The math changed in 2024

Your dev shop charges $12K/mo. One AI-native engineer does it for $3,150.

Founders who made the switch saved an average of $106K last year — without losing engineering velocity. See exactly where your money is going.

$106K avg. annual savings vs. dev shop
67% of dev shop work now AI-handled
$3,150 per month vs. $12K+ with scope creep
1–3 days delivery vs. 3–6 week agency quotes
The Problem

Dev shops don't make money when your project ships. They make money when it takes longer.

I

You're paying 2022 prices for 2026 work

AI agents handle two-thirds of the routine work agencies staff junior engineers to do. They haven't passed the savings to you.

II

Their margin is your burn rate

Hire at $X, bill at $3X. Your seed round subsidizes their overhead, their sales team, and their CEO's LinkedIn content.

III

Translation risk is revenue

Every handoff loses fidelity. Every misunderstanding is another sprint. The model punishes clarity and rewards confusion.

IV

They build to spec. You needed to learn.

Startups need learning velocity. An agency has zero incentive to help you discover your spec is wrong. Discovery is a change order.

The Shift

The Unit of One

One person. Embedded in your context. Inside your decision loop. No translation layer. No hourly billing incentive to go slow.

Dev Shop Model
  • Bills hourly for uncertain work
  • PM, tech lead, devs, QA team
  • Scope creep is profit
  • 6-week quote minimum
  • Vendor lock-in by design
  • Discovery costs extra
~$12K/mo with scope creep
Unit of One
  • Aligned with your outcome
  • One senior engineer, AI-augmented
  • Pivots are expected
  • Weekend sprints, real velocity
  • Portable, auditable code
  • Discovery is the point
$3,150/mo flat, no surprises
"The industry's core metric shifted from 'how many engineers do you have?' to 'how much agentic leverage can you orchestrate?'"
How It Works

Plan your transition

01

Audit your current setup

We look at what you're paying, what you're getting, and where the leaks are. Most founders are shocked when they see the math.

02

Map the Unit of One model

We define the profile, the toolchain, and the operating rhythm for an embedded senior engineer who replaces the entire agency.

03

Execute the transition

Code handoff, documentation, knowledge transfer. You own everything. No lock-in, no surprises, no rescue project.

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The dev shop era is over. The founders who figure this out first keep their equity, runway, and sanity.

AI didn't create this problem. AI made the problem impossible to hide. The math stopped working.