Newsletter
10 editions
Every edition, on one shelf.
Short notes on running AI systems inside a business: what works, what breaks, and what we changed.
- August 7, 2026Why we say system and not botNo. 1Why we say system and not botWhy we say system and not bot
· No. 1
Why we say system and not bot
A bot answers. A system answers, writes it down, books the time, tells the right person and stops where it should. The word matters because it decides what gets built.
Read this edition - August 14, 2026The test comes before the buildNo. 2The test comes before the buildThe test comes before the build
· No. 2
The test comes before the build
We do not start building until we have run a model on the business's own calls or files and agreed what a pass looks like. It is the least glamorous week, and the one that decides everything.
Read this edition - August 21, 2026Where the system stops and a person startsNo. 3Where the system stops and a person startsWhere the system stops and a person starts
· No. 3
Where the system stops and a person starts
The most important page in any system we build is one page long. It says what the system may do on its own, what it never does, and what goes to a person. Here is how we write it.
Read this edition - August 28, 2026Most of your work is a workflowNo. 4Most of your work is a workflowMost of your work is a workflow
· No. 4
Most of your work is a workflow
The word agent is everywhere. Most business jobs do not need one. They need a fixed set of steps with a model doing the hard part inside each step. That is cheaper, steadier and easier to test.
Read this edition - September 4, 2026The call that comes in at 6:40 on a FridayNo. 5The call that comes in at 6:40 on a FridayThe call that comes in at 6:40 on a Friday
· No. 5
The call that comes in at 6:40 on a Friday
A call after hours is the clearest test of whether a business has a system or a voicemail. We walk through what happens to one call, from the ring to the record, when the office is empty.
Read this edition - September 11, 2026A document is not a factNo. 6A document is not a factA document is not a fact
· No. 6
A document is not a fact
Reading the fields off an invoice is the easy part, and many tools can do it. The work is in checking those fields against what the business already knows, and deciding what happens next.
Read this edition - September 18, 2026What a month of running looks likeNo. 7What a month of running looks likeWhat a month of running looks like
· No. 7
What a month of running looks like
Launch is the middle of the story, not the end. Every month a system is running, three things happen: it is watched, it is reported on, and something about it is changed. Here is what that involves.
Read this edition - September 25, 2026Whose phone number is it?No. 8Whose phone number is it?Whose phone number is it?
· No. 8
Whose phone number is it?
A question to ask before any AI system goes live: if you stopped tomorrow, what would you keep? The phone number, the accounts, the data and the workflows should be yours from day one.
Read this edition - October 2, 2026When the model should say it does not knowNo. 9When the model should say it does not knowWhen the model should say it does not know
· No. 9
When the model should say it does not know
A language model will produce a confident answer whether or not it has one. The skill in building a system is giving it permission, and a reason, to stop and say so.
Read this edition - October 9, 2026Built into the software you already useNo. 10Built into the software you already useBuilt into the software you already use
· No. 10
Built into the software you already use
We do not ask a business to move to a new tool. The system is wired into the CRM, the calendar, the inbox and the books it already has. That choice shapes everything else about how it is built.
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- No. 10Built into the software you already useWe do not ask a business to move to a new tool. The system is wired into the CRM, the calendar, the inbox and the books it already has. That choice shapes everything else about how it is built.
- No. 9When the model should say it does not knowA language model will produce a confident answer whether or not it has one. The skill in building a system is giving it permission, and a reason, to stop and say so.
- No. 8Whose phone number is it?A question to ask before any AI system goes live: if you stopped tomorrow, what would you keep? The phone number, the accounts, the data and the workflows should be yours from day one.
- No. 7What a month of running looks likeLaunch is the middle of the story, not the end. Every month a system is running, three things happen: it is watched, it is reported on, and something about it is changed. Here is what that involves.
- No. 6A document is not a factReading the fields off an invoice is the easy part, and many tools can do it. The work is in checking those fields against what the business already knows, and deciding what happens next.
- No. 5The call that comes in at 6:40 on a FridayA call after hours is the clearest test of whether a business has a system or a voicemail. We walk through what happens to one call, from the ring to the record, when the office is empty.
- No. 4Most of your work is a workflowThe word agent is everywhere. Most business jobs do not need one. They need a fixed set of steps with a model doing the hard part inside each step. That is cheaper, steadier and easier to test.
- No. 3Where the system stops and a person startsThe most important page in any system we build is one page long. It says what the system may do on its own, what it never does, and what goes to a person. Here is how we write it.
- No. 2The test comes before the buildWe do not start building until we have run a model on the business's own calls or files and agreed what a pass looks like. It is the least glamorous week, and the one that decides everything.
- No. 1Why we say system and not botA bot answers. A system answers, writes it down, books the time, tells the right person and stops where it should. The word matters because it decides what gets built.