---
title: Hire an AI Developer Who Ships in Your Codebase @ Varstatt
url: https://varstatt.com/x/teams/ai-development
description: "Hire a senior AI developer, not an AI agent development company: LLM features and agents built in your product and repo, reviewed by your team. $997/week."
section: Services (https://varstatt.com)
---
# Hire an AI Developer Who Ships

Hand over the AI feature; I build it in your product and repo, starting with a prototype on real data. $997/week.

**What's included:**

- ✅ Senior developer
- ✅ Full code ownership
- ✅ Continuous progress
- ✅ Stop anytime
- ❌ Meetings overhead
- ❌ Scope creep
- ❌ Agency markup
- ❌ Billing surprises

**Get started:**

- [Start a Project](https://varstatt.com/start?cta=agent)
- [Ask Jurij](mailto:jurij@varstatt.com)

## Portfolio

- **Redesign & V2 development of SOAPNoteAI, an AI charting assistant for busy clinicians** — [soapnoteai.com](https://soapnoteai.com)
- **Free, AI-powered technical discovery & development roadmap in 15 minutes** — [varstatt.com/discovery](https://varstatt.com/discovery)
- **Initial launch of TenderPilot, an AI-powered tendering software for Australian SMEs** — [tenderpilot.ai](https://tenderpilot.ai)
- **Content Pal, a pay-per-use social media content scheduler for solo creators** — [contentpal.app](https://contentpal.app)

## Nobody Owns the AI Feature

| Route | What It Is | The Catch |
|---|---|---|
| Full-Time AI Hire | A permanent seat for AI work | A long search and a salary before proof |
| AI Development Company | LLM integration as a separate project | Often built apart from your team's codebase |
| Contractor by the Hour | Hourly developer time | You manage the work |
| **Varstatt** | Builds in your repo, by the week | One task at a time |

## Every Week, Another Piece Shipped

- [x] The prototype

- [ ] Stream the assistant's replies

- [ ] Answer from our help docs

- [ ] Let the assistant call our API

- [ ] Alert on empty or failed replies

- [ ] Move to a cheaper model

## The Demo Is the Easy Part

- **An Empty Reply with HTTP 200** The empty turn was saved, and [the chat never recovered](https://varstatt.com/jurij/p/silent-ai-response-corrupted-conversation-history). Now an empty reply is never saved.

- **JSON Cut Off at the Token Limit** No error, and [the bug surfaced three layers away](https://varstatt.com/jurij/p/200-ok-data-wrong). Now a cut-off reply raises one.

- **A Rate That Became a Budget** A comparison rate came back as the user's budget. [Labeling the context](https://varstatt.com/jurij/p/when-llm-remembers-too-much) fixed it.

- **Worked, but Couldn't Ship** Neither provider ran it in the region the customer required. [The data question now comes first](https://varstatt.com/jurij/p/it-works-you-cant-ship-it).

## Who It's For

**Right For**

- An assistant, answers from your docs, drafts, summaries or an agent

- A demo that works but doesn't ship

- A team new to LLMs, wanting it in its own code

**Better Elsewhere**

- Training models, Python ML pipelines *An ML engineer*

- Stacks outside JavaScript and TypeScript *A developer of that stack*

- Hourly staff augmentation, fixed-scope bids *An agency*

## How It Works

A simple, predictable and transparent process that eliminates development headaches.

1. **Subscribe** — After subscribing, you get a dedicated task board. It becomes your AI roadmap.
2. **Setup** — I read the codebase and the data, and ask where that data may go.
3. **Plan & Develop** — You set the priorities. I work through them one task at a time, the prototype first.
4. **Review & Refine** — Your team reviews every pull request. I revise until you're satisfied.
5. **Progress** — Approved work rolls out behind a feature flag, one group of users at a time.
6. **Maintain** — You report issues anytime, a provider change included. I handle them first.

## Pricing — Retainer

One weekly price for one senior. Model usage goes on your own provider account.

- **Price:** $997 / week
- **Plan:** A senior AI developer who ships the feature into your product.
- **Includes:**
  - 🧑‍💻 10+ years shipping software
  - 🗣️ Direct access to developer
  - 🗂️ Dedicated task board
  - 📦 1 task at a time, unlimited revisions
  - ⚡ Each task in ~72 hours on average
  - 🪪 Full code & assets ownership
  - 🩹 Bug fixes & ongoing maintenance
  - 🎁 Free week 0: onboarding and setup
  - 🛑 Pause or cancel anytime
- **CTA:** [Get Started](https://varstatt.com/start?cta=agent)
- **Questions:** jurij@varstatt.com

## FAQ

### What does an AI developer cost?

$997/week for the AI feature and the code around it, no recruiting fee. The free [build cost tool](/discovery/build-cost) sizes it in weeks.

### What does running AI cost?

It depends on volume, the model and the shape: one call, an assistant that resends the chat, or an agent making several requests. I price one request at your volume before the build.

### AI developer or AI engineer?

An ML engineer trains models, usually in Python. An AI developer, or LLM developer, ships features on hosted models (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google): my work, in JavaScript and TypeScript.

### Do you build AI agents?

Yes, as product features: a model that calls tools like your API. An AI agent development company sells that as a project; here it's tasks on your board.

### How do you keep our users' data safe?

Keys stay on the server, and prompts and personal data stay out of logs. I once found an OpenAI key in a React frontend: [the fix needed a backend](/jurij/p/when-polish-over-security-costs-real).

### What if the AI gets it wrong?

It will, sometimes. Users accept or undo each suggestion, and failed replies are caught and [monitored](/principles/diligence/monitor-day-one), never shown as answers.

### What if it doesn't work out?

[Cancel with no penalty](/principles/partnership/exit-freedom), any week. A prototype that shows the feature isn't worth building is a result: [saying no](/principles/discovery/saying-no) early costs less.

### How do I get started?

Fill in the [project form](/start?cta=ai-development-faq), about a minute. I reply the next working day; if it fits, with a first plan and a call invite.

## Testimonials

> "Jurij understand the core problem, insists on building the right experiences for the customers."
> — [Kunal Modi, Founder @ SOAPNoteAI](https://www.linkedin.com/in/jurijtokarski/details/recommendations/)

> "Working with Jurij is an absolute joy, consistently exceeds expectations."
> — [Janis Ozolins, Content Creator](https://x.com/OzolinsJanis/status/1875168034249146609)

> "Consistently delivered quality code in great time, very hard working & precise."
> — [Bartosz Poźniak, CEO @ MyCointainer](https://www.linkedin.com/in/jurijtokarski/details/recommendations/)

> "The kind of engineer that every company on the planet would be lucky to have."
> — [Hosam Mazawi, COO @ LemonUnit](https://www.linkedin.com/in/jurijtokarski/details/recommendations/)

## [Teams × Varstatt](https://varstatt.com/x/teams)

AI Development fits product teams best: CTOs and tech leads who need a senior on one part of the product.

- **[React & Next.js Development](https://varstatt.com/x/teams/react-development)** "The upgrade keeps losing to features." Small pull requests, no big-bang rewrite.

- **[Node.js Development](https://varstatt.com/x/teams/nodejs-development)** "Backend work waits on a hire." Endpoints, integrations, an API being retired.

- **AI Development (this page)** "Nobody here has shipped an LLM feature." A prototype on your data first.

- **[n8n Development](https://varstatt.com/x/teams/n8n-development)** "Our workflows have no owner." New flows, code where nodes stop, monitoring.

- **[App Maintenance](https://varstatt.com/x/teams/app-maintenance)** "An old app still has users and no owner." Kept current and safe.

- **[Firebase Audit](https://varstatt.com/x/teams/firebase-audit)** "The bill keeps rising, or nobody trusts the rules." The bill tied to its code, every rule reviewed.

- **[DevOps Audit](https://varstatt.com/x/teams/devops-audit)** "Releases are slow and scary." Planning to monitoring, fixes ranked.

- **[Architecture Audit](https://varstatt.com/x/teams/architecture-audit)** "Every feature takes longer than the last." Why, what to fix first, whether a rewrite pays.

Not on a product team? [See what Varstatt offers you](https://varstatt.com/x).

## About

Varstatt is run by [Jurij Tokarski](https://varstatt.com/jurij), product engineer since 2011.

Contact: [jurij@varstatt.com](mailto:jurij@varstatt.com) / [X](https://x.com/jurijtokarski) / [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/jurijtokarski/)

Sole proprietorship headquartered in Rzeszów, Poland. VAT ID: PL8133854722.