Hal9 helps startup founders launch AI-powered products in 30 days. Learn why we built specifically for founders, not enterprises or data science teams.
A few months ago, someone asked me point blank: "Who's Hal9 really for?"
Fair question. Our website says we help startups launch AI products in 30 days. But I realized we've never been super explicit about why we built specifically for founders, or what that even means.
So let me be clear: Hal9 is built for startup founders. Not enterprises. Not data science teams. Not Fortune 500 companies looking to pilot AI initiatives.
Just founders trying to get from zero to one.
And there's a reason for that.
When Pedro and I started Hal9, we weren't trying to be another dev shop. We'd both watched too many founders waste months building the wrong thing, or burn through six figures on agencies that didn't understand the startup game.
The problem we kept seeing was this: most AI platforms are built for either massive enterprises with huge budgets (think Vertex AI, SageMaker) or for technical teams who already know what they're doing. There's almost nothing in the middle for the solo founder who has a great idea, maybe some industry expertise, but needs help actually building the thing.
That's the gap we're filling.
We're not trying to compete with Google or Amazon on enterprise infrastructure. And we're not trying to replace no-code tools for people who just want to experiment. We're aiming at that critical phase where you need to go from prototype to real product, from MVP to first customer, from idea to actual traction.
That's a founder problem. And it requires a founder-first solution.
Here's what it looks like in practice:
We act like fractional co-founders, not contractors. When a founder comes to us with an idea, we don't just take orders and build whatever they ask for. We push back. We question assumptions. We help them scope down to what actually matters for their first 30 days. Because we have skin in the game. If their product flops, we don't get referrals. If it works, we both win.
We work at founder speed. Enterprises move in quarters. Agencies work in months. Founders need to move in weeks. That's why we've built reusable components, templates, and infrastructure that let us ship an MVP in 30 days instead of 6 months. You're not paying us to reinvent the wheel. You're paying us to help you ship fast.
We charge founder-friendly prices. Our startup plan starts at $2K/month. That's accessible for bootstrapped founders who are pre-revenue or just getting their first customers. Compare that to hiring a full engineering team or paying an agency $50K+ for a custom build. We're trying to democratize access to AI development, not gatekeep it.
We understand founder constraints. Most founders aren't technical. They don't have a CTO yet. They're juggling product, sales, fundraising, and everything else. They need someone who can handle the entire technical side so they can focus on what they're good at: selling, validating, iterating. That's the role we play.
Let me get even more specific. Here are the types of founders we've helped in the past year:
You've got deep industry knowledge. Maybe you're in fintech, healthcare, legal, or real estate. You see a huge opportunity for AI to solve a problem you understand better than anyone. But you don't code. You need a technical partner who can turn your vision into a working product without you managing three different dev teams.
Example: MoneyHaven, a fintech founder who built an AI-driven tanda app with us in under 30 days.
You can code, but AI is a different beast. You've tried prompt engineering, played with Replit or Lovable, maybe even got an 80% working prototype. But now you're stuck. The backend is missing. The AI isn't performing well enough. You need someone who actually knows how to productionize AI.
Example: We rebuilt a founder's vibe-coded app in 7 days that he'd been struggling with for 3 months.
You're thinking about hiring a freelance dev team, or maybe even acquiring a whole company just to get the tech. Before you spend six figures, talk to us. We've saved founders $200K+ by helping them build exactly what they need for a fraction of the cost.
Real example: A founder almost bought a company for $500K. We built the MVP in 14 days and got them 3 customers in the first month.
Let me also be clear about who Hal9 is not for:
Enterprise teams. If you're a Fortune 500 company with a massive budget and complex compliance requirements, we're probably not the right fit. You need platforms like Vertex AI or SageMaker that can handle your scale and governance needs.
Data science teams at established companies. If you already have a team of ML engineers and data scientists who know what they're doing, you don't need us. You need infrastructure and tooling, not a fractional co-founder.
Hobbyists or side projects. If you're just experimenting with AI for fun or learning, that's great. But we're focused on helping people build real businesses. If you're not planning to charge customers or raise money, no-code tools are probably a better fit.
People who want an agency to take orders. We're opinionated. We'll push back if we think you're building the wrong thing. If you want someone to just execute your vision without questioning it, we're not a good match. But if you want a partner who will help you think through your strategy and avoid costly mistakes, let's talk.
If you're comparing platforms right now, here's how to think about it:
No-code tools (like Replit, Lovable, Bubble) are great for prototyping and getting something visual in front of users quickly. But they fall apart when you need real backend infrastructure, data pipelines, or production-grade AI. Use them for validation, not for building your actual product.
Enterprise platforms (like Vertex AI, SageMaker, Azure ML) are built for massive scale and complex workflows. They're powerful, but overkill for early-stage startups. You'll spend more time configuring infrastructure than building your product. And they're expensive.
Code-first platforms (like Hugging Face, Replit) give you flexibility but require deep technical expertise. If you're not an ML engineer, you'll hit a wall fast. And even if you are technical, you're still reinventing a lot of the scaffolding.
Hal9 sits in the middle. We give you the speed of no-code with the power of custom development. We've already built the foundational infrastructure (user auth, chat interfaces, data connections, backend services) so you don't have to. Then we customize the AI features to match your exact use case. You get a real product, not just a prototype. And you get it in 30 days, not 6 months.
If you're evaluating AI development options, here's what to look for:
I get asked sometimes why we don't try to serve everyone. Why limit ourselves to just founders?
Because focus creates value. When you try to be everything to everyone, you end up being mediocre at all of it. By focusing exclusively on startup founders, we've built:
We've helped founders go from idea to first paying customer in under 30 days. We've saved founders hundreds of thousands of dollars by helping them avoid expensive mistakes. We've built MVPs that landed first customers, closed funding rounds, and validated entirely new product categories.
That's only possible because we're laser-focused on one persona: you.
Hal9 helps startup founders launch AI-powered products in 30 days. We're your fractional co-founder for the technical side. We work at founder speed, charge founder-friendly prices, and have skin in the game.
If you're a solo founder, a non-technical founder, or a technical founder who needs AI expertise, we're built for you.
If you're an enterprise, a data science team, or someone who just wants to experiment, there are better options out there.
We're not trying to be everything. We're trying to be the best partner for founders building AI products. That's the bet we're making.
Book a 30-minute strategy call with us to talk through your idea. We'll help you figure out what to build, how to validate it, and how to get to your first customer in 30 days.
Yes. Most of our customers are non-technical founders. You bring the industry knowledge and customer insight. We bring the technical execution. That's the whole point.
Dev shops and freelancers are paid to execute, not to question your strategy. We act like a fractional co-founder. We'll push back if we think you're building the wrong thing. Our incentives are aligned with your success.
Our startup plan starts at $2K/month. Most founders start with a 30-day MVP sprint to get something in front of customers, then continue iterating from there.
No. We work with any founder who wants to add AI to their product. Whether you're building a fintech app, a healthcare tool, or a B2B SaaS platform, if AI is part of your vision, we can help.
Maybe. If your team is strong on traditional software but weak on AI, we can be your AI co-founder. But if you already have ML engineers and just need infrastructure, we're probably not the right fit.
Most founders continue working with us to iterate, add features, and scale. We become part of your extended team. But there's no long-term lock-in. If you want to take the product in-house later, you own everything we build.
That's exactly why you should start with a 30-day MVP. We'll help you build the smallest version that can test your core assumption. Then you can validate with real users before investing more.
Use no-code for quick prototypes. Use enterprise platforms if you're a large company with complex requirements. Use Hal9 if you're a founder who needs to go from MVP to real product to first customer fast.