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# How I Built QA from Scratch in a Scaling Startup - no fluff real life story


- **Event:** World Congress 2026 Europe - Virtual Stage

## Description

Many testing discussions focus on tools and frameworks. This talk focuses on the decisions behind them.

Drawing from my experience as the sole QA engineer in a rapidly growing startup, I'll share how I built a quality strategy based on risk, feedback, and real user behavior. We'll cover reconnaissance, test selection, frontend and API automation, exploratory testing, CI/CD integration, and the lessons that emerged along the way.

Attendees will leave with practical ideas for creating sustainable testing strategies that evolve with their products and teams.

## Speaker

### [Basia Karaagac](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/@basia-karaagac)

Principal Quality Engineer at Exeon Analytics 


## Related talks at this congress

- [AI as a Test Designer: Transforming Experience into Automated Testing](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/events/world-congress-2026-europe-virtual-stage/sessions/1482-ai-as-a-test) — Alisa Hrustic
- [From Code to Culture: Why Leadership Determines Software Quality](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/events/world-congress-2026-europe-virtual-stage/sessions/1540-from-code-to-culture) — Oskar Kruschitz
- [Digital Quality & Trust: The Quality Tree Framework for Responsible AI & Software](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/events/world-congress-2026-europe-virtual-stage/sessions/1529-digital-quality) — Serge Baumberger
- [One Developer Journey, Two Surfaces](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/events/world-congress-2026-europe-virtual-stage/sessions/1581-one-developer) — Saif Ali Shaik