Shaped together. Built right.
- Hands-on agentic development
- See it before you commit
- Owned by you, production-ready
What is 1902 Co-Dev?
See and help shape the prototype before you commit to the full build.
1902 Co-Dev is an option for clients who want to be hands-on. Together we build a working prototype of your software, and we teach and guide you to shape it: making changes, adding features, and refining it alongside us. You come with the domain knowledge; we come with the knowledge of building software, from what features can be added to how to integrate AI.
That way, the price you approve later is for a build you have shaped to do what you want and seen working as a prototype, not a spec on paper. With agentic development tools like Codex, Claude, and Grok Bot, this is now possible, and the cost is small compared to the benefits of having a working prototype before developing the system.
Prefer a different route?
- If your project is mostly maintenance and ongoing changes, that is Continuous Monthly Development.
- If you would rather stay fully hands-off, we build it as a Fixed Price Project.
You could not do this before AI
Starting a custom build used to mean describing everything on paper, approving a price from a document, and hoping the result matched what you pictured. Agentic development changed that. Now you can see and shape a working prototype together with us, while we stay responsible for engineering it correctly.
The usual way
Spec first, see it later
- Your specs stay words on a page until it is fully built.
- You approve a price from a document, not a working thing.
- The gap between what you meant and what gets built shows up late.
The Co-Dev way
See it first, then develop it
- You get a real working prototype in your hands.
- You shape it hands-on together with us, and we keep responsibility for the technical implementation.
- We price the exact thing you approved, then build it to last.
You stay hands-on; we stay responsible.
Once the prototype is complete, we build the real application to industry standards: the right language, the right database, and the right structure. We know what a production system needs but a prototype leaves out, so we build that in as well, and deliver it fully tested and production-ready.
Stack: Codex · Claude · Manus · Grok Bot · GitHub Copilot · Cursor · Windsurf · plus our own models, skills, and workflows
Built for complex systems, not standard changes
Co-Dev is for modern, custom software: AI agents and automation that plug into the systems you already run, bespoke applications, and business tools built around how you work. Big or small, if it is specific to your business, it is a good fit.
Good fit
Complex, custom, AI-powered systems
- Custom AI agents and platforms that integrate with your existing IT systems.
- Your own CRM or production system, built around how you work.
- A custom quoting or pricing engine, or an internal workflow portal.
- Anything from an internal tool to a customer-facing platform.
Not the right fit
Standard changes to off-the-shelf platforms
- Adding a new checkout to a Magento store.
- A WordPress or Umbraco theme change.
- Installing or configuring a Shopify app.
- A routine bug fix or a small, well-defined feature.
For standard changes, Continuous Monthly Development gets you there faster.
Two phases, eleven steps, and a readiness gate between them
Phase one is collaborative prototyping. Phase two is the fixed-price build. Between them, a readiness review makes sure the fixed price covers exactly what you approved.
Collaborative prototyping
Project intake
You describe the application you want in our custom project intake portal: a meeting recording, a real-time conversation with AI, or documents you already have. We review it, suggest things you may have missed from a technical and best practice angle, and run a clarification round, so nothing gets built from a half-formed brief.
Set up the base application
We turn what we have agreed into the initial build, agents, and skills packages, then set up the base application inside one coherent AI framework.
A working prototype
We develop it into a working prototype you can click through, so you see how the application will actually work.
Set up your environment
We set up and configure an AI development environment on your computer, and we manage it for you, so there is nothing for you to maintain.
Shape it together
We teach you to make changes and additions to the prototype, and you try things hands-on. We are here anytime to answer questions, show you how, and help whenever you hit an error. We make changes ourselves too, when you need a hand or when we suggest something. Together we develop the prototype through collaboration and brainstorming.
You are happy with the prototype. Your sign-off is the line between collaborative prototyping and the fixed-price build. Either way, the prototype is yours to keep, whether or not you continue.
Fixed-price build
Production-readiness review
We review the prototype and document what it takes to make it production-ready: authentication, real data, integrations, security, scaling, and deployment.
Scoping and fixed price
We scope the finished prototype and give you one fixed price to build the real application.
Development
We build it correctly, in the right language, on the right database and using the right structure. You can keep working on your prototype while we build; your ideas and changes come through as change requests, and anything outside the specs is quoted separately.
Testing
We test the application thoroughly, using AI-driven testing alongside our testers, before it goes anywhere near your users.
Deployment
We deploy the finished, production-ready application, owned by you. We also update your prototype to match, so you always work on the latest code base. From here, new features run through Continuous Monthly Development, but major updates can be quoted as a fixed price.
Hand over the source code
We hand over the source code, typically into your own source code repository, such as GitHub. If you do not have one, we can help you set up and maintain it.
Yours to keep, and to build on
Many clients come away from a Co-Dev project with new skills their own team keeps using.
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Your prototype stays
You keep the prototype and can take it with you after the prototyping phase, even if you stop there.
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Owned by you
The finished application is yours: you can use it, sell it, change it, and you can even continue development with another team if you want.
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Continuous Monthly Development
Once you are live, we keep extending and improving the application with you on a monthly basis.
What is fixed, and what is not
The prototype and the production build each have a fixed price. The collaboration in between is time and materials: while you shape the prototype, we work alongside you, advising and building with you, not sitting back.
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Building the prototype
After the project intake, once we understand the scope, we give you a fixed price for building the prototype. We cannot quote it earlier in the process, because every prototype is different and only after the intake do we know what to quote.
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Shaping it together
While you shape the prototype, we are active partners: we advise you, suggest features, and build alongside you. Because the collaboration varies, this phase is time and materials, at $80 per hour.
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The production build
Once the prototype is complete, we give you a separate fixed price to build the production-ready application, test it, and deploy it.
After launch, Continuous Monthly Development covers new features. You cover your own AI credit usage once your tools are set up.
Shaped together. Built right.
Start with an intake: tell us what you want to build, and we come back with the questions that get us to a prototype.
Free, no-commitment
Good things to ask before you start
Do I need to know how to code?
No. You describe what you want and shape the prototype using tools we set up for you. This is often called vibe coding, and the quality can sometimes be questionable, but that does not matter in a prototype. Once the prototype is done and we build the real application, we take over and make sure it is done correctly: programming languages, databases, cloud hosting, and every other technical decision stay with us.
Am I responsible for getting the software right?
No. The prototype is only there to capture your ideas and let you see the software working. Making it correct, in the right language, on the right database and infrastructure, is our responsibility.
What if I want changes during the build?
You can keep working on your prototype during the build, and change requests are welcome. Anything already covered by the agreed specs is included; anything outside them is quoted separately.
What does it cost?
The prototype is a fixed price, quoted after the project intake once we know the scope. The shaping phase, where we work alongside you, is time and materials at $80 per hour, since the collaboration varies. The production build is a separate fixed price, quoted once the prototype is complete.
If I shaped the prototype, why pay for the build?
Because a prototype is not production software. It proves how the application should work and locks in the scope, but it skips the engineering a real system needs: the right language and database, security, real data, integrations, scaling, testing, and deployment, etc. The build is where we add all of that and make it something you can safely run your business on.
Do I keep the prototype?
Yes. You can take it with you after the prototyping phase, even if you decide not to continue to the build.
What do I own?
The finished application, including source code, is yours, delivered in the right language on the right database and infrastructure.