Question 1

What does Helium do?

Accepted Answer

Helium is a software studio that designs, builds, and maintains websites, e-commerce stores, mobile apps, SaaS platforms, and AI agents for businesses in the US and Canada.

Every engagement is productized — fixed scope, fixed price, fixed timeline. Most projects ship in 3–5 weeks. We cover seven disciplines: web design and development, e-commerce (Shopify), AI agent setup, SEO and generative search optimization, SaaS development, native app development (iOS and Android), and security.

We use AI to accelerate execution — not to replace human judgment. The architecture, UX decisions, and quality control are handled by senior engineers with 20+ years of combined experience.

Question 2

How does pricing work?

Accepted Answer

Fixed scope, fixed price, fixed timeline.  Every engagement at Helium is productized — no hourly rates, no open-ended retainers, no surprise invoices. You pick a tier from our services menu, we scope it together in a single call, and you get a number before anything starts. Websites start at $500. AI agents start at $2,500. SaaS builds start at $20,000. If the project doesn't fit a standard tier, we'll tell you upfront and propose a custom scope.

Question 3

How long does a project take?

Accepted Answer

Most projects ship in 3–5 weeks.  That's not a rough estimate — it's the delivery cycle we design every tier around. We keep projects short on purpose. A tight scope forces clarity, keeps momentum high, and delivers something useful faster than a six-month engagement. Larger or multi-phase projects are broken into sequential fixed cycles rather than one long open-ended project.

Question 4

What disciplines does Helium cover?

Accepted Answer

Seven disciplines, all productized with fixed scope and fixed pricing: Websites — landing pages to authority hubs with CMS ($500–$1,800) Ecommerce — Shopify stores from 1 to 200 SKUs ($1,200–$3,500) AI Agents — customer support, internal knowledge, and workflow automation ($2,500–$25,000) SEO + GEO — search and generative engine optimization ($800–$5,000/mo) SaaS — custom browser-based platforms and internal tools ($20,000–$50,000+) Native Apps — iOS and Android, cross-platform or native ($15,000–$60,000+) Security — audits, compliance architecture, and zero-trust cloud ($2,000–$15,000) Each discipline has 2–4 tiers. You pick the one that fits your scope and budget.

Question 5

How do you use AI in your work?

Accepted Answer

Every decision is made by a senior engineer. AI accelerates the execution.  We describe this as human-architected, agent-accelerated. In practice: architecture, UX, and quality control are human. Code generation, content variants, testing, and repetitive tasks are AI-assisted. This is how we ship in weeks instead of months — without cutting corners on the thinking.

Question 6

What do you need from us to get started?

Accepted Answer

A 30-minute kickoff call, your brand assets, and a responsive point of contact.  That's it for most tiers. We don't ask for a 40-page brief. We ask the right questions on the call, define scope together, and build from there. You'll need to provide feedback within 24 hours during the active cycle to keep things on track.

Question 7

Can I change the scope mid-project?

Accepted Answer

No — and that's by design.  Fixed scope is what makes fixed pricing possible. If something important comes up mid-cycle, we flag it for the next cycle. This keeps the current delivery clean, on time, and on budget. It also forces the valuable exercise of deciding what's actually essential before we start.

Question 8

How do we communicate during a project?

Accepted Answer

A shared Slack channel with direct access to the person doing the work.  No account managers, no ticket queues. You'll see progress updates every 1–2 days. We do one mid-cycle check-in call and a final review call. Everything else happens async unless you need something urgent.

Question 9

What's the difference between tiers within a discipline?

Accepted Answer

Scope and complexity.  Each discipline offers tiers so you can start where you are and scale up in a future cycle. Within Websites, for example: Helium Launchpad — single-page campaign or landing page ($500–$800) Core Digital Identity — 3–5 page professional site ($900–$1,200) Authority Hub Platform — 6–10 pages with CMS and blog ($1,300–$1,800) Adaptive Architecture — improvements to an existing site (custom quote) Every discipline follows the same pattern: start lean, grow when you're ready.

Question 10

What's your tech stack?

Accepted Answer

Our default stack is Next.js, Tailwind CSS, and TypeScript  — but we pick the right tool for each project. Full defaults by discipline: Web: Next.js (App Router), Tailwind CSS, TypeScript CMS: Payload CMS Database: Postgres (Neon) or Supabase Ecommerce: Shopify + custom Liquid / Hydrogen Native Apps: React Native with Expo (cross-platform) or Swift/Kotlin (native) AI: Vercel AI SDK, Anthropic Claude, OpenAI Infra: Vercel for compute, Cloudflare for DNS and CDN We're not religious about any particular stack. If your project needs something different, we'll use it.

Question 11

Do you offer ongoing support after launch?

Accepted Answer

Yes — as a separate monthly retainer.  Once the delivery cycle closes, we offer maintenance retainers that cover updates, dependency upgrades, bug fixes, and minor feature additions. We'll propose a retainer scope at the end of your project if it makes sense. No pressure — everything we hand off is fully documented so your team can maintain it independently.

Question 12

Do you work with existing codebases?

Accepted Answer

Yes — with a technical audit first.  If you're asking us to build on top of an existing codebase, we spend the first few days reviewing it and flagging any technical debt that would slow delivery or introduce risk. If the codebase can't support the scope within the fixed timeline, we'll tell you on the audit call and either adjust scope or recommend a clean rebuild. We also offer a dedicated Adaptive Architecture tier for ongoing work on existing sites and stores.

Question 13

What is your payment structure?

Accepted Answer

50% at kickoff, 50% on final delivery.  No milestone billing, no hourly invoices. For larger engagements (SaaS builds, native apps, enterprise projects), we use a multi-milestone structure — typically 30/30/30/10. But for standard productized tiers, it's always two payments, agreed before work begins.

Question 14

How do revisions work?

Accepted Answer

Each tier includes one structured revision round  after initial delivery. You compile your feedback, we implement it — typically within 2–3 business days. The revision round covers refinements within the original scope, not new features. If you want something outside the original scope, that's a new cycle.

Question 15

Do you handle hosting and deployment?

Accepted Answer

Yes — deployment is included in every project.  Our default production stack is Vercel for compute and Cloudflare for DNS and CDN. We hand over all credentials and accounts at delivery. You own the infrastructure — we set it up. If you prefer a different host, tell us during scoping and we'll configure it.

Question 16

Do you sign NDAs?

Accepted Answer

Yes.  We sign standard mutual NDAs before any scoping conversation where proprietary information is shared. Send us your template or use ours — either works.

Question 17

Are you available for rush projects?

Accepted Answer

Sometimes — depending on current workload.  Rush engagements (delivery in under 2 weeks) carry a  25–30% expedite fee  and require an unusually tight, well-defined scope from day one. Book a call and tell us your deadline. We'll be honest about whether it's achievable before you commit.

Question 18

Do we own the code?

Accepted Answer

Yes — 100% ownership.  On final payment, all intellectual property transfers to you. We retain no licenses, usage rights, or claims on anything we built. The only exceptions are third-party libraries and open-source packages (MIT, Apache, etc.) — but those are standard industry licenses that belong to you, not us.

Question 19

Do you offer design-only or development-only engagements?

Accepted Answer

Most tiers are full-stack — design and development together.  We've found that splitting the two creates expensive handoff friction. Designs built without knowing the implementation constraints rarely survive the actual build. That said, if you have a strong design team and just need implementation, or vice versa, book a call and we'll scope something that works.

Question 20

How do you handle bugs after launch?

Accepted Answer

Any bug that is a regression from the delivered scope is fixed for free within 30 days.  That means broken behavior that was supposed to work per the original spec. Bugs introduced by third-party updates, environment changes, or new feature additions fall outside this window and are handled through a maintenance retainer or a new scope.

Question 21

How do I book a call?

Accepted Answer

Hit the "Book an intro call" button anywhere on the site — it opens our calendar.  Calls are 30 minutes. No prep needed on your end. We'll ask about your project, timeline, and budget. You'll leave knowing whether Helium is the right fit and which tier makes sense. If we're not the right fit, we'll tell you that too.

Questions, answered with care.