MVP development for startups in India: Build version one with code your investors will want to see.
DPIIT recognised more than 55,200 startups in FY 2025-26, the most in any single year (PIB, April 2026). Few founders can hire a senior team before they raise. We give you one now, with everything set up the way investors' lawyers expect to find it.
- Free 30-minute call
- Fixed quote in writing
- Code you own
Help that fits your stage.
Got an idea and no technical co-founder? Talk to an engineer.
Thirty minutes with a senior engineer, free and with no obligation. Bring the problem, not a brief.
You own everything, and the paperwork proves it.
Under the Copyright Act 1957, the author of software owns it first, unless they wrote it as your employee. Code from a development company or freelancer becomes yours only through a signed written assignment. If that assignment does not say how long or where, the law assumes five years and India only (sections 17 and 19). Paying for the code is not enough on its own, and investors' lawyers will ask to see the assignments.
Sources: India Code, The Copyright Act, 1957 (sections 17 and 19). More in our guide, Who owns the code? General information, not legal advice.
Investor-ready by default.
Indian investors' lawyers check IP assignments from founders, employees and contractors, every share allotment filing (Form PAS-3), FEMA filings for any foreign investment, the approval of your ESOP scheme and your readiness for the DPDP Act (Treelife, legal due diligence checklist, June 2026). We build so those answers already exist.
Source: Treelife, Legal due diligence checklist for Indian startups (June 2026). General information, not legal advice.
How working with us actually feels.
Choosing a partner? Read How to choose a software company in India, our checklist of what to ask before you sign.
Two ways to pay.
A fixed quote, paid as it ships.
After discovery you get a fixed, itemised quote in rupees, with GST shown separately, and a milestone plan. You pay as each stage is shown working, and any change of scope is costed in writing before we build it. Nothing is paid in full up front.
How discovery worksThe Co-Founder Programme.
For three products a year, we carry 50 to 70 per cent of the build cost as services in exchange for 10 to 15 per cent equity. You bring an Indian private limited company, the idea, the other 30 to 50 per cent of the build cost and a marketing budget of at least half the build cost, kept in a separate bank account. The next cycle starts in January 2027.
Read the programme and term sheetFunding signposts.
Where Indian founders commonly look for support, with the official source for each. This is general information, checked on 15 October 2026, not tax or financial advice. Check with your CA before you rely on any of it.
More: Funding your software or AI project in India, our longer guide. Recognition figures: PIB, 17 April 2026.
Frequently asked questions.
Who owns the code you build for our startup?
Your company does, once the work is paid for. Our contract assigns the copyright and other intellectual property to your company in a signed written assignment, worldwide and for the full term, as the Copyright Act 1957 requires. The code lives in your repository from the first commit, and your company holds the cloud, app store and domain accounts.
Will investors accept code built by a development company?
Investors care less about who wrote the code than whether you own it, whether it is documented and whether it can scale. We give you written IP assignments, a licence register, architecture notes and tests, so a technical due diligence review finds a product, not a problem.
What happens if we stop working together?
You keep everything we have built and you have paid for: the code in your repository, the accounts in your name and the documentation. We hand over cleanly, with notes your next developer or first hire can follow, so the product keeps moving.
How long does an MVP take?
About 90 days from kick-off to a launchable MVP for a well-scoped product, with a working demo every week. A fundraising prototype can be quicker. Discovery comes first and sets the exact scope and timeline in a fixed quote in rupees.
Do we still need to worry about angel tax?
No. Angel tax, the old income tax on share premium above fair value, was abolished for all investors from assessment year 2025-26 by the Finance (No. 2) Act, 2024. The Income-tax Act, 2025 has no such rule. Share issues still need proper valuation reports under company law and FEMA. Check with your CA.
Can we give ESOPs to our first employees?
Yes. An ESOP scheme needs a special resolution of your shareholders under the Companies Act 2013. DPIIT-recognised startups can also grant options to founders and directors holding over 10 per cent, for ten years from incorporation. Employees of startups certified for the tax holiday can pay ESOP tax later. Ask your CA.
Does the Co-Founder Programme affect our later fundraising?
No more than any other shareholder. We hold equity shares with no liquidation preference, never more than 25 per cent, and our stake dilutes like everyone else's. Investors will check our allotment paperwork: the special resolution, the registered valuer's report and the PAS-3 filing. We help you keep it complete.
Can you be our CTO until we hire one?
Yes. Our fractional CTO service gives you a senior technical lead a few days a month for the roadmap, architecture, supplier decisions, investor due diligence and hiring your first engineers. When you are ready to hire a full-time CTO, we help you find them.
Do you sign an NDA before we share our idea?
Yes, a mutual NDA before any detailed session. For a first conversation, describe the problem and the market rather than the secret parts. Our standard terms also include confidentiality, and anything you share stays inside the team working with you.
Still have a question? Call +91 99966 88404 and speak to an engineer.