# Best AI Development Agencies for Startups

> 20 agencies. Top-ranked: Square Root Solutions, Modulai, Dashbouquet.

Canonical page: https://www.aiagencies.eu/services/ai-development/for/startups
Generated: 2026-09-20 · Curated by Gabor Kiss · No paid placements — inclusion, score, and rank are never sold.

## Ranked roster
1. **Square Root Solutions** — Dublin, Ireland · €20-40/hr (directory-listed) · team 10-49 · founded 2018 · services: AI Development, Generative AI · 10 documented client engagements with source URLs · reviewed 2026-09-16 · https://www.aiagencies.eu/agency/square-root-solutions
2. **Modulai** — Stockholm, Sweden · rate not published · team 10-49 · founded 2018 · services: AI Consulting, AI Development, Generative AI, AI Agents · 12 documented client engagements with source URLs · reviewed 2026-08-05 · https://www.aiagencies.eu/agency/modulai
3. **Dashbouquet** — Tallinn, Estonia · €45-85/hr (directory-listed) · team 50-249 · founded 2014 · services: AI Development, Generative AI, AI Consulting · 5 documented client engagements with source URLs · reviewed 2026-09-03 · https://www.aiagencies.eu/agency/dashbouquet
4. **Phenomenon Studio** — Tallinn, Estonia · €45-85/hr (directory-listed) · team 50-249 · founded 2019 · services: AI Development, AI Consulting · 7 documented client engagements with source URLs · reviewed 2026-09-03 · https://www.aiagencies.eu/agency/phenomenon-studio
5. **Vstorm** — Wrocław, Poland · €85-130/hr (directory-listed) · team 10-49 · founded 2017 · services: AI Consulting, AI Development, Generative AI, AI Agents · 8 documented client engagements with source URLs · reviewed 2026-09-08 · https://www.aiagencies.eu/agency/vstorm
6. **Yield Studio** — Lyon, France · €85-130/hr (directory-listed) · team 50-249 · founded 2019 · services: AI Development, Generative AI, AI Agents · 6 documented client engagements with source URLs · reviewed 2026-09-04 · https://www.aiagencies.eu/agency/yield-studio
7. **Tooploox** — Wrocław, Poland · €45-85/hr (directory-listed) · team 50-249 · founded 2012 · services: AI Development, Generative AI, AI Consulting · 6 documented client engagements with source URLs · reviewed 2026-09-08 · https://www.aiagencies.eu/agency/tooploox
8. **Upside Lab** — Kraków, Poland · €85-130/hr (directory-listed) · team 10-49 · founded 2017 · services: AI Consulting, AI Development, AI Automation · 6 documented client engagements with source URLs · reviewed 2026-09-08 · https://www.aiagencies.eu/agency/upside-lab
9. **Indigo Labs** — Ljubljana, Slovenia · €45-85/hr (directory-listed) · team 10-49 · founded 2021 · services: AI Development, AI Automation, AI Agents · 5 documented client engagements with source URLs · reviewed 2026-09-07 · https://www.aiagencies.eu/agency/indigo-labs
10. **Buildo** — Milan, Italy · €85-130/hr (directory-listed) · team 10-49 · founded 2013 · services: AI Development, AI Consulting · 5 documented client engagements with source URLs · reviewed 2026-09-03 · https://www.aiagencies.eu/agency/buildo
11. **Lizard Global** — Rotterdam, Netherlands · €45-85/hr (directory-listed) · team 50-249 · founded 2012 · services: AI Development, AI Automation, Generative AI · 5 documented client engagements with source URLs · reviewed 2026-09-04 · https://www.aiagencies.eu/agency/lizard-global
12. **Imobisoft** — London, United Kingdom · €45-85/hr (directory-listed) · team 10-49 · founded 2009 · services: AI Consulting, AI Development, Generative AI · 4 documented client engagements with source URLs · reviewed 2026-09-04 · https://www.aiagencies.eu/agency/imobisoft
13. **xtream** — Milan, Italy · €45-85/hr (directory-listed) · team 10-49 · founded 2018 · services: AI Development, AI Consulting · 4 documented client engagements with source URLs · reviewed 2026-09-03 · https://www.aiagencies.eu/agency/xtream
14. **B13 AI** — Birmingham, United Kingdom · €20-40/hr (directory-listed) · team 10-49 · founded 2010 · services: AI Development, AI Consulting · 4 documented client engagements with source URLs · reviewed 2026-09-04 · https://www.aiagencies.eu/agency/b13-ai
15. **Softspring** — Madrid, Spain · €50-75/hr (agency-confirmed) · team 2-9 · founded 2018 · services: AI Consulting, AI Development, AI Automation · 3 documented client engagements with source URLs · reviewed 2026-09-07 · https://www.aiagencies.eu/agency/softspring
16. **punktum digital** — Berlin, Germany · €45-85/hr (directory-listed) · team 2-9 · founded 2022 · services: AI Development, AI Consulting · 3 documented client engagements with source URLs · reviewed 2026-08-04 · https://www.aiagencies.eu/agency/punktum-digital-gmbh
17. **Fantasy Space** — Madrid, Spain · €20-40/hr (directory-listed) · team 10-49 · founded 2020 · services: AI Development, AI Agents, AI Automation, AI Consulting · 3 documented client engagements with source URLs · reviewed 2026-09-09 · https://www.aiagencies.eu/agency/fantasy-space
18. **010 Coding Collective** — Rotterdam, Netherlands · rate not published · team 2-9 · services: AI Automation, AI Development, AI Consulting · 4 documented client engagements with source URLs · reviewed 2026-09-04 · https://www.aiagencies.eu/agency/010-coding-collective
19. **Altar.io** — Lisbon, Portugal · rate not published · team 10-49 · founded 2015 · services: AI Development, AI Consulting, Generative AI · 2 documented client engagements with source URLs · reviewed 2026-09-09 · https://www.aiagencies.eu/agency/altar-io
20. **Sputnik Digital** — Manchester, United Kingdom · €85-130/hr (directory-listed) · team 2-9 · founded 1998 · services: AI Development, AI Consulting · 2 documented client engagements with source URLs · reviewed 2026-08-04 · https://www.aiagencies.eu/agency/sputnik-digital

## Compared head-to-head
Curated comparison pages (published rates, team size, coverage, projected 12-week engagement cost, and the curator's verdict on both sides — pairings are never sold):
- 010 Coding Collective vs Lizard Global: https://www.aiagencies.eu/compare/010-coding-collective-vs-lizard-global
- Buildo vs xtream: https://www.aiagencies.eu/compare/buildo-vs-xtream

## About this market
AI development for startups is product engineering under runway pressure: a working feature in weeks, at a cost the cap table survives, in code the founding team can own. The agencies here document exactly that shape. Modulai's client list runs from Fishbrain's trip forecasting for millions of anglers to meal detection in a diabetes app—scoped ML systems priced for growing companies, delivered by the team the case studies name. punktum digital shipped deep-learning diagnostics into DiaperID's infant-health app and the computer vision inside a smart animal-diagnosis collar. Sputnik Digital built Invntry's image-identification system for home-insurance inventories and Hollr's generative video platform.

Three questions protect a startup buying development. Speed: what shipped in the last eight weeks, for whom? Ownership: who keeps the code, and what runs without the agency—a system only the vendor can operate is a liability at diligence. And scope discipline: the strongest startup engagements on this page were bounded builds with acceptance criteria, not open-ended retainers. Buy the bounded version; extend it when it works.

## Questions buyers ask

### How many AI agencies work with startup on ai development?
20 agencies in our directory combine verified startup client evidence with documented AI Development work. The current top-ranked are Square Root Solutions, Modulai, Dashbouquet — ordered by depth of documented client evidence, then our editorial scoring (portfolio quality, credibility, completeness); placement is never paid.

### How much does an AI agency cost for ai development?
Published rates across this page's agencies run €20–130 per hour (median ~€65). Project totals depend on scope — the rate index at /rates breaks the computed bands down by region, country and team size.

### How is startup experience verified on this page?
Each listed agency has at least two documented, named startup clients — published case studies or engagement descriptions our research actually read, with source URLs stored per client. Logo walls without published evidence carry no weight, which is what separates this list from self-declared directories.

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Source: AIAgencies.eu — the curated register of European AI agencies. Rate provenance: "agency-confirmed" = disclosed via submission or claimed profile; "directory-listed" = Clutch or two agreeing B2B directories (lone unverified sources are never written). Full method: https://www.aiagencies.eu/methodology · Rate index: https://www.aiagencies.eu/rates