The studio you graduate to after the v0 / Cursor MVP.
Production hardening, evals, and scale for AI-native startups whose MVP works and now needs to survive real users, real traffic, and real procurement reviews. Built by a Stanford MS&E founder; the credentials investors recognize.
NASA · Sequoia · Stanford
Credentials investors recognize
Stanford MS&E. Sequoia InSITE Fellow. NASA Artemis subcontractor. Founding team at Savaree, acquired by Careem.
18 months
Operating Casetrack
Production case-management software handling real matters for real attorneys. We know what breaks under load.
8 weeks
Typical production-hardening engagement
Fixed-price, with knowledge transfer built into every SOW.
Why hire AppRocket instead of building in-house or using a vibe-coding shop?
The answer depends on where you are in the company's life. Pre-product, hire a vibe-coding shop or build in-house with v0 / Cursor / Lovable. We will not be your fastest path to a demo. Post-product, when the MVP works and the next milestone is production hardening, enterprise procurement, or a Series A technical due diligence, AppRocket pairs senior AI/ML engineering with senior product engineering at a price band that does not require a full engineering hire. The founder's credentials (Stanford MS&E, Sequoia InSITE Fellow, NASA Artemis subcontractor, Savaree founding team) and the experience of running Casetrack in production for 18 months mean the room takes the work seriously. Most often, our work helps portfolio companies clear Series A or B technical DD.
How we work with startups
Two engagement shapes, both fixed-price.
AI MVP Studio
For pre-seed and seed-stage teams that need a real MVP, not another v0-clone. 4-week sprint, fixed price, in production by week four.
How we ship MVPsProduction Hardening
For Seed and Series A teams whose MVP works but needs to survive enterprise procurement, Series-A technical DD, or a 50x traffic spike. The evaluation harness, the MLOps stack, the on-call rotation.
How we harden productionHow we compare
| Dimension | AppRocket | Vibe-coding shop | Big-4 lite | In-house only |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Engineering team | Stanford MS&E founder + senior practice | Bootcamp-trained, fast and cheap | Tiered, recent hires | Whoever you can afford |
| Evaluation methodology | Refined across 18mo running Casetrack | None | Strategy deliverable; no implementation | Whatever the lead does |
| Investor signal | Stanford / NASA / Sequoia / Careem | Mostly invisible | Recognized but not differentiated | Founder-only |
| Best for | Seed–Series B production hardening | Pre-product MVP iteration | F500 transformations | Solo / 2-person teams |
| Cost band | $80–250K + $8K/mo retainer | $30–80K project-based | $250K–$1M/year | Internal cost |
Founder-led.
The same credentials your investors care about.
Every engagement is led by Qasim Zafar — Stanford MS&E, ex-Careem founding team, operator of Casetrack and the NASA Lunar Gateway dashboards. Full bio →
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Working with funded startups — frequently asked
Graduate from MVP.
Start with the AI Readiness Audit. We'll scope production hardening or MVP work against your stack specifically.