Mobile apps people keep on their home screen.
We design and build iOS, Android and cross-platform apps, from customer-facing products to field tools for your own staff. AI-native engineering lets one team move quickly across both platforms, while senior engineers handle what AI cannot judge: offline behaviour, privacy, store policies and how the app feels in hand.
Native, cross-platform or progressive web app?
This choice shapes budget, hiring and user experience for years. There is no universally correct answer, and anyone who gives you one before hearing about your app is guessing.
| Native (Swift, Kotlin) | Cross-platform (React Native, Flutter) | Progressive web app | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Codebases to maintain | Two | One, with some platform-specific code | One, shared with your website |
| Device features | Full access, newest APIs first | Most features, via plugins or native modules | Limited, especially on iOS |
| Relative build cost | Highest | Moderate | Lowest |
| App store presence | Yes | Yes | No, added from the browser |
| On-device AI | Best access to platform ML frameworks | Possible through native modules | Mostly relies on server-side AI |
| Best for | Performance or hardware-heavy apps | Most business and consumer apps | Simple tools and content-led experiences |
For most business apps we recommend cross-platform. We recommend native when the product genuinely depends on it, and a web app when an app store listing adds nothing.
What AI changes for app users, and for the team building the app
Users now expect apps to understand them a little. Search that copes with vague queries, a camera that reads a receipt or a serial number, voice notes turned into structured records, and help that answers before a human is needed. These features are practical to add today, but each raises questions about latency on mobile networks, what runs on the device versus a server, and what personal data leaves the phone.
On the build side, AI-native engineering matters even more for mobile than for web. There are more screen sizes, two operating systems and a long tail of device-specific bugs. Our engineers use AI agents to generate UI tests across device configurations, draft platform-specific glue code and keep documentation current, so senior time goes into architecture, performance and the interaction details that make an app feel trustworthy.
What AI does not remove is the review cycle. Apple and Google still review every release, privacy disclosures still have to match what your code actually does, and an AI-generated feature that collects data you did not declare can get an update rejected.
What mobile app development actually involves
App budgets go wrong when quotes cover the screens and forget everything around them. These are the pieces we plan for from the start.
Offline use and patchy connectivity
Decide early what works without signal and how data syncs when it returns. Retrofitting offline support later is painful.
Store accounts and review
Developer accounts in your company name, store listings, screenshots, review guidelines and a plan for the occasional rejection.
Privacy disclosures and permissions
App Store privacy details and Google Play data safety forms must reflect every SDK in the app, including analytics and AI services.
Notifications that earn their place
Useful, well-timed push notifications and a sensible opt-in moment, rather than a permission prompt the second the app opens.
A backend and admin to support it
Most apps need an API, a database and an admin panel for your team. This is often half the real work.
Updates for years, not just launch
Annual iOS and Android releases deprecate APIs and change permission rules. Budget for regular maintenance from the outset.
How we take an app from idea to the stores
Timelines vary with scope and integrations. A focused cross-platform app with its backend often follows this shape within a 6 to 12 week Product Build.
Confirm the need
Week 1Check that it should be an app, choose native or cross-platform, and define the core journeys and how success will be measured.
Prototype on real devices
Weeks 1 to 3Interactive prototypes tested in hand, because gestures, thumb reach and loading states feel different on a phone than on a laptop.
Build and test
Weeks 3 to 10Weekly test builds on TestFlight and Google Play internal testing, AI-generated test suites across devices, and senior review of every change.
Submit and support
Weeks 10 to 12Store submission, staged rollout, crash monitoring and fixes for the issues only real users on real devices uncover.
Questions we often hear
How much does it cost to develop a mobile app?
Cost depends on platforms, the backend the app needs, integrations and features like offline sync or payments. Cross-platform apps are usually cheaper than two native apps, and AI-native teams typically need fewer engineer-hours than traditional ones. Our app development cost calculator gives an indicative range in a few minutes.
Should I build a native or cross-platform app?
For most business and consumer apps, cross-platform frameworks such as React Native or Flutter give a near-native experience from one codebase at lower cost. Native makes sense for performance-critical apps, heavy use of device hardware, or when you need the newest platform features the day they ship.
Can AI features run on the phone instead of the cloud?
Some can. Smaller models for text recognition, image classification and basic transcription run well on modern phones, which helps privacy and offline use. Larger language model features usually still run on a server, so the design question is which parts need to be instant, private or available offline.
Do you use AI to build mobile apps?
Yes. Our engineers run several AI coding agents in parallel for UI code, tests across device configurations and documentation. Senior engineers review every change and own the architecture, because store rejections, privacy mistakes and performance problems are expensive to discover after launch.
Do I actually need a mobile app?
Not always. If people use your service occasionally, do not need device features and would not bother installing anything, a responsive web app is cheaper and easier to update. We will tell you if that is your situation before you spend money on an app.
Related reading and tools
Tell us about the app you have in mind.
Share who it is for, what it should do, and whether it needs offline use, the camera, location or AI. We will reply within 24 hours with a view on platform, scope and realistic cost.
Working with companies globally · Response within 24 hours