Old.St Labs Blog

Most businesses have AI tools, but far fewer have the foundations to use them effectively. Discover the five essentials every organisation needs to turn AI from an experiment into measurable business value.

Vibe Coding: genuine shift in software development, or just hype? Old St Labs' Rob Woodhead and Rob Lynch, with Ben Burch, weigh in.

AI can get an app 80% built fast. The final 20% includes security, scalability, edge cases, and maintainable code. That is where most AI-built prototypes stall and real product development begins.

Craig Brown shares why the fastest-growing B2B startups do not just market better. They understand their customers better, position themselves more clearly, and build with conviction.

Most startup AI implementations fail because founders rush into tools without a clear strategy. Scott Evans and Richard Geary break down what it really takes to implement AI successfully and avoid costly mistakes.

Vibe coding now means two things: developers using AI assistants, and non-technical founders building without oversight. We break down the risks of each - and how to navigate both.

Jason Margolin shares how AI is reshaping software development, where “vibe coding” falls short, and how non-technical founders can prototype smarter without a CTO.

Old St Labs is Cyber Essentials certified, a UK government-backed standard proving we manage data securely and follow best-practice security protocols.

In this episode, we speak with Kath Hipwell, CEO of the Association of British Climbing Walls, about her mission to improve safety and accessibility across the UK’s climbing facilities. She shares how a new live incident reporting tool helps climbing centers track real-time data, identify risks earlier, and strengthen safety standards.

Old St Labs is now an AWS Select Tier Partner - a milestone that strengthens our cloud expertise and support for clients.

In this episode of the OSL Podcast, Rob sits down with Nick Sales to unpack what a fractional CTO actually does, how outcome driven retainers work, and why strong product, team, and technical foundations matter for growth stage companies. Nick also shares his non linear journey into consulting and startup advisory, plus his perspective on GenAI, where it shines for prototyping and where it can become risky in production if you do not yet know what good looks like.

This week, Rob sits down with Lucy Woodhead, VP of Operations at US Jetting, to talk about what it really takes to run and modernise a second-generation industrial business. From bringing specialist equipment online to improving internal operations, Lucy shares how a traditionally offline industry is adapting to new technology and what the future could look like for manufacturers like hers.

AI agents were hyped to be 2025’s big productivity breakthrough, but the real wins came from small, practical automations rather than bold “digital worker” fantasies. Businesses that focused on clear use cases, team upskilling, and quick, measurable improvements saw the most value, while grand AI transformations mostly stumbled due to messy processes and poor data.

In this episode of the OSL Podcast, Rob chats with creative powerhouse Evan Larbi about navigating a career that doesn’t fit neatly on LinkedIn. Their conversation covers everything from career pivots and purpose to the unexpected role of joy in building meaningful brands.

Ben Burch (Allegr) on non-linear careers, real community vs fake “social,” military service, and building mission-led tech without boiling the ocean. Hosted by Rob Woodhead

Real stories from the people building tech, founders, designers, consultants & creators. Honest convos. No fluff. Just the human side of innovation.

In this podcast, Rob dives into how non-technical founders can tackle the challenges of building a tech startup. He shares actionable strategies for working with developers, grasping key tech concepts, and leveraging the right tools and resources—no coding skills necessary. With his extensive experience in the startup space, Rob offers valuable insights on bridging the divide between business and technology, helping founders transform their ideas into thriving ventures.

Rob breaks down how we built and grew a world-class remote dev team, the challenges we hit, and why remote collaboration works so well for us.

A practical framework for defining the real problem behind your product idea - root cause analysis, gathering context, and writing a clear problem statement.

A practical guide to the risks of outsourcing tech development - communication breakdowns, missed deadlines, dishonest agencies - and how to protect your project.

Why we started Old.St Labs, what a year of talking to founders and innovators has taught us, and what's coming next on the blog.

How and why Old.St Labs began at the height of the Covid pandemic.

Teach yourself, find a co-founder, or hire a team? A practical breakdown of your options for building tech - and how to pick the right one.