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Founder, fractional CTO & software engineer

Building products.Leading teams.Scaling companies.

I’m Chris McInnes, a founder and CTO who still writes production code. I’ve founded multiple businesses, built products from scratch and helped scale companies to $200m+ in revenue. I know what it takes to find product–market fit, win customers, raise capital and build teams that can deliver as the business grows. That means knowing where to invest, what the business can afford and what can wait.

I work with founders to make realistic product, technology and commercial decisions at every stage.

Discuss your project Explore my work

From the first product to customers, capital and scale.

Chris McInnes, founder and fractional CTO
Chris McInnesBuilds the product. Grows the business.

Built from the ground up.
Led at global scale.

From six people to US$200m.

I helped grow a business from six people to 185+ staff across seven countries and US$200m in annual revenue—as a founding team member, CTO and board member.

A$110m+ raised through Series A–C.

As CTO on the executive team, I supported successive funding rounds, represented technology with investors and built the products and engineering team behind the company’s growth.

A CTO who can run the numbers and write the code.

I’ve led product and engineering and served as interim CFO alongside my CTO role. I help you decide what’s worth building, what the business can afford and what can wait—then get hands-on to deliver it.

01 / How I can help

The experience to see the bigger picture.
The ability to get into the detail.

The right help depends on your stage: testing an idea, finding early customers, preparing for investment or scaling a team. I work with the budget, people and time you actually have.

Fractional CTO

Experienced leadership, on your terms.

Set a realistic technology and hiring plan, connect it to the business goals and help the team deliver. Work with founders and boards through funding decisions, growth and the move to a larger operation.

  • Technology strategy
  • Hiring & team design
  • Investor engagement

Product & engineering

Architecture, code and delivery.

I write, review and ship production code. I can build a new product, improve an existing platform or integrate AI into your workflows, working independently or alongside your engineers.

  • Software development
  • Platform reviews
  • Hands-on delivery

AI & automation

Useful technology. A clear business purpose.

Identify where AI can improve the work, define what success looks like and build it into your operations. My experience spans machine learning, document AI and agentic workflows.

  • AI agents
  • Workflow automation
  • Data & integrations

02 / The person behind the work

I’ve built the business
as well as the product.

Good technology decisions have to make commercial sense.

I founded NetCellars, building the e-commerce product and the supply chain, logistics and licensing behind it. With PictureSystems, I took a photography software business from concept through commercialisation and acquisition.

I also founded and built CodePulse, an engineering intelligence platform. I owned the product, architecture and development alongside go-to-market, customer onboarding, reseller engagement and seed fundraising work.

As part of Zinc’s founding team, I helped it grow from six people to more than 185 across seven countries. At Ofload, I led engineering and represented technology in board and investor discussions through Series A–C.

More about building CodePulse
Chris presenting on stage at AWS Summit Sydney
Sharing experience, in good company.Speaking at AWS Summit Sydney

A career spent building

Products, businesses and the teams behind them.

2025 — 2026

CodePulse

Founder

Engineering intelligence: from concept to production and go-to-market.

2021 — 2025

Ofload

Chief Technology Officer

Marketplace and SaaS development, a 42-person engineering team and executive leadership through Series A–C.

2008 — 2021

Zinc

Founding team, CTO & Board Member

Helping grow a six-person business to 185+ people across seven countries.

2001 — 2007

PictureSystems

Founder & CTO

Photography SaaS, from the first concept through commercialisation and acquisition.

1999 — 2001

NetCellars

Founder & CTO

Building the e-commerce product, marketing, supply chain, logistics and licensing from scratch.

03 / Selected work

Built from zero.
Led through growth.

Products, people and commercial decisions.
The work I took responsibility for.

CTO · Interim CFO

Building and scaling a freight business.

I designed and launched the freight marketplace and driver apps, built the engineering and data team, and led the move into enterprise software.

I also supported Series A to C fundraising and stepped in as interim CFO, with responsibility for budgets, forecasts and revenue reconciliation.

  • A$220mCompany annual recurring revenue during my tenure
  • A$110m+Funding supported as part of the executive team
Read the case study

Founding team · CTO · Board member

Building the technology behind international growth.

I established the technology division and built the enterprise commerce platform, then led software and physical product development as the business expanded across seven countries.

My responsibilities covered the products, the people and the infrastructure, alongside my role as company director and board member.

  • US$70mAnnual revenue supported by the commerce platform
  • 7 countriesThe company’s international footprint
Read the case study

Founder · CTO

From software idea to acquired business.

I founded a software business for professional, event and tourist photography, taking the product from concept and its first release into commercial use.

As founder and CTO, I owned the product and its commercialisation through to the acquisition of the business.

  • AcquiredBusiness taken from concept through acquisition
  • COMET grantFederal Government grant recipient
Read the case study
More selected work

From startup to scaleup

What you need
changes as
you grow.

A first release, a funding plan and a larger engineering team each need a different approach. I help you work out what matters now and what can wait.

01

Validate & build.

Get clear on whose problem you’re solving. Define the smallest useful product, test the assumptions and keep the build within the available budget.

02

Win early customers.

Connect the product to pricing, onboarding and support. Use customer feedback and commercial results to decide what deserves investment next.

03

Fund the next stage.

Bring the roadmap, hiring plan and costs into a realistic growth plan. Be clear with investors about what is built, what comes next and what their capital would fund.

04

Scale the business.

Strengthen the team, reliability and delivery as demand grows. Put responsibilities and systems in place so the business can operate beyond the founder.

Let's work together

What do you want
to move forward?

A product to build. A team to lead. A technology decision to get right. Tell me where you are and what you need.

Discuss your project
hello@chriscto.com
+61 416 212 207

Based in Sydney. Working with you, wherever you are.