pavloff.devbook-a-call
ros pavloff · senior ai engineer20+ yrs in prodanthropic-certified

Ship your AI product — or hire the senior engineer to lead the team that will.

Two ways to work: as your Fractional AI CTO ($3–8K/mo, hands-on technical leadership) or by building your AI MVP in 90 days. 20+ years shipping production software. Certified on Claude APIs and agentic workflows.

book 30-min-callsee how I work →

No pitch deck. We'll map your idea or your current product in 30 minutes, and you'll leave with at least one concrete next step — whether or not we work together.

ros@pavloff: ~/engagements
# pick how we work together
$ pavloff --engage
› fractional_cto: { rate: "$3–8K/mo", min: 3 }
› ai_mvp:         { price: "$15–45K", weeks: 8–12 }
› automation:     { price: "$5–20K", weeks: 2–6 }
› audit:          { price: "$2.5K", days: 5 }

$ next_step --book
✓ 30-min discovery call — no pitch deck required

Why founders hire me instead of an agency or a junior team.

01 · why_me
[01]

I've shipped, not just studied AI.

Two decades building production systems before AI became the hype. I know what breaks at scale, what investors look for in the codebase, and what a $20/mo OpenAI bill becomes at 10,000 users.

[02]

I speak founder, not just engineer.

Most non-technical founders get burned hiring overseas devs who code what's asked, not what's needed. I push back, prototype fast, and translate “I think we need a vector DB” into “here's what it costs you and whether it's worth it.”

[03]

AI-native by certification, not by trend.

Certified by Anthropic on Claude APIs, agentic workflows, and Claude Code (May 2026). My day-to-day stack is Claude + n8n + TypeScript + Python. No “we'll figure out AI when we get there.”

[04]

You get a partner, not a vendor.

One Slack channel. Weekly calls. Decisions documented. Code your next hire can read. I write you out of bus-factor risk from day one.

Background also includes algorithmic trading systems, computer vision pipelines, and blockchain dApps. If that's what you need, ask.

Two ways to work with me, plus two productized engagements.

02 · services
primary$3–8K/mo

Fractional AI CTO

For pre-seed to Series A founders who need senior technical leadership without a $250K hire.

I plug into your team 1–3 days a week and own the technical roadmap end-to-end: architecture, AI strategy, hiring, code reviews, vendor decisions. You stay focused on customers and fundraising.

  • Weekly strategy calls + async Slack/Linear access
  • Architecture and AI stack decisions with cost projections
  • Hands-on code review and pair-programming with your team
  • Engineer hiring screens (you keep the final call)
  • Investor-ready technical narrative for your deck
$3K–$8K/month · 3-month minimum
primary$15–45K

AI MVP — 90 days to ship

For founders with validated demand and budget to build, not just prototype.

Fixed scope, fixed timeline, fixed price. I design and build the v1 of your AI product so you can ship to first users within a quarter — without coordinating five freelancers yourself.

  • Production codebase + deployed infrastructure
  • AI integration (Claude / OpenAI / open-source models)
  • Admin panel, observability, basic analytics
  • 2 weeks of post-launch support
$15K–$45K · 8–12 weeks
productized$5–20K

AI Automation & Agentic Workflows

For founders drowning in ops while their team should be building.

Custom internal tools and agentic workflows that take 40+ hours of weekly busywork off your team — customer support, lead qualification, content ops, data pipelines.

  • n8n / Claude agent workflows tailored to your stack
  • Integrations with HubSpot, Stripe, Notion, and more
  • Monitoring and alerting on workflow health
  • Handoff documentation your team can maintain
$5K–$20K · 2–6 weeks
productized$2.5K

AI Architecture Audit

For founders inheriting code, evaluating a CTO candidate, or pre-fundraising due diligence.

5-business-day deep dive into your codebase, AI choices, infrastructure, and cost model. You get an honest answer on “is this scalable?” and a prioritized fix list.

  • 25–40 page written report with red flags
  • Prioritized remediation plan
  • 90-minute walkthrough call
  • 30 days of follow-up Slack access
$2.5K · 1 week
$ computer-vision · algo-trading · blockchainask directly →

Real products I architected and shipped — most as sole engineer.

03 · recent_work
compatibot.case
agentic-aiopenai-agents-sdksole-owner
problem

The founder needed an AI assistant that could reason about complex product compatibility — not just keyword-match — and guide buyers to the right combination, with no in-house engineering team to build it.

solution

Designed and deployed an agentic workflow on OpenAI's Agents SDK with multi-step reasoning and dynamic product suggestions, on a modular stack (React, Node.js, Python, PostgreSQL, MongoDB, Strapi CMS, Redis, n8n). I owned architecture, CI/CD, and cloud deployment as the sole technical owner.

result

Took the product from zero to a working agentic recommendation engine, then ran it as sole technical owner for a year of iteration. n8n pipelines kept the catalog in sync with no manual data entry.

imly-ai.case
ai-mvpnon-technical-founderchrome-extension
problem

A non-technical founder had an idea for an AI writing assistant but no engineering team — and a narrow window to get a real product in front of users.

solution

Built the full product solo: a React extension, Node.js backend, and PostgreSQL + Redis data layer, with OpenAI APIs powering rewriting, translation, spell-check, OCR, and smart replies. CI/CD and observability from day one.

result

Shipped a production AI Chrome extension in under five months as the only engineer. Five AI features in one tool, deployed with logging and monitoring so the founder could onboard users without firefighting.

voltbox24.case
e-commercesolo-build2-month-launch
problem

A retailer needed a full EU-facing online store — catalog, checkout, payments, multi-language — live within a two-month window, with no in-house engineering.

solution

Designed and shipped voltbox24.eu end-to-end, solo: a React storefront and admin on a Node.js backend, with payments, order management, multi-language, plus CI/CD, hosting, monitoring, and SEO foundations.

result

Launched EU-wide inside the two-month window as the sole engineer — from requirements through deployment and post-launch support. Browsing, search, and checkout tuned for speed across the EU.

Want the detail? I'll walk you through the architecture, the trade-offs, and what I'd do differently — on our call.

The tools I actually reach for when shipping.

04 · stack

ai_stack

Claude APIOpenAIn8nLangChainTensorFlowPyTorchscikit-learn

backend_infra

Node.jsPython.NETPostgreSQLMongoDBRedisDockerKubernetesGCPAzure

frontend

ReactTypeScriptNext.jsAngular

quality_ops

PlaywrightJestGitHub ActionsGraphQLRESTgRPC

My six most recent — all AI-focused.

05 · certifications
anthropic

Building with the Claude API

issued may 2026

anthropic

AI Fluency Framework & Foundations

issued may 2026

anthropic

Claude Code in Action

issued apr 2026

anthropic

Introduction to Claude Cowork

issued apr 2026

ibm

IBM AI Engineering Specialization

issued apr 2024

ibm

Deep Learning with TensorFlow

issued apr 2024

show 11 earlier certifications

Claude Code 101

apr 2026

Claude 101

apr 2026

Deep Neural Networks with PyTorch

apr 2024

Introduction to Computer Vision and Image Processing

mar 2024

Deep Learning Essentials with Keras

feb 2024

Machine Learning with Python

feb 2024

MCSD: Web Applications

apr 2014

MCPS: Microsoft Certified Professional

mar 2014

MS: Programming in HTML5 with JavaScript and CSS3

mar 2014

MCPD: ASP.NET Developer 3.5

mar 2010

MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, ASP.NET Applications

dec 2009

Eight questions founders ask before our first call.

06 · faq
Q1I have an idea but no technical co-founder. Should we work together first, or should I keep looking?

Both, in parallel. A Fractional CTO is the fastest way to validate that your idea is buildable before you commit equity with a co-founder. Many of my engagements end when the founder hires a permanent CTO — and I help them screen candidates.

Q2How is this different from hiring an agency?

One senior person owns your product end-to-end instead of a project manager coordinating four juniors who rotate off your account. You ping me directly. I'm accountable for outcomes, not billable hours.

Q3What do I get in the first month?

Week 1 — full audit of your current state (code, AI choices, infra, team). Week 2 — written technical roadmap with priorities, costs, and risks. Weeks 3–4 — execution starts on the top 2 priorities. You leave the first month with clarity, not slides.

Q4I'm pre-revenue. Can I afford this?

The Architecture Audit ($2.5K, one week) is usually the right starting point pre-revenue. The retainer makes sense after you've validated demand or raised pre-seed.

Q5My idea is sensitive. Can we sign an NDA before talking?

Yes. I'll send a mutual NDA before the first call if you prefer. Most founders find that 90% of the first conversation is about market, traction, and team — none of which is the secret part.

Q6Will you build it, or just advise?

Both. On the retainer I'm hands-on (architecture, code review, sometimes writing the gnarly parts myself). On MVP projects I do most of the coding. I'm not a slides-only consultant.

Q7I already have a team. Where do you fit?

I work with your team, not around it. I review PRs, pair with your engineers on AI integration, and write the kind of documentation that survives turnover. I never make your team look bad.

Q8How do we start?

A free 30-minute discovery call. If we're a fit, I send a written proposal within 48 hours. The Architecture Audit is the lowest-risk way to start working together.

Let's see if your idea is worth building — in 30 minutes.

07 · contact

No pitch. No slide deck. We'll talk about your product, your timeline, and whether you actually need a CTO right now (sometimes the answer is no — I'll tell you). You leave with at least one concrete next step.

book 30-min-callemail me instead

Trusted with NDA-protected work for startups across US, UK, and EU. References available on request.