Mike Qureshi
Co-Founder
LinkedIn profileVancouver · Founded 2019
Fractional CTO and startup studio for founders who need to ship
ThinkingLab is a Vancouver startup studio and fractional CTO practice founded in 2019 by Mike Qureshi and Sean Mehrabi. We work with founders and early-stage companies who need to ship a product and make technology decisions without a full-time CTO. Engagements start with the problem and the stage. ThinkingLab does not publish a rate card, and ThinkingLab is not an investor.
- 01 Idea
- 02 Strategy
- 03 Architecture
- 04 Engineering
- 05 Launch
- 06 Scale
Services
Technology leadership from idea to Series A.
01Fractional CTO
Technology decisions for the hours you need, without a full-time executive hire.
→ A founder who can defend the technical plan.
02Startup Studio
From an idea to a product you can put in front of users and investors.
→ A credible technical foundation for a new company.
03Technical Due Diligence
An independent read of the technology for investors, acquirers, and founders preparing for them.
→ Findings a decision-maker can use. ThinkingLab is not an investor.
04AI for Startups
A feature you can ship on a seed-stage budget, including when a model API is enough.
→ A product, not a demo.
05Cloud Foundations
A first cloud setup with a bill you can explain, and no platform you will have to rebuild.
→ Foundations that can still make sense at Series A.
06Data Foundations
Events, definitions, and a report a founder can trust. Not an enterprise data platform.
→ Numbers you can stand behind.
Not your typical technology consultancy.
We work at the intersection of business strategy and engineering. That means asking difficult questions before writing expensive code.
We help founders and organizations understand what to build, how to build it, and what it will take to operate and scale.
Why ThinkingLab
More than a development shop.
Most software companies begin with requirements and implementation.
ThinkingLab starts with the customer, the business model, product feasibility, architecture, security, economics, and path to scale.
Then implementation follows.
- 01
Strategy
- 02
Architecture
- 03
Build
- 04
Launch
- 05
Scale
Fractional CTO
You may not need a full-time CTO. You still need CTO-level decisions.
Early-stage and growing companies make technology choices that shape cost, risk, and speed for years. Senior technical leadership — for the hours you need it — helps you make those choices deliberately.
- 01Technology strategy
- 02Architecture and governance
- 03Engineering leadership
- 04Vendor and technology decisions
- 05Technical risk management
- 06Team development
- 07Scaling and cost control
Startup Studio
You bring the idea. We help build the company around it.
We don't just build your app. We help you think through the product, technology, execution, and business decisions behind it.
Understand the problem, users, and market.
Technical Due Diligence
Technical Due Diligence for Investors & Businesses
ThinkingLab provides technical due diligence for investors, acquirers, and founders preparing for them: an independent read of the technology behind a decision. ThinkingLab is not an investor and does not take a position in the company. ThinkingLab writes the assessment. ThinkingLab is not an investor and does not take a position.
AI for Startups
Ship a product, not a demo.
For a startup, AI is a feature inside the product: one workflow, a model you can afford, and a result a customer can use.
Enterprise AI implementation is a different practice. We hand that work to Mars Innovation Technology.
- One workflow
- Model API or a small build
- A budget you can name
- Evaluation on real examples
- A feature inside the product
- A way to turn it off
A production path
The person using the product.
Cloud Foundations
Cloud foundations that will not need rebuilding at Series A
ThinkingLab sets up cloud foundations for startups: a first account, costs a founder can explain, and a design that will not need rebuilding at Series A.
Most early products need one cloud, a place to deploy, and a bill that matches actual users. They do not need an enterprise landing zone, a migration programme, or Kubernetes. When the company later needs that work, it belongs with our sister companies.
Enterprise cloud programmes are led by Cloud Architects Expert.
The platform the first product runs on.
Product Engineering
Product engineering for startups
Software is easiest to build well when the product, the architecture, and the business model are understood together. We build products with that whole picture in view.
Clarify users, core workflows, and the smallest version worth building.
Data Foundations
Data foundations for early-stage products
ThinkingLab puts data foundations under early-stage products so founders can trust the numbers the product produces, without commissioning an enterprise data platform.
At this stage the work is the product's own events, a few definitions that do not change every week, and a report you can show an investor. Warehouses, lakehouses, and company-wide data platforms are a later project.
Enterprise data platforms are led by Mars Innovation Technology. ThinkingLab stays with the numbers the first product produces.
- Sources
- Model
- Quality
- Reporting
- Decisions
How we work
Architecture before code.
- 01
Understand
Examine the business problem, users, market, and constraints.
- 02
Challenge
Test assumptions before expensive implementation begins.
- 03
Architect
Design for maintainability, security, cost, and scale.
- 04
Build
Deliver practical increments and validated functionality.
- 05
Measure
Learn from users, systems, and operational feedback.
- 06
Scale
Evolve architecture, engineering processes, and capabilities.
How we engage
Thinking made tangible.
Since 2019 we have supported founders and organizations through product strategy, architecture, prototyping, and launch. Detailed client case studies are published only with client approval.
- Architecture reviews
- A read of an early product: what will break, what it costs to run, and what can wait.
- Prototype to launch
- Guidance from early prototype through validation, mentoring, and launch preparation.
- Fractional leadership
- Ongoing CTO-level support for teams without a full-time technical executive.
- Technology decisions
- Platform, vendor, and build-vs-buy choices grounded in business economics.
Sean Mehrabi
Co-Founder
Insights
Thinking, written down.
Technology Leadership
When Does a Startup Actually Need a CTO?
A practical guide for founders on when technical leadership becomes essential, what a CTO actually does at each stage, and the alternatives to hiring one full-time.
· 7 min read
Startups
Why AI Proofs of Concept Fail to Reach Production
The common reasons AI prototypes stall — evaluation, data access, security, integration, cost, and ownership — and how to design pilots that can actually ship.
· 8 min read
Startups
Choosing Between AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud for Your First Product
How a founding team chooses AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud for a first product: skills, customers, and a bill you can explain.
· 7 min read
Questions
Common questions
What is ThinkingLab?
- ThinkingLab is a Vancouver startup studio and fractional CTO practice founded in 2019 by Mike Qureshi and Sean Mehrabi. We help founders and early-stage companies ship a product and make technology decisions without hiring a full-time chief technology officer.
Who is ThinkingLab for?
- Founders and early-stage companies, from an idea through to the point where a full-time technical leader makes sense. ThinkingLab is not an investor and does not take a stake in your company.
How does an engagement start?
- It starts with a conversation about the problem, the stage, and what a useful first month would change. Scope is agreed from there. ThinkingLab does not publish a rate card.
Does ThinkingLab build enterprise AI, cloud platforms, or security programmes?
- No. ThinkingLab stays with the startup: a first product, fractional CTO leadership, and the technical work around it. Enterprise AI implementation is led by Mars Innovation Technology. Enterprise cloud programmes are led by Cloud Architects Expert. Security and DevSecOps programmes are led by Seya Group.
Next step
What are you trying to ship?
Whether you need a fractional CTO, a first product, or an honest read of the technology, start with the problem and the stage. ThinkingLab is not an investor.