Startae
Startae is a Brazilian digital product design studio of ~14 designers, developers, and strategists that provides on-demand UX, UI, frontend, and backend services to startups and established businesses worldwide, with prior work for Evino, Boomerang Commerce, and Virtual Power Systems.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2012
- HeadquartersBrasília, Brazil
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Startae does
Startae is a Brazilian digital product design studio founded in 2012 and headquartered in Brasília, operating as a distributed team of approximately 14 designers, developers, and strategists across five Brazilian cities. The company provides on-demand user experience and product design services to startups and established businesses, covering UX research, UI design, frontend and backend development, responsive web design, and adjacent capabilities including business development, growth hacking, and operations. Its technology stack centers on Ruby on Rails for the backend, Ember.js for frontend JavaScript, with Slim/Pug/Emblem.js for templating, Sass with BEM/ITCSS for CSS architecture, and Socket.io for real-time features; design work is executed in Sketch, Figma, Framer, Principle, After Effects, Marvel, and InVision, with version control on Git. Notable client engagements include the Evino wine e-commerce app (Apple "Best of 2016"), Boomerang Commerce (pricing intelligence), and Virtual Power Systems (data center power management), supplemented by smaller startup projects such as Experimente Brasília, Brasólia, Zee & Co, and Inchoo.
Startae firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Startae
- Legal name
- Startaê
- Website
- https://startae.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2012
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Startae is a Brazilian digital product design studio of ~14 designers, developers, and strategists that provides on-demand UX, UI, frontend, and backend services to startups and established businesses worldwide, with prior work for Evino, Boomerang Commerce, and Virtual Power Systems.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Startae industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Digital Product Design Services
- NAICS
- Advertising Agencies (541810), Graphic Design Services (54143), Custom Computer Programming Services (541511)
- SIC
- Services-Advertising Agencies (7311), Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Digital Creative & Experience Design Agencies (Web/App/UX) (MPAAAAAD)
Keywords
Where Startae is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Brasília
- HQ country
- Brazil
- HQ region
- Latin America
Offices3 records
Markets served
Startae business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Design and Development Services: On-demand UX design and development services for startups and businesses, providing end-to-end product creation from design through development
- Product Ventures: Internal product development including Officeless (remote work movement) and Cuckoo (productivity timer for remote teams), with Cuckoo having 9k+ users and 21k+ sessions
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels9 records
Startae product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Startae is a Brazilian digital product design studio that provides on-demand UX/UI design, frontend and backend development services to startups and established businesses. The studio helps entrepreneurs design better digital experiences end-to-end, from idea through launch, while also operating internal product ventures (Cuckoo, Officeless, Yummmy) that demonstrate their design and development capabilities.
Product overview
Startae is a Brazilian digital product design studio offering on-demand UX/UI design and development services for startups. Their portfolio includes both client services (UX Design, UI Design, Frontend Development, Backend Development, Responsive Web Design) and their own products: Cuckoo (a productivity timer for remote teams), Yummmy (a menu sharing platform), and Officeless (a remote work movement/initiative). The company operates as a studio model, combining client work with internal product development.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Officeless: A movement created by Startaê that encourages organizations and individuals to adopt Remote Work so they can create teams with more productive, fulfilled and connected people.
- Cuckoo
Products and services
- Startae Design Studio Services On-demand user experience design and development services for startups and well-run businesses. Includes UX Design, UI Design, Frontend Development, Backend Development, Biz Dev, Growth Hacking, and Operations.
- Cuckoo A productivity timer for distributed teams that helps teams get more things done together. Features include creating rooms, defining timeboxes, sharing links with team members, and taking breaks.
- Officeless A movement created by Startae that encourages organizations and individuals to adopt Remote Work to create teams with more productive, fulfilled and connected people. Currently at 9k+ users, 21k+ sessions, and 3k+ shared rooms.
- Yummmy A platform for sharing menus across multiple channels (Facebook, websites, tablets, smartphones). Received seed investment from a Brazilian government fund in 2016.
Quantifiable outcome
- Evino app awarded Best of 2016 Apps of The Year by Apple App Store
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Startae
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Startae technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
Feature3 records
Startae partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Yummmy (Startaê Venture)coreYummmy is an internal product venture started by Startaê - a menu sharing platform for restaurants. Yummmy received seed investment from a fund from the Brazilian government, allowing a dedicated team to work full time on the product. The product was later featured on Brazilian TV and launched version 2.0.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Startae competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Designit: Designit is a global design and innovation consultancy (part of Wipro) offering UX, product design, and engineering. Closely comparable service mix to Startae but with global reach and parent backing.
- IDEO: IDEO is a global design and innovation consultancy with deep roots in human-centered design and venture incubation. Comparable strategic-design orientation, but at a substantially larger scale and broader service portfolio than Startae.
- Huge: Huge is a large, established global experience design agency offering UX, UI, and full-stack engineering across enterprise clients. Comparable in offering to Startae but at significantly greater scale and breadth.
- R/GA: R/GA is a global digital agency offering strategy, design, technology, and communications. Comparable integrated creative + technology offering, though at enterprise scale.
- Frog (frog design): Frog is a long-standing global design and innovation consultancy inside Capgemini Invent, providing strategy, design, and engineering services. Overlaps with Startae on integrated design + dev but at much larger scale.
Direct peers
- Work & Co: Work & Co is a digital product studio that designs and builds digital products end-to-end for major brands and startups — directly comparable to Startae's integrated design + development model and target customer profile.
- Ustwo: Ustwo is a digital product studio known for blending design and engineering to ship consumer apps and internal products (e.g., Monument Valley). Same integrated studio model and venture-style internal product culture as Startae.
- Fantasy (Interaction Design): Fantasy is a US-based interactive design and engineering studio building digital products, brands, and interactive experiences. Comparable boutique scale and integrated design + tech capability to Startae.
Emerging players
- Toptal (talent marketplace): Toptal is a global freelance marketplace for design and engineering talent. Competes with Startae for startup and mid-market design engagements via an on-demand talent model rather than a studio model.
Regional players
- Coletivo Studio (Brazil): Coletivo is a Brazilian digital product studio offering design, development, and product strategy. Most direct regional peer in the Brazilian market with similar size, integrated service model, and target customer base.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Customer concentration
Startae social profiles
Digital presenceStartae financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Startae leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles13 records
Startae funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Startae M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Startae
What does Startae do?
Startae is a Brazilian digital product design studio that provides on-demand UX/UI design, frontend and backend development services to startups and established businesses. The studio helps entrepreneurs design better digital experiences end-to-end, from idea through launch, while also operating internal product ventures (Cuckoo, Officeless, Yummmy) that demonstrate their design and development capabilities.
Is Startae a public or private company?
Startae is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Startae founded?
Startae was founded in 2012. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Startae based?
Startae is headquartered in Brasília, Brazil, in the Latin America region.
How does Startae make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Design and Development Services are the primary driver. The others are product Ventures.
Who are Startae's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Designit, IDEO, Huge, R/GA and Frog (frog design). Direct peers are Work & Co, Ustwo and Fantasy (Interaction Design). Toptal (talent marketplace) is listed as an emerging player. Coletivo Studio (Brazil) is listed as a regional player.
Does Startae have an API?
No public API is recorded for Startae.
What industry is Startae in?
Startae's product category is Digital Product Design Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAAAAAD, Digital Creative & Experience Design Agencies (Web/App/UX). Its NAICS code is 541810 and its SIC code is 7311.