Full-Stack AI Developer for Photo-to-Art Ecommerce MVP

We are looking for an experienced full-stack AI developer to build an ecommerce website that turns customer photographs into personalised artwork for physical vinyl wall graphics. A customer will upload a photograph of themselves, their child or another person they have permission to photograph. They will then select an original artwork theme and optionally add some personalised instructions. Potential themes include: Original superhero-style character Unbranded football player Astronaut Fantasy adventurer Princess or fairytale character Additional original themes added in future The AI-generated artwork must retain a strong, recognisable likeness of the person while transforming their clothing, pose, background and overall visual style. The customer will approve a preview, choose the required wall graphic size, pay online and submit their order. We will print, manufacture and fulfil the physical product ourselves. An initial website and design prototype has already been created in Base44. We are open to: Extending the existing Base44 application Using Base44 as part of a hybrid solution Rebuilding the product using a conventional technology stack Applicants should recommend the most appropriate approach based on security, image-processing requirements, scalability, ownership, ongoing costs and maintainability. Base44 experience is welcome but is not a requirement. Strong full-stack, AI API and backend development experience is essential. MVP CUSTOMER JOURNEY The anticipated customer journey is: Customer visits the website and selects an artwork theme. Customer uploads a JPG, PNG or supported mobile photograph. The website checks that the photograph is of sufficient quality. Customer confirms that they own the photograph or have permission to use it. Customer can add a short personalised instruction within controlled limits. The image is securely submitted to an external image-to-image AI service. The website displays generation progress while the image is being created. Customer receives a watermarked, lower-resolution preview. Customer can approve the image or use a limited regeneration option. Customer selects the required wall graphic size and product options. Customer enters their contact and UK delivery information. Customer pays through Stripe or another agreed payment provider. The order is recorded in an administrator dashboard. Customer receives an order confirmation email. A high-resolution production file is made available to the administrator. The preferred journey includes previewing the artwork before completing the purchase. However, we would like the developer to advise whether payment, a small deposit, email verification or another control should happen before generation to prevent abuse and control AI costs. CORE CUSTOMER-FACING FEATURES The MVP should include: Professional and responsive ecommerce website Clear product and artwork theme selection Secure photograph upload Mobile photograph compatibility Basic image-quality validation Customer consent confirmation Optional controlled custom instructions External image-to-image AI API integration Strong facial-likeness preservation Generation progress and status messaging Appropriate timeout, retry and error handling Watermarked customer previews Limited regeneration allowance Product sizes and pricing UK delivery details Secure online payment Order confirmation page Automated customer confirmation email Privacy, terms and consent information Mobile, tablet and desktop compatibility Basic accessibility and SEO setup AI IMAGE REQUIREMENTS This must be an image-to-image transformation system, not simply a text-to-image generator. The generated result should: Preserve a recognisable likeness of the uploaded person Create an original, commercially usable character design Transform clothing, setting, pose and overall visual style Avoid obvious visual defects Work with a controlled collection of predefined themes Allow limited personalisation without exposing unrestricted prompts Produce a suitable customer preview Produce a separate high-resolution production version Support a clean or transparent background where required Be suitable for printing as a cut-to-shape vinyl wall graphic The developer should propose the most appropriate AI provider, model or combination of services. We are not committed to a specific AI API. The proposal should explain: How facial identity will be preserved How outputs will remain consistent across different photographs How image defects will be detected or managed How the system will create high-resolution production artwork Whether a separate upscaling service is required Whether background removal will be automatic Expected generation time Approximate cost per successful customer image Commercial usage rights provided by the recommended AI service How failed generations and customer complaints will be handled PRINT-PRODUCTION REQUIREMENTS A low-resolution web preview is not sufficient. The system must generate or prepare artwork suitable for large-format printing. The developer should recommend: Final production resolution Suitable file type, such as transparent PNG or another agreed format Maximum practical printed dimensions Upscaling method Background-removal method Colour-profile considerations How the preview and production files will be linked to the correct order A manual pre-production approval step is acceptable for the MVP. Complete automation into printing equipment is not required during the first phase. ADMINISTRATOR DASHBOARD The administrator should be able to: View all orders Search and filter orders View customer contact and delivery information View the original uploaded photograph View all generated versions See the selected artwork theme and customer instructions See the selected product size and options See generation status and payment status Download the high-resolution production file Regenerate an image manually where authorised Mark artwork as approved or rejected Update an order’s production status Use statuses such as New, Awaiting Approval, Paid, In Production, Dispatched, Cancelled and Refunded Record internal production notes Delete customer photographs and generated images View approximate AI generation costs Manage available themes, prices and regeneration allowances where practical PAYMENTS AND ORDER PROCESSING The MVP should include: Stripe or another agreed payment provider Secure checkout Reliable payment confirmation using webhooks Prevention of duplicate orders Successful and cancelled-payment handling Order confirmation emails Basic refund and cancellation support Recording of payment references against orders Test and live payment environments All payment and third-party service accounts must be created in the client’s name. PRIVACY, SECURITY AND SAFETY Some uploaded photographs may contain children, so privacy and security must be treated as core product requirements. The solution should include: Clear consent before a photograph is uploaded Confirmation that the customer owns the image or has permission to use it Private image storage Temporary signed access links where required Secure server-side API key storage No API secrets embedded in front-end code Appropriate user and administrator permissions Configurable image-retention and automatic-deletion periods Administrator deletion tools Removal of customer files following the agreed retention period No use of customer photographs for model training No reuse of customer images for portfolios or demonstrations without written permission Basic content moderation Rate limiting and misuse protection UK GDPR-conscious data handling Appropriate logging without unnecessarily recording sensitive image data A documented process for deleting an individual customer’s information The chosen AI service must allow appropriate commercial use and provide acceptable terms for processing customer images. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY The artwork themes must be original. The solution must not rely on: Named superheroes or protected characters Football club badges Branded football kits Film or television characters Third-party logos Other protected intellectual property without permission Customer instructions should be moderated or restricted where necessary to prevent prohibited or infringing requests. COST AND ABUSE CONTROLS Because every generation creates an external API cost, the solution should include: Limits on the number of previews and regenerations Protection against automated or repeated submissions Rate limiting Email or account verification if recommended Generation-cost logging Failed-generation handling Configurable usage limits Clear administrator visibility of AI usage Protection of the high-resolution file until payment is confirmed We would like applicants to recommend the best balance between an easy customer journey and preventing free-generation abuse. TECHNOLOGY AND PLATFORM The developer may recommend Base44, a hybrid solution or a conventional full-stack build. If Base44 is recommended, the proposal must explain: Which parts will remain within Base44 Which external services will be required How asynchronous image jobs will be managed How private customer photographs will be protected How code will be stored in GitHub What can be exported or migrated Any Base44 plan or usage costs How the business could migrate away from Base44 in future if required If another technology stack is recommended, the proposal should explain: The proposed frontend, backend, database and hosting services Why it is preferable for this product Expected hosting and maintenance costs How the client will retain full access and ownership Who will maintain the system after launch We prefer proven, maintainable technology over unnecessarily complex custom infrastructure. PREFERRED EXPERIENCE Applicants should have demonstrable experience in several of the following areas: Full-stack web application development Generative AI image applications Image-to-image AI APIs Facial identity or likeness preservation Image upscaling and background removal Secure customer file uploads Ecommerce checkout and order processing Stripe payments and webhooks React and TypeScript Serverless or cloud backend functions Database and administrator-dashboard development Privacy-conscious processing of personal photographs UK GDPR considerations Base44 or comparable application platforms Application deployment, monitoring and documentation Experience building only basic brochure websites will not be sufficient. PROPOSED MILESTONES Milestone 1 – Paid Technical Proof of Concept Before committing to the complete development, build a small working demonstration that: Accepts a sample photograph Applies one original transformation theme Preserves a strong, recognisable facial likeness Produces a customer-quality preview Demonstrates a higher-resolution production output Demonstrates background removal or subject isolation Records generation time Provides an approximate cost per generation Confirms commercial usage rights for the proposed AI service Continuation of the project will depend on the quality, reliability and cost of this proof of concept. Milestone 2 – Architecture and Customer Experience Confirm the final technology stack Confirm database and storage structure Complete customer journey and page designs Build photograph upload and validation Build theme and instruction selection Build generation-status and preview screens Milestone 3 – Production AI Pipeline Complete external AI integration Add secure file processing Add generation queuing, status updates and retries Add likeness-preserving transformation Add upscaling and background removal Add watermarked previews Add high-resolution production outputs Add moderation, limits and cost monitoring Add image-retention and deletion processes Milestone 4 – Ecommerce and Administration Add product sizes and pricing Add delivery information Add Stripe checkout and payment webhooks Add confirmation emails Build the administrator order dashboard Add artwork downloads and order statuses Add cancellation and refund handling Milestone 5 – Testing, Launch and Handover Complete mobile and desktop testing Complete security and permissions testing Test failed payments and failed generations Resolve launch-critical bugs Deploy the production website Connect the agreed domain Provide documentation and administrator training Complete source-code and account handover Confirm the included post-launch support period DELIVERABLES AND OWNERSHIP The final handover must include: Complete source code Client-owned GitHub repository Access to all application and hosting accounts Access to the database and file storage Access to the payment account Access to all AI service accounts Deployment instructions Database and architecture documentation AI prompt and configuration documentation Administrator operating instructions Details of all third-party subscriptions Details of estimated ongoing costs Test documentation Backup and recovery information A documented migration route if Base44 is used All accounts should be created in the client’s name wherever possible. All custom code and project-specific intellectual property created under the contract must transfer to the client following payment. The developer must not retain, reuse or publicly display customer photographs or generated images without explicit written permission. OUT OF SCOPE FOR THE INITIAL MVP The following are not required during the first phase unless separately agreed: Training a new AI model from scratch Native iOS or Android applications International currencies and shipping Complete automation into printing machinery Advanced customer accounts or loyalty schemes Large numbers of artwork themes Marketplace functionality The initial objective is to launch a secure and commercially testable MVP with a reliable customer journey and strong image quality. APPLICATION QUESTIONS Please answer every question in your proposal: Please provide links or demonstrations of up to three relevant projects involving image-to-image AI, facial likeness, image processing or ecommerce. Which AI model or API would you recommend for this project, and why? How would you preserve the uploaded person’s recognisable facial identity? How would you produce high-resolution artwork suitable for large-format vinyl printing? How would you isolate the subject or create a transparent background? What would you expect each successful generation to cost? How would you prevent misuse and excessive free generations? How would you protect and automatically delete customer photographs? Would you extend Base44, use a hybrid solution or build with another stack? Please explain your recommendation. What parts of your proposed solution would depend on third-party platforms? What are the anticipated monthly hosting, platform and API costs? What is your estimated delivery timeline? Please provide a fixed-price milestone breakdown. What post-launch support or bug-fix period is included? Who will personally complete the work, and will any part be subcontracted? Please begin your proposal with the words “WALL ART” so we know that you have read the complete brief. We are looking for a strong technical partner rather than only a website designer. There is potential for ongoing development if the MVP demonstrates customer demand.