About Ember Labs
Hi, I'm Dave.
I build AI agents and bespoke software for businesses, based here in Adelaide. One honest diagnosis, one build — no templates, no agency markup.
Why Ember Labs exists
I kept seeing the same thing.
Good operators, making real decisions on gut feel and manual admin — not because they weren't capable, but because the AI advice they could get was generic, and the software they actually needed was quoted at agency prices with agency timelines. Months of discovery before anyone built anything.
That gap — a clear, honest read on what a business actually needs, then someone who can go and build it, properly, without the markup — is what I started Ember Labs to close.
I'm backed by a coordinated system of specialist AI agents I built and direct myself — the research, drafting and delivery work gets done by a small, sharp operation instead of a six-person team. That's how a one-person studio can build like one twice its size, and still answer the phone personally.
What I build
Two disciplines. Same approach: understand the business first.
Not a menu of services — the same diagnose-then-build process, aimed at whichever problem actually needs solving.
AI Strategy & Consulting
Custom AI agents, with real skills
E.g. I built a signage company a custom AI assistant that turns a client brief and site photo into a design proof, hands an approved concept to the design team as an editable file, and routes new enquiries to the right person — automatically.
Process automation & workflow tooling
E.g. I built an IT services company an automated AI system that handles research, drafting and delivery work end to end — coordinated by one person instead of a team.
Software Engineering & Development
Bespoke web apps & databases
E.g. I built a dance competition organiser a complete event-day system — digital check-in instead of paper lists, a live backstage running order, and results tallied automatically across every category.
Websites & content platforms
E.g. I built ineedtocreate.com for creativity coach and author Steve Supple — a site built around how he actually works with clients, not a template he had to fit into.
How I work
I diagnose first. Then I build exactly what's needed.
I start by understanding what's actually slowing the business down — not guessing, not templating. I write it down, then build exactly that: an AI agent, a piece of software, or both. Sometimes the honest answer is "you don't need either yet," and I'll tell you that too.
Nothing gets handed over as "finished and forgotten." I keep it running, and because I already understand the business, when something changes I'm the one who can change the build with it.
Start with a straight answer.
Get in touch and tell me what's going on. Free, no-obligation conversation — no pitch, no deck, just me working out honestly what's worth building, even if that's nothing.