The field guide
The supporting series unpacks each pillar of the argument.
Start here
Every guide in the series builds on one claim: execution collapsed, evaluation became the bill, and verification design is now the moat.
Guide 01 / 10 — The core argument
Featured guide
The core argument. Execution collapsed, evaluation became the bill, and verification design is now the moat.
Start hereThe library
Guide / 01 — 4 min
The core argument. Execution collapsed, evaluation became the bill, and verification design is now the moat.
Guide / 02 — 3 min
The four trust patterns (evidence, honest confidence, reversibility, graceful recovery), progressive trust, and a 20-minute trust audit.
Guide / 03 — 4 min
Figma for intent, Claude Code for behavior, markdown instructions for judgment — with a real example of what an instruction file looks like.
Guide / 04 — 3 min
Why static state matrices fail, how vertical slices with realistic dummy data become the spec, and what this changes about handoff.
Guide / 05 — 4 min
Getting attention, keeping it through felt progress, progressive disclosure, and the one-screen audit that predicts retention.
Guide / 06 — 6 min
A decision guide for both sides of the table: scorecard, green/red flags, interview kit, self-assessment, and a first-30-days plan.
Guide / 07 — 3 min
Seven interaction patterns worth stealing (receipts, ghost text, preview-then-commit, earned autonomy) and the anti-patterns to name and kill.
Guide / 08 — 3 min
Iteration when building is nearly free: the five-day loop, the kill rate, and why shipped slop spends user trust.
Guide / 09 — 3 min
When everyone rents the same models, judgment is what's left to own — and how to train it and write it down.
Guide / 10 — 3 min
Users punish silence, not latency. Streaming, named work, partial results, and honest progress — the wait is a design surface.
Reading paths
Path / 01
Hire the person who makes it worthy of delegation.
Path / 02
Grow into the founding role.
Path / 03
Motivation is the product.
Both sides of the table
The decision guide covers scorecard, flags, and the first 30 days.