Field notes.
Real opinions about what AI is getting right and wrong for operators in 2026, written by us, in our own voice, not a content calendar. Plus the occasional teardown of something Izzy built and what it taught us.
Articles
AI Agent Governance Is the New Job. Whose Is It?
Vercel's CEO calls agent governance "literally our new job." Schellman: 74% of practitioners say they're AI audit-ready, 27% are. Here's whose job it is.
Why AI Rollouts Fail: Teams Need a Framework
56% of employees say AI caused a work mistake, and 57% hid it (KPMG, 2025). Here's the 4-part AI fluency framework that fixes ungoverned AI use on any team
Human-in-the-Loop Without a Compliance Department
Only 23% of firms have scaled an AI agent into a single business function, McKinsey finds. Add human approval checkpoints without hiring a compliance team.
The Risks of Over-Documenting AI Prompts & Knowledge
Are your AI configurations too exposed? Discover why documenting everything is a strategic risk and exactly what proprietary AI knowledge to keep hidden.
LLM Behavioral Drift: Why Your Observability Stack Fails the EU AI Act
Is your LLM drifting into sycophancy? Discover the "hidden personality" risks exposed by 2026 research and how to meet Article 9 monitoring requirements.
The EU AI Act Compliance Crisis: 5 Misconceptions Putting Startups at Risk
48% of AI startups aren't ready for the EU AI Act. Discover the 5 compliance myths risking your runway, from the "low-risk" trap to the August 2026 deadline.
The 5 Biggest Engineering Problems with GDPR-Compliant AI
GDPR fines have hit EUR 6.11 billion. Legal policies don't stop data leaks, architecture does. Five engineering failures in 'compliant' AI, and the fixes.
Why Your US-Built AI Observability Tool Can't Answer EU Auditor Questions
Is your AI stack compliant with GDPR and the EU AI Act? Most US observability tools fail on data residency and deletion. Here are the 5 gaps you need to close.
Your AI Agent Can't Explain Itself: Why LLM Observability Fails EU AI Act Compliance
Most AI agents fail Article 12 audit. Learn why standard observability isn't enough for EU compliance and how to build audit-ready traces for LangChain & CrewAI
Field notes, in your inbox
One email per week. No content calendar — just what we’re building, what broke, and what we changed our minds about.
Operator Stack
The free community where we continue these conversations between posts.