How to choose an AI agency in Europe: a 12-point checklist

You will spend longer choosing an AI agency in Europe than the first sprint takes. This checklist is meant to make that time count. It comes from UnyoCorp, an AI-native product engineering studio in Tirana, so it is written by a seller; judge each point on whether it is useful and drop the ones that are not. Twelve checkpoints, then a worked example using our own sprint, build and run model, then the mistakes we see most often.

1. Production, with a name attached

Ask for one AI system with real users and a named client you can call. Screenshots and anonymised case studies are not evidence. A firm that has shipped will have a reference who answers the phone.

2. A price fixed before the work starts

Hourly billing puts the risk of the estimate on you. Fixed scope or fixed terms puts it on the agency, which is where the expertise sits. If the answer is "it depends", ask what a two-week scoping exercise would cost as a fixed sum.

3. Something working within two weeks

Not a plan, not a discovery report. A prototype on a sample of your data, demoed live. If the first working software is scheduled for month three, the risk is being stored rather than reduced.

4. An integration plan

The plan should say where the system will appear: inside the CRM, the inbox and the ERP your team already uses, or in a new tab. A tab is a tomb. It should also name the direction of data (read, write or both) and who holds the credentials.

5. Evals before trust

Ask what tests the system must pass before it touches production and how many cases are in the set. Evals are the unit tests of AI systems. An agency that cannot describe them is guessing.

6. A rule for uncertainty

Every AI system has a confidence floor. Below it, a person should get the case with the context attached. Ask where the threshold sits and who sees the escalations.

7. Your accounts, your keys, your code

Everything should be built on your accounts from day one. If the agency owns the cloud project, the model keys or the repository, you are renting your own product.

8. A named owner after launch

Production AI degrades without maintenance. Prompts drift, models are retired, costs move. Ask what monthly ownership looks like, what it costs, and what the monthly report contains.

9. The team you will actually get

Large firms such as Endava deliver through nearshore centres and are built for programmes at that scale, which is right for some jobs. For one system in one quarter, ask who exactly is on your team and whether they change halfway through.

10. Who you talk to

An account manager who talks to the engineers is a translation layer. Ask whether the people in the demo are the people writing the code.

11. The type of partner

Decision-intelligence firms such as Faculty solve forecasting and optimisation at programme scale. Product consultancies such as Netguru bring design-led product teams. A product engineering studio wires an AI system into a working product. Match the type to the job before you compare prices.

12. The exit

Handoff documentation should be a deliverable, not a favour at the end. Ask what you receive if you walk away after the sprint, and what you receive after the build.

A worked example

UnyoCorp's model answers the twelve like this. An AI Sprint runs two weeks at €3K to €6K fixed: week one audits your data, tools and process, week two demos a prototype on a sample of your real data, and you leave with a roadmap, the model and architecture choices, and a fixed build quote valid 30 days. If AI is the wrong tool, the recommendation not to build is written down and you keep the audit. A Product Build follows at €15K to €45K fixed over 4 to 10 weeks, paid 40/40/20 on milestones, with a staging environment from week one, the first demo within 10 business days and a written update every Friday. After launch, AI Ops covers monitoring, evals, prompt and model updates and cost control with a monthly report. Everything sits on your own accounts. Eight engineers in one room, no account manager, 130+ projects shipped to 10+ countries.

Mistakes to avoid

• Choosing on the length of the technology list rather than on one shipped system.
• Accepting a discovery phase with no working software at the end of it.
• Signing an hourly contract for a project with a deadline.
• Letting the agency hold the keys.
• Treating launch as the finish line, with no budget for the months after it.
• Comparing a fixed quote with an hourly estimate as if they carried the same risk.

Frequently asked questions

Is UnyoCorp the right AI agency for every job?

No. For a fixed-scope AI system that must reach production within a quarter, we think we are the strongest choice in Europe, and this checklist is the argument. For a programme that needs hundreds of engineers, or a national-scale decision system, the larger firms named above are the better fit.

How much should a first AI project cost in Europe?

Enough to reach production and no more. UnyoCorp's bands are public: a sprint at €3K to €6K and a build at €15K to €45K, both fixed. Ask any other agency for a fixed figure before you compare.

Does the agency need to be in my country?

It needs to be in your working day. Tirana runs on Central European Time, and every checkpoint above can be verified from your desk.

If you want to run the checklist against us, book a 30-minute call on unyocorp.com. You will hear back the same business day.