Is the intro call free?+
Yes. The 30-minute intro call is free, with no obligation. We read your note beforehand, and if we can help, you get a scope and a fixed price by the next morning. If we can’t, we say so.
Why no hourly rate?+
Hourly aligns our incentives with billing more hours, not finishing the work. Fixed price aligns us with shipping. If we’re slow, that’s our problem — not yours.
What if the project grows mid-engagement?+
We write an addendum: new scope, new price, new dates. You sign it or we deliver the original scope. No surprise invoices, ever.
Are software and AI usage costs included?+
Mostly. Software for the build is included in the price. The one cost outside it is AI usage: the per-use fees AI providers such as Anthropic or OpenAI charge (counted in “tokens”). By default the provider bills your own account directly, at its prices, with no markup: we set the account up with you, with a hard monthly cap and an alert. If you’d rather not hold an account, we pass the fees through at cost once a month with a usage report, never above the cap in your scope.
Do you work with companies outside Toronto?+
Yes. Most builds run remote. On-site visits for AI Roadmap sessions and team workshops are GTA by default; travel outside GTA is discussed at scoping and billed separately at cost.
Do you take equity?+
No. We charge cash for cash work. If you’d like to discuss an advisor relationship after the engagement closes, that’s a separate conversation.
Can funding help pay for this?+
Sometimes, but we don’t administer grants: we tell you what exists, and you check with the program and your accountant. The AI Roadmap notes any program worth checking for each opportunity. Automation invoices are itemized so your accountant can decide whether any part counts as capital investment under the Productivity Super-Deduction. BDC’s LIFT financing requires BDC’s own Digital Plan, which our roadmap doesn’t replace. Ontario’s job grant only funds training from colleges, career colleges and similar accredited providers, so our workshops don’t qualify. Any application is filed by you and your advisors.
Where does our data live?+
We architect for Canadian data residency where it matters. Systems are deployable on Canadian cloud regions (e.g. AWS Canada Central) and Canadian foundation models (e.g. Cohere), so proprietary data and IP can stay onshore — engineered to align with PIPEDA, Quebec Law 25, and AIDA readiness. A DPA (data processing agreement) is signed before any data moves, on every engagement.
Can we cancel, and what does it cost?+
You can cancel at any stage, and you only pay for work delivered, never an hourly rate.
- AI Roadmap: cancel before kickoff for a full refund. After kickoff, the deposit covers the work and you owe nothing more.
- Builds and websites: cancel before kickoff for a full refund. After that, you pay for the phases completed, at the shares set in your scope, and get the rest of the deposit back, with the code and documents delivered so far.
- Workshops: a full refund up to 10 business days before. After that, one free reschedule or 50%.
- AI Office Hours: month to month. Stop before the next month starts.
If we don’t deliver what the scope says, we fix it or refund the undelivered part.