We design and build calm, durable software.
We help teams navigate complexity and ship products people enjoy using.
The Studio
Small by design. Senior by default.
Coniferous is a worker-owned studio of experienced engineers and product builders based in Minneapolis, MN. We value craft, clarity, and the people we work with.
What we believe:
- Simplicity beats cleverness
- People matter more than process
- Well-built software should feel obvious
- Small teams make better decisions
- Systems should age gracefully
No fluff. No frameworks for the sake of frameworks. Just good work.
Meet the team
Co-Founder & Product Manager
Dan Barthell is a product manager with nearly a decade of experience at Amazon building and scaling logistics software used by independent trucking carriers across North America and Europe. He led the launch and growth of a carrier tracking and visibility platform that drove full-network adoption and improved operational transparency across Amazon's freight network. He holds a B.A. in Classics from Gustavus Adolphus College and an MBA from the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management.
Co-Founder & Software Engineer
Jake Arntson is a software engineer with over 15 years of experience building across the full spectrum of the stack — from embedded systems and Android to web applications and cloud services. He spent nine years at Amazon, rising to Principal Software Engineer, where he led large-scale efforts to modernize logistics infrastructure and consolidate complex distributed systems serving critical operations worldwide. He holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from North Dakota State University and an M.S. in Software Engineering from the University of Minnesota.
Dylan McGuire
Co-Founder & Software Engineer
Dylan brings 10+ years of experience in network security and logistics, including building and operating production systems at Amazon. He holds a B.S. in Computer Science from the University of Minnesota Duluth.
Services
We help teams reduce complexity and ship.
System simplification
We untangle complex, over-built systems and consolidate them into something maintainable.
Product engineering
Full-stack engineering from idea to launch — we own delivery, not just tickets.
UX & interface refinement
We sharpen interfaces that feel clunky or unclear, making them obvious to use.
Technical leadership
We step in during transitions — new architecture, team scaling, or org changes.
Legacy modernization
We modernize aging codebases without rewriting everything from scratch.
We work best with teams that want fewer tools, fewer meetings, and clearer ownership.
Products
We build our own tools, too.
Coniferous builds products that value privacy, durability, and thoughtful design. Every product starts from a real problem we've hit while shipping software.
Spruce - Product Delivery Suite
Ship software without losing context. Spruce keeps planning, code, and review connected so you can ship faster without losing the thread. Beyond the IDE. Beyond the issue tracker. Everything you need to ship, in one AI-powered workspace.