DPR AIDPR AI — Business & financial model
The deep version of the numbers: two business lines, recurring cash as the core, and equity treated only as lumpy upside for build work delivered.
01 · Dual model
The dual model + two reinforcing loops
Line 1 — Build
DPR builds AI inside a customer’s systems. Each job is judged on one agreed number. The build line earns setup fees and monthly retainers.
Line 2 — Capital network
DPR connects founders and investors through introductions and information only. The capital side earns a flat investor subscription, never a percentage of a raise.
Equity rule: equity or a SAFE can be accepted only as payment for build work delivered, priced to the fair cash value of the services. It is never payment for an introduction, a raise, or any capital-connection activity.
Build loop
Good builds create measured traction. That produces honest case studies, which help attract better clients and better founders.
Relationship loop
A good build can make a founder more fundable. Warm, vetted relationships build trust over time. The durable asset is the relationship network, not one deal.
02 · Pricing
Pricing — AI build ladder
Setup fees are LUMPY. Monthly retainers are RECURRING.
| Tier | Pillar(s) | Who it is for | What is delivered | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | Automation, low-code | Solo founders, small teams | 1 productized build, monitoring, monthly check-in | $3.5k setup + $1.5k/mo |
| Growth | Automation + integration | Funded startups, SMBs | Custom build wired into systems, retraining, evals, up to 3 deliverables/mo, one honest KPI | $15k setup + $6k/mo |
| Compliance | Governance & compliance | Regulated legal, health, fintech | Growth + audit trail, model-risk docs, human-in-loop controls, quarterly review | $40k setup + $12k/mo |
| Enterprise | All four | Scaling companies | Multi-system integration, dedicated cadence, SLA, owned handover | $50k setup + $20k/mo |
03 · Pricing
Pricing — investor membership
Investor memberships bill annually and are modeled as ARR-derived subscription revenue, not smooth monthly cash.
| Tier | Who | What is included | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Signal | Angels | AI-scored teardowns, published scoring methodology, monthly research memo | $3k/yr (~$250/mo) |
| Syndicate | Micro-VCs, family offices | Signal + diligence reports, founder update rooms, quarterly pitch day | $7.5k/yr (~$625/mo) |
| Inner Circle | Active lead investors | Syndicate + co-invest access, personalized sector/stage/check-size filtering, direct intros | $12k/yr (~$1,000/mo) |
04 · Pricing
Founder traction advisory
This is generic ops and metrics work, sold and priced without reference to any active raise.
| Offer | Type | What is delivered | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Traction Sprint | LUMPY | 4-week package: metrics dashboard, one honest number instrumented, data-room hygiene, narrative review | $8k one-time |
| Traction Retainer | RECURRING | Ongoing build + advisory to keep metrics and story current | $4k–$6k/mo |
| Studio / equity option | LUMPY upside | Discounted build services for a SAFE, strictly in lieu of cash for services rendered | SAFE in lieu of cash |
05 · MRR math
Illustrative model — not achieved revenue
This ladder is a model, not current revenue. It preserves the milestone table from the business-model source, including its Section 4 monthly assumptions for the ladder.
| Milestone | AI retainers (mix) | Investor subs (~$400/mo) | Cash founder retainers | Blended MRR | Timing (solo start) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $1k | 1 Starter pilot ($1k) | 0 | 0 | ~$1.0k | Mo 2–3 |
| $5k | 3 Starter ($4.5k) | 2 ($0.6k) | 0 | ~$5.1k | Mo 5–8 |
| $10k | 2 Starter + 1 Growth ($9k) | 3 ($1.0k) | 0 | ~$10.0k | Mo 9–13 |
| $25k | 3 Starter + 1 Compliance ($22.5k) | 6 ($2.4k) | 0 | ~$24.9k | Mo 14–20 |
| $50k | 2 Growth + 2 Compliance ($48k) | 5 ($2.0k) | 0 | ~$50.0k | Mo 20–30 (first hire) |
| $100k | 5 Growth + 3 Compliance ($84k) | 20 ($8.4k) | 2 × $5k ($10k) | ~$102k | Mo 30–42 (small team) |
| $200k | 8 Growth + 4 Compliance + 2 Enterprise ($170k) | 35 ($15.8k) | 3 × $5k ($15k) | ~$201k | Mo 42–60 (team of 6–8) |
Source note
The source business model flags a pricing inconsistency: the offer ladder lists Compliance at $12k/mo and Enterprise at $20k/mo, while the Section 4 MRR ladder uses higher monthly assumptions for those rows. This page does not hide that. It labels the MRR table as illustrative until the source model is reconciled.
06 · MRR definition
Strict MRR definition
What counts: cash, contractually recurring, non-contingent revenue committed for at least 3 months.
What does not count: success fees, equity/SAFE, cash-poor bridge founders who pay in equity, realized or unrealized financing upside, and prepaid annual investor cash presented as smooth monthly cash.
07 · Risk
Concentration & sales-cycle risk
Regulated buyers run 3–9-month procurement, so Compliance and Enterprise revenue cannot seed Month 1. On a tiny base, losing one anchor is a cliff: the source model calls out one $1.5k Starter loss at a $5k base as −30%, and one Compliance-anchor loss at a $25k base as −72%.
Investor subs bill annually, so renewal risk is also a once-a-year cliff. Model annual subscription renewal separately at roughly 75–80%/yr, not as smooth monthly churn.