Crafting Software for Game-Changing Tech Companies
We are Harvard-educated and Silicon Valley-trained,
with 10+ years of experience shipping software of unparalleled quality at cutting-edge startups.
What We Do
From the first line of code to a full engineering team. Pick the engagement that fits where you are.
MVP Build
No CTO yet? We design, build, and launch your first real product in months, not years.
Fractional CTO & Engineering Team
Senior engineering leadership and a full team on demand, without hiring full-time.
AI & ML
Put AI to work in your product, from smart search to ML models that actually ship.
Staff Augmentation
Plug vetted senior engineers into your existing team and move faster from day one.
Trusted by Leading Tech Companies
Backed by Top Investors
We design and build exceptional software for the most innovative tech companies.
We deliver. Clients love us.
We are a VC-funded startup ourselves. We work at a breakneck pace, comfortable with ever-changing product specs, and make reasonable tradeoffs between speed and technical debt, while never compromising on non-negotiables like security.
“First Mate engineers work with the ownership and accountability. They can handle tasks that are ambiguous, and they move super fast.”
Bhuvana, CTO at Anchor
Former Engineering Manager at Bolt and WePay
"You are resilient, and your communication is open and honest. You broke the stereotypeof unreliable and opaque dev shops."
Aizada, CEO at ALMA
Harvard-educated lawyer and legal tech CEO
“Your technical expertise and understanding of startup dynamics are invaluable. You make smart tradeoffs, and meet deadlines.”
Rohan, CTO at Cobalt ID
Former Senior Software Engineer at Qualcomm
Silicon Valley leadership, combined with Asia-based execution.
Harvard-educated,
Silicon Valley-trained leadership
Mark, who has been building alongside his friends since his time at Harvard and Asana, leads the company as CEO and CTO with a focus on innovation, execution, and talent. By combining expert direction with agile project management and a hands-on approach to team growth, he ensures we deliver cutting-edge software that creates meaningful value for our clients.
Asia-Based Operation for Effective Execution
Based in the Philippines, we deliver cost-efficient, high-impact solutions. Our engineers combine top-tier technical expertise, clear communication, and relentless dedication to help clients scale and succeed.
Partnering with the world’s most innovative teams.
ALMA
ALMA's AI engine revolutionizes legal document preparation. As ALMA faced challenges in hiring a CTO, we built and launched their initial product in just three months.
ovice
A Series B venture, ovice is crafting a next-gen virtual office platform. Within a month of our collaboration, impressed by our code quality, they doubled our project team size.
Acelab
Acelab is an integrated platform for building materials. We trained a neural network to significantly enhance their search feature.
Holly
Holly is a purpose-built platform that helps public sector organizations recruit the workforce of tomorrow through AI-driven job design, compensation planning, and strategic insights. First Mate is trusted to build the first version of this product from end to end.
How We Start
No guesswork on how to begin. We work two ways — pick the path that fits where you are.
Ongoing senior engineers embedded in your team.
Two-week trial
Start low-risk and validate the value we deliver before any long-term commitment.
Integrated team
We keep going indefinitely as an embedded part of your team.
A fixed-term build with clearly defined milestones.
Scoping
We scope the work together to define the milestones, timeline, and cost.
Fixed-term project
A focused, milestone-based build, typically 3+ months, to ship your product.
Ongoing support
We stay on to maintain, iterate, and support what we shipped.
Engineering Insights
We're eager to share our technical expertise and insights through our published articles.
AI/ML Research
AI-powered search ranking algorithm
A report on implementing a data pipeline enabling Thumbtack to consistently and swiftly enhance its AI capabilities.
Infrastructure, AI/ML
Feature Store for Faster ML Development
A report on creating an AI/ML production system that powers Thumbtack's search feature, serving over 10 million users.
Testing, Web
Testing in production: Rewriting APIs with dark clients
How Asana enhanced its API performance and consistency using dark clients to test production-level loads and identify discrepancies before deployment.
AI/ML Research
Validating Search Ranking with the Simulator
A report on developing a simulator to detect ranking regressions and maintain quality in Thumbtack's algorithm connecting customers with home service professionals.
Frequently Asked Questions
Please contact us, but most likely, immediately! We always try to keep some reserve capacity to serve new customers with minimal delay.
We are flexible! Typically we first engage in a two-week paid trial so our clients can validate the value we can provide. Projects can be fixed term (typically 3+ months), or indefinite (we become an integrated part of the team).
At First Mate Technologies, we recognize the critical role of synchronization in our project workflow. Once a project begins, we actively work to identify and set overlapping working hours that accommodate both our clients and our team.
Start your two-week trial.
No long-term commitment. Most engagements start with a low-risk trial. Prefer to talk first? Reach us directly.
