Hi, I'm Jürgen Ryannel.
AI consultant and founder of Valiro and Tavora. Previously co-founder of Pelagicore (Mercedes-Benz MBUX, acquired by Luxoft) and ApiGear (acquired by Epic Games), and most recently Senior Engineer at Epic Games on a platform for agentic AI chat. Today I help mid-sized companies move AI from idea to production.
What you should know about my work
I'm a software engineer with stints in the embedded, automotive, and platform worlds. In my last three roles I was either co-founder of a successfully acquired product or senior engineer in a platform team with hard production requirements — at Pelagicore (Mercedes-Benz MBUX, acquired by Luxoft), at ApiGear (acquired by Epic Games), and most recently at Epic Games, where I worked on a platform for agentic AI chat.
Today I'm independent. I build two own products — Valiro for construction and engineering firms, and Tavora as a platform for software teams that want to run AI agents in production under control — and advise mid-sized companies looking to put their first or next AI initiative on solid footing.
The mix of own products and external consulting is intentional: what breaks for me, breaks for my clients. What I recommend, I've tested first. My standard is honest advice — even when it means not winning a project. If your problem is better solved without AI, I'll say so. If an existing tool is enough, I'll point at it. My business model is your long-term success, not the quick deal.
How I work — five principles
- 01
Substance over buzzwords
I don't talk about LLMs — I maintain code that runs them daily. When we meet, we talk about your business process, not the latest model press release.
- 02
Adoption beats architecture
A technically perfect solution nobody uses is wasted money. We design for the people who'll actually open the tool every day — not the boardroom demo.
- 03
Eval-driven, not demo-driven
Before we ship the first feature we define measurable quality criteria. So we know whether a model update made things better or worse — and don't get surprised.
- 04
GDPR is architecture, not a footer
Data protection is decided in the architecture, not in a disclaimer. EU hosting, clean DPAs, documented legal basis — from day one.
- 05
Handover-ready or co-operate
I build so your team can take the solution over. If you don't want that, we co-operate on a retainer — not because I want lock-in, but because it fits the use case.
Background
My path is not the typical consultant CV — and that's exactly the point. I started as a software developer at Qt, worked there as a trainer, and am co-author of the Qt6 QML Book.
I then co-founded two companies. At Pelagicore in Munich I was Lead UI Architect, responsible for building the infotainment platform that today powers Mercedes-Benz MBUX. Pelagicore was acquired by Luxoft in 2018. Subsequently I co-founded ApiGear, an open-source toolchain for API-first development. ApiGear was acquired by Epic Games, where I then spent considerable time as a Senior Engineer on a platform for agentic AI chat.
Now I'm going independent. I'm building two own AI products — Valiro for construction and engineering firms and Tavora as a platform for AI agents in production — and advising mid-sized companies that want to use AI seriously. The consulting is my way to bring lessons from two acquired products and an AI platform team to a wider audience — and to stay in touch with clients whose reality feeds back into my own product roadmap.
Career stations
Reverse chronological. Each role contributed something to today's consulting.
- Now
Independent AI consulting & founder · Valiro · Tavora · Consulting
AI consulting for DACH mid-market plus two own products: Valiro for construction & engineering, Tavora for AI agents in production.
- Before
Senior Engineer · AI Platform · Epic Games
Built a platform for agentic AI chat. Real production experience with LLM agents under load.
- Before
Co-founder · ApiGear
Open-source toolchain for API-first development. Acquired by Epic Games.
apigear.io - Before
Co-founder & Lead UI Architect · Pelagicore (Munich)
Built the infotainment platform that today powers Mercedes-Benz MBUX. Acquired by Luxoft in 2018.
www.northdata.de/Pelagicore+AG,+M%C3%BCnchen/HRB+199365 - Earlier
Software developer & trainer · Qt
Training work and co-author of the Qt6 QML Book — one of the standard works of the Qt world.
www.qt.io/product/qt6/qml-book
Ways we can work together
Strategy workshop (1–2 days)
Clarifies what to start with concretely. Fixed price from €2,500.
Implementation project
We build the tailored solution end-to-end together. Fixed price or T&M depending on scope.
Monthly retainer
You have an AI solution in operation and need a sparring partner who thinks and builds with you. From €1,900/month.
Sparring & architecture review
A few hours or days for targeted questions — architecture review, model selection, stack decisions.
Where I work
I work on-site in Germany and across DACH, plus remote for projects that allow it. Mixed-stakeholder workshops usually work better on-site, longer implementation projects often run hybrid. We sort out the location question early — it's part of the conditions, not an afterthought.
Let's talk for 30 minutes.
I listen, ask questions, and tell you honestly whether and how I can help.