Checklist
Pre-launch checklist for a first product
What we check with founders before a public launch. Tick items off as you go; nothing here is a download.
4 sections, 16 items
For startups
Get to a launch-ready product without hiring a full team first
A senior team builds your first version in phases, so you can show it to users and investors early, and keep building on the same code once it works. One monthly price, cancel at the end of any billing period.
What usually slows early teams down
Most founders we talk to have more ideas than engineering time. These are the problems we help with first.
- No technical co-founder yet
- You need someone to make sound architecture choices now that won't have to be thrown away after the first funding round.
- Prototypes that can't grow
- A no-code or freelance prototype proved the idea but can't handle real users, payments or a second platform.
- Investor questions about the tech
- Investors ask who owns the code, how it's secured and whether it can scale. You need clear answers and documents.
- Unpredictable cost
- Hourly invoices make runway planning hard. A flat monthly price lets you budget engineering like any other fixed cost.
Typical challenges in detail
How each of these problems usually shows up, and what we change in response.
ChallengeWhat it looks likeWhat we do about it
- No technical co-founder yet
- What it looks likeArchitecture choices get made by whoever is available. Months later, nobody can explain why a database, framework or vendor was picked, and the first engineering hire wants to start over.
- What we do about itA lead engineer records each significant decision in a short architecture note in your repository: what was chosen, what was rejected and why. A future CTO inherits reasoning, not just code.
- Prototypes that can't grow
- What it looks likeThe no-code or freelance prototype hits its limits: manual workarounds, payments bolted on, no tests, and nothing that would run as a mobile app.
- What we do about itWe keep what the prototype taught you, including flows, copy and user feedback, and rebuild the core on a standard TypeScript stack, moving early users and their data across.
- Investor questions about the tech
- What it looks likeA fund's technical adviser asks for an architecture overview, a dependency list and your security practices, and the answers live in someone's head.
- What we do about itThe materials investors typically ask for are kept current as part of the work, listed in the due diligence section further down this page, so there's no scramble when a round gets serious.
- Unpredictable cost
- What it looks likeHourly invoices swing month to month, and infrastructure and AI bills arrive without warning, which makes runway planning guesswork.
- What we do about itOne flat monthly plan, a pause option once a year, and a written estimate of hosting, AI and third-party costs before you commit to an architecture.
An MVP built in phases
Each phase ends with something you can put in front of users. Timelines vary with scope; these are typical for a Starter or Growth plan.
- 01
Weeks 1 to 2
Scope and clickable prototype
We turn your idea into a short product spec and a clickable prototype you can test with early users and show in pitch meetings.
- 02
Weeks 3 to 8
Core product
Accounts, the main workflow and an admin view, shipped weekly to a staging site so you can watch it take shape.
- 03
Weeks 8 to 12
Private beta
Payments, onboarding, analytics and monitoring, released to a small group of real users. Feedback becomes requests in the queue.
- 04
Ongoing
Public launch and iteration
App store submissions or public sign-up, then a steady weekly cadence of improvements driven by what users actually do.
How plans map to stages
Most teams change plans as they go. This is the usual path; you can move up or down at the end of any billing period.
StageTypical planWhat's in scopeMove on when
Idea and prototype
Typical planStarter
$390 per month
What's in scopeProduct spec, clickable prototype and a technical plan you can show to early users and investors.
Move on whenUsers are willing to try a first version.
First version
Typical planStarter
$390 per month
What's in scopeAccounts, the core workflow and an admin view, shipped weekly to staging.
Move on whenYou need web and mobile at once, or design and engineering in parallel.
Private beta and launch
Typical planGrowth
$790 per month
What's in scopePayments, onboarding, analytics, app store releases, with Papel Cloud and Papel Monitor included.
Move on whenPaying customers depend on the product every day.
After a raise
Typical planScale
$1,490 per month
What's in scopeFour parallel requests, AI features with Claude, a 99.9% uptime SLA on hosted apps.
Move on whenYou start hiring in-house; we help onboard your engineers and step down to a smaller plan.
Illustrative example, not a client case study
Example engagement
Two founders move from a no-code prototype to a first version
Picture a two-founder B2B startup with a no-code prototype and a dozen interested pilot customers. The prototype proved demand but can't handle team accounts, payments or the integrations pilots are asking for.
Weeks 1 to 2
Scope and prototype
We review the prototype and pilot feedback, write a short spec for the first version, and produce a clickable prototype the founders use in investor meetings.
Weeks 3 to 8
Rebuild the core
Team accounts, the main workflow and an admin view ship weekly to staging. Data from the no-code tool is migrated with a tested import script.
Weeks 8 to 12
Private beta
Payments, onboarding emails, analytics and monitoring are added, and pilot customers move onto the new product in small groups.
After launch
Move up a plan
With paying customers asking for a mobile app, the founders move to the Growth plan to build it alongside the web roadmap.
Where it ends up
The founders own a tested codebase in their own GitHub organization, pilot users kept their data, and the due diligence materials were ready before investor conversations needed them.
Startup credits can fund your infrastructure
Cloud and AI providers, including AWS and Anthropic, run startup programs that may offer credits to eligible companies. If you have credits or are applying for them, we design your hosting and AI features to make good use of them. Eligibility and amounts are decided by each provider, so we don't count on credits when we estimate your costs.
Ready for investor technical due diligence
When a fundraise gets serious, investors or their advisers may review your technology. We keep the materials they typically ask for current as we build.
Clear code ownership
All code lives in your GitHub organization, and paid work transfers to your company under our Terms of Service.
Architecture overview
A diagram and short write-up of how the system fits together, what it runs on and how it would scale.
Dependency and license inventory
A list of open-source dependencies and their licenses, so there are no surprises in legal review.
Security practices summary
How access is controlled, how secrets are stored, how data is backed up and how vulnerabilities are patched.
Test coverage and release history
Automated tests, a CI pipeline and written release notes that show the product is maintained, not just built.
Cost and infrastructure summary
What the product costs to run today, what drives that cost, and what changes as usage grows.
Recommended plans
All work is delivered under a monthly development subscription. These plans suit most teams in your position.
PlanWhy it fitsLink
Starter
$390 per month, best fit
One request at a time on one codebase. The usual starting point for a first version.
Start with StarterGrowth
$790 per month
Web and mobile together, with a dedicated designer. Common after a first raise or when launching on both app stores.
Start with Growth
Common questions
Anything else, ask us on a call.
Can we start small and move up later?
Yes. You can move to a different plan as your needs change. Many startups begin on Starter and move to Growth when they add a second platform or start a private beta.
What if we hire our own engineers later?
That's a good outcome. The code is already in your repositories with documentation and tests, and we can help onboard your first hires before you step down or cancel your plan.
Do you take equity instead of payment?
No. We work on paid subscriptions only, which keeps ownership simple for you and your investors.
Can you guarantee we'll receive startup credits?
No. Credit programs are run by the providers, who set their own eligibility rules and amounts. We can tell you what information applications usually ask for and design your setup to use credits if you receive them.
What should we budget beyond the plan price?
Hosting, AI model usage, app store fees and third-party services are billed to accounts you own. We give you a written estimate before choosing an architecture, and point out which costs grow with usage.
Can you help with the technical side of fundraising?
Yes. We prepare the architecture overview and other due diligence materials, and can answer technical questions from investors' advisers in writing or on a call. We don't present ourselves as your co-founders or employees.
Services you'll likely use
All services
Web applications
Customer portals, dashboards and SaaS products built on Next.js and TypeScript.
Mobile apps
iOS and Android apps in React Native or native Swift and Kotlin.
Product design
Research, UX flows and interface design that engineers can ship.
AI integration
Assistants, search and document workflows built on Anthropic's Claude.
Looking for something else?
Tell us what you're building.
A 30-minute call with an engineer, not a sales script. You'll leave with a scope, a plan recommendation and a start date.