A Sydney AI development company with a CTO attached
Custom AI and ML systems, AI agents, and generative AI tools built on your own data and integrated into your existing software.
Hi, I’m Sam Halcrow. I lead every build personally as your Fractional CTO, with a team of 26 software and AI engineers behind me.
âś“ I scope it with you myself. There are no account managers between us.
Book a discovery callCLIENTS
253 companies have trusted me with software and AI development
16+ yrs
Leading technology initiatives
253
Organisations I’ve stepped into
1,000,000+
Engineering hours under my leadership
26
Engineers on my team today
WHY TEAMS CHOOSE US OVER A TYPICAL DEV SHOP
Most AI projects run. Ours changes something.
The gap in most AI work isn’t the models, but the engineering and ownership around them. A pilot that never touches your systems, data, or workflow was never going to change a number.
Book a discovery callThe typical arrangement
An account manager sits between you and the people doing the work. The vendor owns the roadmap. You find out what's on it at the demo. Senior names in the pitch, junior hands on the keyboard. The engagement ends when the invoice does.
How Halcrow works
I scope, lead, and answer for each engagement personally. Your roadmap stays yours. I run it with you, in your language. The team I bring is the team that builds. Everything gets handed over properly so you can own and extended what gets built.
WHAT I CAN LEAD & DELIVER WITH MY TEAM OR YOURS
AI development services
Applied AI & agentic systems
LLM-powered workflows, agents and copilots built into the tools your people already use, designed around a measurable job.
Automation & intelligent operations
Document handling, triage, scheduling, and reporting. Hours back every week, engineered reliably enough to trust.
Data & cloud foundations
Pipelines, integration, and infrastructure that make AI and machine learning models accurate, secure and affordable at production scale.
AI in your product
Features your customers pay for (search, recommendations, assistants) shipped inside your existing product.
Model evaluation & guardrails
Evals, monitoring and safety rails so the system stays accurate as your data, providers, and models change.
Pilot rescue
You’ve run a proof of concept, or maybe several - custom-built or off-the-shelf. We assess what’s worth keeping and engineer the survivor into production.
CASE STUDIES & RESULTS
Here's a snapshot of some big wins I achieved
ACCIONA
I led the software team on the Western Harbour Tunnel project, capturing and storing 13km of precision engineering data
AGILYX
I helped the tech team mature product engineering processes for a product serving 41,000+ people
BOVARA
I led the technical build of purpose-built software powering a new EV parking network across NSW
TESTIMONIALS
Hear from the companies I've delivered engineering and AI to
Angela Bevitt-Parr
National Marketing Manager AWS Australia
Tim Buric
Chief Technology Officer Agilyx & MUNIvers
Kelvin Kenney
Chief Executive Officer Bow Wow Meow
"Sam and his team operate as a trusted partner at every stage of delivery. They're pivotal in bringing engineering maturity to coordinate and execute large, complex projects."
Arun Prasad, Founder AIWhispr“Sam took the time to understand our business and knew all the tech we needed. It was a pleasure to work with him and his team as they acted as an extension of our team.”
Luke Schwigtenberg, Head of R&D Banktech"From the concept design meeting, Sam exceeded our expectations. He understood what our needs were, and his engineers worked quickly from brief to going live."
Rouad El-Ayoubi, CEO Alliance Project Group”Sam and his team's expertise, Ways of Working framework, and mastery of their craft truly set them apart. This is the beauty of partnering with them. We extend our technical capabilities seamlessly without the overhead of hiring in-house.”
Angela Bevitt-Parr, CMO AWS Australia"With a deep understanding of our business needs, Sam leads an efficient process in delivering quality outputs.”
Kelvin Kenney, CEO Bow Wow Meow"Working with Sam has been a turning point for our business. In addition to bringing structure to the development work, we also benefitted from his insight into emerging trends and technologies, as well as efficient and effective solutions."
Adrian Black, Founder Ticked Off“In a short period of time, Sam demonstrated an exceptional ability to align the right technical expertise with our specific needs.”
Tim Buric, CTO Agilyx“Sam guided us through the design and development process in a way we wouldn't be able to do on our own. We’re very happy to partner with him.”
Thomas Roper, Engineer Lendlease"I've worked with Sam and his team for over 4 years over multiple projects. Phenomenal.”
Andrew Raso, Group-CEO Online Marketing Gurus"Sam and his team are great. They built really cool tools for us, and we look forward to doing more together as partners.”
Matthew Freebury, Director FMCG Analytics“We spotted a market gap, and Sam helped us seize it quickly. His team built a product that gave us real advantage.”
Michael Soukie, Founder Scafflinq"Sam introduced remarkable insights, and his passion for world-class quality delivered wonderful results for the business.”
George Betsis, Founder Stickytape“Sam has a keen understanding of our company and our clients’ needs. His technical knowledge enables him to deploy solutions that continue to further our growth.”
Michael Kalucy, Managing Director Workhouse“Sam is everything we want in a fractional CTO. He understands our needs, works as if he owns the product, and comes up with innovative solutions quickly.”
Malaz Majanni, CEO OnePath Network“Sam's competency, attention to detail, and technical skills were impressive. What he built with us has been adding value to our business for over 5 years.”
Anastasia Lobanova, SAP Analyst Agrana Fruit“Sam took a concept and together with his team, turned it into a product we’re genuinely proud of. Their passion makes them a joy to work with.”
Trent Carney, Founder MyCanaryWHY NOW, NOT NEXT QUARTER
Without a technical leader accountable to you, you're risking project drift
Technology initiatives don’t fail suddenly. They drift. The same problems go unaddressed every quarter. By the time anyone notices, months of budget have gone with nothing to show for it.
It's a slow, quiet deterioration that looks like business as usual until it isn't.
HOW TO START WORKING WITH ME
Three steps to work with me. The first one costs you nothing but gives you what you need at this moment.
STEP 1
Book a 30-minute discovery call with me
You describe what you’re trying to build or fix. I ask the questions a CTO would.
STEP 2
I send a scope you can hold us to
With clear phases, honest estimates, named risks. Written so your leadership team can read it.
STEP 3
The team embeds and we start with you
My engineers build; I lead.
FAQ
What I'm asked on most scoping calls
How do you price?
Day rates for embedded engineers and my fractional CTO time, or a scoped phase price where the work suits it.
Who owns the code and IP?
You do. Everything we build for you belongs to your business.
Can you take over an existing build or vendor situation?
Yes, a meaningful share of our engagements start as rescues or take-overs.
How quickly can you start?
Scoping within days. Engineering start is typically weeks and not months.
Where are you based?
Sydney, working with clients across Australia.
STOP SEARCHING, START MOVING FORWARD
Book a discovery call
Complete the form and hit submit. I read every submission myself and reply on the same day, including the ones I turn down (along with the reason).
Thanks — your message is on its way.
Sam will get back to you personally, usually within one business day. If it's urgent, call0431 197 004.