Software and app development · San Diego, California
Software development company in San Diego for defense tech and biotech
Our software development company builds what surrounds the core work of San Diego defense tech startups, labs and clinics: dashboards, partner portals, booking apps and internal tools. Most builds cost $7,000 to around $25,000 to $30,000, a first release ships in 5 to 10 weeks, and the quote comes in writing after a free 30-minute call. You own the code from the first commit.
Written scope and quote after the call. NDA on request. You own the code.
Teams we have built software for
San Diego defense and biotech teams keep their engineers on the core product while we build the dashboards, portals and internal tools around it, with access control from the first release.
Our 16-person engineering team is in-house in San Francisco and works your exact hours, with 30+ remote specialists for design, QA and integrations. We have built production software for Citi, Spirit Airlines and the Miami Dolphins, and we publish the results of every build.
How to hire an app developer in San Diego: 5 things to settle first
- Will the app hold federal contract data?
If it stores Federal Contract Information or Controlled Unclassified Information, the Department of Defense's CMMC program sets the security level your systems must meet. Decide this before scoping, because it changes hosting and access design.
- Which part of the system is ours?
Draw the line between your core engineering (flight, embedded, lab instruments) and the web and mobile layer around it. We build the layer; your team keeps the core.
- Does patient or study data go in the app?
Name the data first. Covered entities and their vendors follow HIPAA, and California's privacy law adds access and deletion rights for consumers. Access rules and audit logs are planned before the first screen.
- Who owns the code, the cloud account and the app listing?
You do, from day one, with a recorded video walkthrough and written documentation at handover.
- Is the price written down before work starts?
Get screens, integrations, milestones and price on paper from any team you consider. See our pricing page for how integrations and security reviews change the number.
Apps and software we build for San Diego businesses
Defense tech and autonomy startups
Contract milestones, test reports and supplier documents are spread across drives, and every program review means a day of collecting them.
A program tracker with role-based access, document history and an audit trail, so a review pack is one export instead of one lost day.
Unmanned and robotics operators
Customers want to see mission data and vehicle status, but today you send them screenshots and spreadsheets.
A customer dashboard that shows each client their own fleet, missions and reports, built on top of the data your platform already produces.
Clinics and in-home health providers
Patients book by phone, cancellations leave clinicians idle and licenses are tracked by hand.
A booking and clinician app with screening before confirmation, route-aware scheduling and license tracking.
Events, tourism and venues
Large events run on radios and printed lists, and incidents are located from verbal descriptions.
An event operations app with a live site map, handset reporting and an organizer view, the pattern that cut Life Line's dispatch time from 9 minutes to 90 seconds.
Planning something like this in San Diego? The first call is free and you leave with a clear next step.
Get a free project quoteWhat does it cost to hire our software development company in San Diego?
$7,000 to around $25,000-$30,000
Our own price for a San Diego build, project-based or hourly, in writing before any work starts. Design, the build, testing, store launch and a handover in your name are included; the pricing page lists what is in and out.
How to compare app development companies in San Diego
Ask every firm on your San Diego shortlist for a written price, launch times on named projects, who writes the code, and whose name the code and store accounts are in. Our answers: $7k to $30k, a first release in 5 to 10 weeks, Shivam Pujara's in-house team, and everything in your name. The full list is in how to choose a software development company.
Builds closest to what San Diego businesses need
All 44 builds →
How a build works, from first call to handover
Across our published builds the first release shipped in 5 to 10 weeks, with a median of 7. Integrations and compliance work add more time than screens do. See how long our builds took.
Free 30-minute project call, then written scope and quote, then design you approve, then build with weekly demos, then test and launch, then handover you own, then support when you need it.
Get a free project quoteWhat clients say
“Communication was clear, timelines were realistic, and the final product matched what was scoped.”
“Working with [our team] was the best decision we made in this process. We went from a 6 month development cycle to a 10 week timeline.”
“They translated very complex operational processes into software that feels simple for our team to use.”
What do you want to build in San Diego?
For San Diego clients we build mobile apps, web apps and SaaS, AI features, custom software, MVPs and CRM setups.
Why San Diego healthcare and defense teams pick our software engineers
San Diego defense tech firms are usually short of people for everything that is not the vehicle. That is our lane: fleet and mission web apps, contract and compliance trackers, and portals for primes and partners. We do not write flight, embedded or weapons software, and we say so on the first call, so you know exactly which part of your system we would own.
For labs, biotech startups and clinics, we build sample and study trackers, partner portals and patient booking with role-based access and audit logs designed in. Infuse CTL's clinician app, built in 7 weeks, cut cancellations from 24% to 7%. Edge Case Capital's internal tool took 6 weeks and cut memo prep from six hours to 90 minutes. Book a call and we will tell you what your first release should include, and what it should not.
Which California laws change how your app is built?
The California rules we design consent screens, data retention and breach logging around. A planning summary, not legal advice.
| Rule | What it means for the build |
|---|---|
| Consumer privacy law | California Consumer Privacy Act as amended by CPRA (Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.100 et seq.; regs 11 CCR § 7000 et seq.), in effect from 2020-01-01. Applies to: For-profit doing business in CA that (a) has annual gross revenue > $26,625,000 (CPI-adjusted from $25M), or (b) annually buys, sells or shares personal information of >=100,000 consumers or households, or (c) derives >=50% of annual revenue from selling or sharing personal information. Requires honouring universal opt-out signals such as Global Privacy Control, so the app needs an opt-out flow that reads the browser signal. |
| Data breach notification | Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.82 (amended by SB 446, Stats. 2025 ch. 319): notice deadline 30 calendar days from discovery (from 2026-01-01); sample notice to AG within 15 calendar days of notifying consumers if >500 residents. We build audit logs that show what data was touched, so notice can be accurate and on time. |
| CPPA regulations: ADMT, risk assessments, cybersecurity audits | Regs effective 2026-01-01: risk assessments from 2026-01-01 (attestation/summary due 2028-04-01); ADMT rules for significant decisions from 2027-01-01; cybersecurity audit certifications due 2028-04-01 (revenue >$100M), 2029-04-01 ($50-100M), 2030-04-01 (<$50M). (effective 2026-01-01) |
| Delete Act / DROP (Delete Request and Opt-out Platform) | Registered data brokers must access DROP at least every 45 days from 2026-08-01 and process consumer deletion requests; independent audits from 2028-01-01. (effective 2026-08-01) |
| AB 1043 Digital Age Assurance Act | OS providers collect age/birth date at device setup and send an age-bracket signal to apps; developers must request and use the signal. (effective 2027-01-01) |
| SB 243 companion chatbots | Companion chatbot operators must disclose AI, run suicide/self-harm protocols and add minor safeguards; annual reporting from 2027-07-01. (effective 2026-01-01) |
| Sales tax on SaaS | not taxable: Reg. 1502(f)(1)(D): prewritten programs transferred by remote telecommunications not taxable unless storage media transferred; custom programs not taxable (f)(2)(A).. Relevant if you will sell your app as a subscription. |
| Time zone | Pacific. Our team works from San Francisco (Pacific), with remote specialists covering other hours, so San Diego working hours overlap with ours every weekday. |
Checked 2026-10-31 against state sources; confirm with counsel before launch.
Engineers you can talk to
16 in-house engineers plus 30+ remote specialists, and 44 published builds with the results each client saw.
Alpit PatelFounder and CEOEngineering is led by co-founder and CTO Shivam Pujara.Software development company in San Diego: questions people ask
What does custom software cost in San Diego?
With us, a web app, portal or mobile app usually costs $7,000 to around $25,000 to $30,000. The price depends on screens, user roles and integrations, not on your ZIP code. Security reviews by a prime or a customer can add scope, so we ask about them on the free 30-minute call and put the final number in writing.
How long does it take to build a dashboard or portal?
Across the 44 builds we publish, a first release took between 5 and 10 weeks, and the median was 7. A portal on top of one clean data source can land near 5 or 6 weeks; several integrations or a customer security review push toward 10. The timeline is set in the written scope before any work starts.
Do you build software for defense startups in San Diego?
Yes, the commercial and operational layer: mission and fleet dashboards, partner portals, contract and compliance trackers and internal tools. We do not build flight, embedded or weapons software, or systems for classified data. If your project touches CUI, we discuss CMMC on the first call and tell you plainly whether it fits our team.
Does California privacy law cover a B2B or biotech app?
The CCPA applies to for-profit businesses that cross a threshold, such as revenue above $26,625,000 or buying, selling or sharing data on 100,000+ consumers or households. Being B2B does not exempt you on its own. If you are covered, plan access, deletion and opt-out flows into the first release. A breach must be reported to affected residents within 30 days.
Can a San Francisco team work with us day to day?
Yes. We share Pacific time, so calls, reviews and quick decisions happen within your normal hours. Scoping, weekly demos and sign-offs run on video, and you get a test build to try between demos. Our engineers are in-house, so the people on the call are the people writing your code.
How should I choose a software development company in San Diego?
Ask to see shipped builds with named clients and measured results. Confirm who writes the code, whether the scope and price are written down, how security and access are handled, and that the code and accounts will be yours. Then compare. A team that says no to the wrong work is worth more than one that says yes to everything.
Can you build an app for a biotech lab?
Yes. Labs usually start with a sample or study tracker, a partner portal for collaborators, or a dashboard that turns instrument exports into something leadership can read. We design permissions so each partner sees only their own data, and we keep an audit log of changes. Most of these builds sit near our 7-week median.
What happens to my app if the development company shuts down?
Nothing breaks, as long as the app lives in accounts you control. With us, the code repository, cloud hosting and app store listing are in your name from the first commit, so the app keeps running and any team can keep building it. You also get a recorded video walkthrough and written documentation at handover. Check where those accounts sit before you sign with anyone.
How much should I pay an app developer upfront?
Keep the first payment modest and tie the rest to working software you can test, so you never pay far ahead of what you have seen. Exact splits vary by contract, so read the payment terms before you sign. Ours are set out in the written quote after a free 30-minute call, and the code lands in your own repository as it is written.
What are the top software development companies in San Diego?
There is no official ranking. What you will find are review directories and agency-written top 10 lists, where the author often ranks itself first. Use reviews to build a shortlist, then ask every company for the same things in writing: a price, named clients, who writes your code and whether you own it. We publish those answers, with 44 builds shown with client permission.
More answers from our engineers
Nearby
Sources
Free project call
Building an app in San Diego? Pick a time for your free call.
Tell us what you want to build, then choose a 30-minute slot. You leave the call with the scope, the risks and a realistic timeline, and a written quote follows. Typical builds run $7,000 to around $25,000-$30,000.
- A written scope and price before any work starts
- First release in 5 to 10 weeks on our 44 published builds
- Code and accounts in your name from the first commit
- NDA on request, signed before you share details
Rather write it down? Send us your brief or email info@aibrevo.com.
- Details
- Time
- Confirmed
Free project call with Alpit Patel
Pick a day
You are booked.
With Alpit Patel
Before the call
- Accept the calendar invite so the call sits in your calendar with the Meet link.
- Jot down what the app should do: who uses it, the three or four things it must handle, and any deadline.
- Have examples handy: apps you like, sketches or screenshots, and the tools it needs to connect to.
Need a different time? Reschedule or cancel.