Help center
Frequently asked
questions
Clear answers about how we work, what we build, and how engagements run.
General
Do you work with non-technical founders?
Absolutely. We act as your fractional CTO, guiding you through architecture decisions, tech stack selection, and deployment strategies without jargon.
What is your typical engagement model?
We offer both fixed-cost project based engagements for well-defined scopes and dedicated team models (monthly retainer) for ongoing product development.
Can you take over an existing legacy codebase?
Yes, this is our specialty. We audit, refactor, and upgrade legacy PHP/Laravel applications to modern standards, ensuring security and scalability.
Services
Can I update the content myself?
Yes. We integrate a Headless CMS (like Sanity or Strapi) that gives you a user-friendly dashboard to edit text, images, and blogs without needing to touch any code.
Is custom development more expensive than WordPress?
Initially, yes. But WordPress often becomes expensive due to paid plugins, constant maintenance updates, and security fixes. Custom sites have zero plugin fees and require much less maintenance over time.
Will my site work on mobile?
Absolutely. We take a "Mobile-First" approach. We design and code for the smallest screens first, ensuring that your mobile experience is fast, touch-friendly, and perfect before we scale up to desktop.
Why Flutter instead of Native Swift/Kotlin?
For 99% of business apps, Flutter is superior because it allows you to launch on both stores faster with 40-50% lower development costs, while maintaining 60fps performance that is indistinguishable from pure native code.
Do you help with App Store Rejections?
Yes. App store guidelines are strict. We handle the entire submission process and if Apple or Google has feedback, our engineers resolve it and re-submit until your app is live.
How do you handle app updates and bug fixes?
We offer monthly maintenance plans. We monitor crash logs in real-time via Sentry. If a bug appears on a specific device model, we fix it and push an update within 24-48 hours.
Can the app work without internet?
Yes. We build "Offline-First" architectures. Users can still view data and perform actions, which are then synced automatically to your servers once they are back online.
What is the "Infrastructure as Code" benefit?
In the old days, servers were configured manually. If a server died, it took days to rebuild. With IaC, your servers are defined in a text file. If one fails, we trigger a script that rebuilds it perfectly in 120 seconds. It's the ultimate disaster recovery.
Can you migrate us from Shared Hosting to AWS?
Yes. This is a standard project for us. We handle the data synchronization and DNS switchover to ensure that your site stays online throughout the migration process.
Do you offer 24/7 server monitoring?
Yes. We set up automated monitoring tools that send SMS and Slack alerts to our engineering team the moment a metric (like CPU or Memory) hits a critical threshold, allowing us to fix issues before they become outages.
We are already on AWS. Can you just help us lower our bill?
Absolutely. We perform a "Cost Audit" where we identify idle resources, unoptimized databases, and orphaned snapshots. Most clients see a 20-30% reduction in their monthly AWS bill after our triage.
Is our business data used to train public models?
No. We utilize Enterprise APIs (OpenAI Enterprise / Azure AI) where data is not stored or used for training. For high-security needs, we can deploy open-source models (Llama 3) on your own private cloud so your data never leaves your infrastructure.
How do you prevent the AI from hallucinating?
We use RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation). The agent is strictly limited to only answering from your validated data sources. If the answer isn't in your data, it is programmed to say "I don't know" rather than guess.
Can an agent actually perform actions (not just talk)?
Yes. Through Tool-Calling, we can enable agents to send emails, update CRM statuses, generate invoices, or book appointments based on natural language commands. They act as actual execution partners.
How long is the training period for an agent?
Setting up the first functional prototype usually takes 2-3 weeks. We then run a "shadow mode" for another 2 weeks where we monitor its answers and fine-tune its logic before it goes live to customers.
What is the ROI compared to hiring another human employee?
An AI agent costs roughly 1/10th of a full-time salary and works 24/7 without breaks or insurance costs. Most clients see a full return on their investment within 4-6 months of deployment.
Do we need a technical team to manage the AI?
No. We build a simple management dashboard where non-technical staff can upload new documents, monitor chat logs, and provide feedback to the AI to improve its accuracy.
Is sending data to OpenAI secure?
Yes. For enterprise clients, we use Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service or OpenAI Enterprise, which guarantees that your data is encrypted and never used to train their public models.
How much do the API calls cost?
It has become very cheap. For most text-based applications (like support bots or taggers), costs are negligible—often under $50/month for thousands of interactions. We optimize token usage to keep bills low.
Can I use open-source models instead?
Absolutely. We can deploy Llama 3 or Mistral on your own private servers using Ollama or vLLM. This gives you 100% data privacy and zero dependency on third-party APIs.
Do you provide coding/development services too?
Yes! We are a full-stack studio. Our designers work directly with our engineers to ensure that what we design is technically feasible and implemented pixel-perfectly.
What is a Design System and do I need one?
A Design System is a collection of reusable components (like LEGO blocks) for your brand. If you plan on scaling your product or having multiple teams work on it, a Design System saves huge amounts of time and ensures consistency.
Do you design for Mobile Apps or just Web?
Both. We follow Apple's Human Interface Guidelines (HIG) for iOS and Google's Material Design for Android to ensure your app feels native and intuitive on any device.
Shopify vs Custom Build?
If you have standard retail needs and want to launch in 2 weeks, use Shopify. If you have unique business models (auctions, complex B2B pricing tiers, multi-vendor needs, rental logic), we build custom on Laravel/Node to give you 100% control and zero plugin bloat.
Why go "Headless"?
Standard themes are slow. "Headless" separates the front-end (Next.js) from the back-end. This allows for sub-second page loads, instant transitions, and complete design freedom that standard themes can't match. It's how top brands scale.
Do you handle high-traffic events like Black Friday?
Absolutely. Our architectures are built on auto-scaling cloud infrastructure (AWS/Vercel). We stress-test stores to handle 10x your normal traffic load so you never crash during a sale.
Process & modernization
Will there be downtime during the upgrade?
No. We build the modern components as a parallel "shell" around your old system. We only switch traffic over once the new parts are tested 100% against your real data. Your customers never see a "Maintenance" page.
Can you take over an existing "messy" codebase?
Yes. This is our bread and butter. We specialize in inheriting code that is undocumented or tangled. We start with a deep audit to understand the "spaghetti" before we begin the cleanup.
How do you handle pricing for such complex projects?
We offer transparency first. After a free initial audit, we provide a fixed-scope proposal for the stabilization phase. Long-term modernization can be handled as milestones or a monthly dedicated team model. No hidden hourly surprises.
We have a very unique business logic. Can you handle it?
Custom logic is why you built a bespoke system in the first place. We don't use "one size fits all" templates. We write automated tests to lock in your existing logic so that the modernization preserves your unique competitive advantage.
What happens after the migration is finished?
We don't just "drop and run." We provide a standard 3-month stability support period. We also offer ongoing maintenance retainers to ensure your system stays updated with the latest security patches monthly.
ERP & enterprise
We have different software for Sales and HR. Can you unify them?
Yes. This is called a "Unified Data Bridge". We build a custom middleware that pulls data from your various SaaS tools and displays them in one single "HQ" dashboard, giving you a holistic view of your company.
Can your custom CRM integrate with WhatsApp?
Absolutely. We can integrate the WhatsApp Business API so that every lead conversation is logged directly into the CRM. AI can even summarize these chats for your sales managers.
Do we have to move all our data at once?
No. We follow a "Module-by-Module" approach. We might start by automating your Inventory first, and then move to HRMS and Billing once the team is comfortable. This ensures zero business interruption.
What is the cost comparison between custom and high-end SaaS?
High-end SaaS (like Salesforce) charges per user, per month. For a 100-person team, this can cost $100k+ yearly. A custom Aurateria hub has a one-time development cost and low server maintenance. Most clients achieve "break-even" in 18-24 months and save millions over a 5-year period.
What happens if we grow from 100 to 10,000 employees?
We build using "Elastic Architecture" on AWS or DigitalOcean. Your hub will automatically scale server resources up as load increases. Our code is built on modular Laravel standards, meaning it can handle millions of database records without slowing down.
Who owns the code and the data?
You do. 100%. Unlike SaaS vendors who "lock" your data, we provide full source code ownership and deploy the system on your private servers. You have total portability and control over your intellectual property.