed how we build and ship at Bevel. They combine deep engineering with product thinking — streamlining our architecture and helping us ship new features roughly four times faster, at a fraction of our previous cost.”
Process
The Planning Sprint is a focused, two-week first step where Prototype acts as your technical owner — producing a proposal-ready build brief and a recommended next step: Fractional CTO Sprint, Build Sprint, smaller scope, or pause.
Define the product opportunity, constraints, and success criteria.
Translate ambiguity into target users, the first buildable slice, and a high-level technical approach.
Identify what to build first, what to defer, and what to avoid.
An approved, proposal-ready build brief and a clear recommendation — Fractional CTO Sprint, Build Sprint, reduced scope, or pause.
You leave knowing what to build first and what comes next. Planning Sprint first, then the Fractional CTO Sprint or Build Sprint when the path is clear.
Book a software strategy callTell us what you are building, improving, funding, or de-risking. We will help identify the right next step — a planning sprint, a build, a private AI workspace, or ongoing technical leadership.
