Services / Fractional AI Architect
Fractional AI Architect for Startups: Part-Time CTO-Level Guidance Without Full-Time Cost
Senior engineering on retainer to architect AI agents, MCP integrations, orchestration workflows, and production-ready AI platforms. You get architecture, code, and hands-on development from a team that has shipped at scale for 15 years.
CodeWheel stays lean on purpose—you work directly with the engineers advising investors and writing the code. Perfect for teams that need a CTO-level partner but don't want to hire full-time or juggle an agency team.
Who this is for
- Founders who need a senior engineer to own agent/RAG architecture while the team ships product.
- Teams preparing for enterprise diligence (SOC 2, security questionnaires) and needing guardrails baked in.
- Startups running AI pilots that must become reliable features with observability, incident response, and cost controls.
- Companies modernizing from Rails/Drupal/WordPress to a Next.js + Supabase/Neon stack with AI features.
Outcomes we target
- A production AI platform architecture with agents, MCP servers, retrieval pipelines, eval harnesses, and cost controls.
- Shipping AI features that work reliably with clear runbooks for edge cases and incidents.
- Documentation packets investors and customers can trust (architecture diagrams, API specs, testing evidence).
- Engineering velocity with a repeatable cadence: plan, build, test, ship-every month.
Why choose fractional instead of hiring or contracting?
Fractional gives you executive-level ownership with the flexibility of a retainer. You gain architectural depth, production security, and delivery velocity without onboarding a full team or training a junior hire on the job.
Hands-on CTO leverage
Architecture decisions map to implementation. We author RFCs, write production code, review pull requests, and run QA so strategy and execution stay aligned.
Quality baked in
Every sprint includes code review, testing, and documentation artifacts for investor diligence. No last-minute scrambles before your raise.
Predictable cost
Retainers are scoped to the hours you need. No recruiting fees, no agency multipliers, and no unexpected staffing changes.
What you get every month
A repeatable cadence across architecture, development, and security so the platform moves forward every week.
Architecture & planning
- Agent/MCP/RAG architecture docs with context budgets and eval plans
- Backlog prioritization aligned to fundraising or launch goals
- Vendor/tool selection with cost modeling
- Weekly working sessions and async Loom recaps
Implementation & delivery
- Hands-on Next.js/Supabase development using Cursor + Claude
- CI/CD wiring with Playwright tests and code quality checks
- Production hardening and guardrails before release
- Documentation + handoff artifacts for investors or customers
How we've structured engagements
Pick a retainer size that fits your runway. All packages include architecture + implementation + security.
Architecture & Guidance
Strategic direction + code quality
- Architecture docs, code review, and quality checklists.
- Weekly working session + async reviews.
- Vendor/tool selection with cost modeling.
Plan + Build + Ship
Hands-on implementation
- Hands-on implementation for RAG/agents/Next.js features.
- CI/CD with evals and automated testing.
- Monthly status packet for investors/customers.
Full-Stack Delivery
Parallel streams at scale
- Parallel streams (feature build + testing + observability).
- Full test coverage with Playwright and automated checks.
- Architecture oversight for contractors or internal team.
Engagement cadence
Each month follows a consistent rhythm so the team knows what to expect.
Step 1
Plan & align
We define goals, staffing constraints, and risk areas for the month. Architecture docs and acceptance criteria get drafted up front.
Step 2
Ship & review
We build features, run security tests, and review team contributions. Weekly calls keep stakeholders aligned and unblock decisions.
Step 3
Audit & document
Each month ends with a status packet: shipped features, security posture, risks, and next steps. Ideal for investor updates or diligence packets.
Production-ready from day one
- Multi-tenant architecture with proper data isolation across APIs, agents, and vector stores.
- RLS-first data models and tenant assertions baked into every query.
- Observability with tenant-tagged logs, traces, and replayable agent/tool calls.
- Incident playbooks for hallucinations, edge cases, and runaway costs.
- Documentation packs for investor diligence (architecture diagrams, API specs, test evidence).
Tooling & stack we standardize
- Next.js + Vercel + Supabase/Neon/Postgres for app + data.
- Clerk/Auth0 for auth; Stripe/Paddle for billing; PostHog/Sentry for telemetry.
- pgvector/Qdrant for RAG; hybrid search (BM25 + embeddings); rerankers where needed.
- MCP servers for safe tool exposure; LangChain/LangGraph or direct OpenAI/Anthropic APIs.
- CI/CD with Playwright, automated code checks, and cost monitoring.
Example outcomes (anonymized)
A few representative engagements that show the mix of architecture and hands-on development.
Fintech SaaS
Multi-tenant RAG copilots
- Hybrid retrieval with tenant filters + rerankers.
- Shipped to production in 8 weeks with zero critical issues.
- Eval harness improved answer accuracy by 19%.
Developer platform
Agent + MCP safety
- Tool registry with RBAC + per-tenant sandboxes.
- Observability traces for every agent/tool call.
- Cost caps and kill-switches for runaway loops.
Healthtech
Compliance-ready AI features
- PII/PHI redaction pre-embedding; audit trails end-to-end.
- Full test coverage with Playwright wired into CI.
- Investor-ready packet with diagrams, controls, and documentation.
FAQ
Honest answers before you bring on a fractional architect.
What is a fractional AI architect engagement?
It’s a part-time retainer where CodeWheel acts as your CTO-level architecture team. We design agent orchestration, MCP servers, and RAG architectures, write code, run security reviews, and guide your roadmap without the cost of a full-time hire.
How long is the commitment?
Retainers are month-to-month. Most engagements run three months or longer — enough time to architect, implement, and harden core features before handing off or planning the next phase.
Do you also handle development work?
Yes. We stay hands-on with Next.js, Supabase/Neon, Clerk, Stripe, LangChain, MCP servers, and security tooling. Architecture guidance comes with implementation, code review, and QA-not just slide decks.
Can we pause or scale hours?
Retainers are scoped to the hours you need. We can scale up or down with notice, and we cap active retainers to keep delivery predictable. If you need ad-hoc help later, we can convert to an advisory retainer.
Do you help with investor diligence?
Yes. We prepare architecture documentation, security posture summaries, and technical deep-dives that investors expect during due diligence. Many founders bring us in specifically before fundraising rounds.
Learn more about AI architecture
Explore our architecture guides, open-source tools, and case studies to see how we approach AI platform development.
For deeper dives, see our AI agent architecture, AI platform development, RAG implementation service, and multi-tenant SaaS architecture.