We are HIPAA-aware, not HIPAA-certified. Distinction matters. We don't sign Business Associate Agreements (BAAs) by default — we're not handling PHI in our normal sprint workflow. What we do: ship architectures that pass HIPAA technical-safeguards audits when your in-house team or downstream BA-cleared vendor takes over. Encryption, access controls, audit logs, segregation of duties, BAA-ready data interfaces. If your sprint requires us to handle PHI directly (rare), we'll discuss BAA terms and cost separately.

Adjacent, not directly. We ship the working software and the architecture/decision documentation that becomes part of your Design History File. We don't run the formal verification & validation cycles that an FDA-regulated medical device submission requires — that's a regulated-software specialty firm's domain (typically $200K–$500K just for the V&V). What we ship is the pre-V&V architecture: the documentation foundation that makes the V&V firm's job 6 months faster instead of 12.

Every sprint deliverable includes an architecture decision document and typed schema definitions in the source. For Boston engagements specifically — where the buyer is usually technical and will audit the work themselves — we lead the kickoff with the architecture trade-offs we'd recommend, get written sign-off on the chosen path, and document deviations in the decision log. Pitch-deck theater wastes our time and yours; we skip it.

Yes. We are async-first by default — every engagement runs identically whether you're in Boston, MTL, Toronto, NYC, or anywhere else in North America. The Boston-specific advantages above (local tax credits, industry awareness, time-zone alignment) are bonuses for Boston founders, not constraints on who we'll work with.

Most Boston founders start with an Ideation Sprint ($4,995, 1 week) or HTML Demo Sprint ($9,995, 3–4 weeks) before committing to a Full Stack build. The smaller sprint validates fit and credit applies to your next sprint within 60 days. No retainers, no minimum spend.