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
The AI CTO’s Guide to Board Reporting: 4 KPIs to Prove ROI
Dreading the question of why the bill is so high? question. Discover the 4 "North Star" AI metrics that prove value, ensure compliance, and shift the board narrative from cost to growth.
A/B Testing LLM Prompts: The CTO’s Guide to Scientific AI Engineering
Stop "vibes-based" AI engineering. Learn how to implement scientific A/B testing for prompts, build a Golden Dataset, and cut LLM costs by 30%.
The CTO’s Guide to Token Budgets: How to Set Per-Feature Limits & Prevent Shock Bills
Stop flying blind on AI spend. Learn the 4-step framework to set per-feature token budgets, enforce gateway limits, and prevent surprise LLM bills before they happen.
Why Hardcoding Prompts in Git is a €10M Technical Debt Trap
Hardcoding prompts in Git hides LLM costs and creates compliance risks. Discover why this technical debt kills velocity and how to decouple prompts now.
7 EU AI Act Architecture Traps for SaaS CTOs (And How to Fix Them)
Is your SaaS architecture ready for the EU AI Act? Discover 7 hidden technical traps—from logging failures to risk classification—and the engineering fixes you need before 2026.
Why Your LLM Bill Doubled: 5 Hidden Cost Leaks Every CTO Misses
Flying blind on AI spend? Uncover 5 technical cost leaks from recursion traps to context taxes—that are driving your OpenAI bill up. Save 30–50% with this guide.
Build vs. Buy: The True Cost of LLM Observability (+ Free TCO Calculator)
Thinking of building your own LLM observability stack? Our 3-year analysis reveals why building costs 116x more than buying. Download the TCO calculator inside.
PromptMetrics Review (MVP): An Honest Look at Pros, Cons & The 2026 Launch
Releasing Jan 2026: An honest preview of the PromptMetrics MVP. We analyze pros, cons, and why EU teams need this compliant LLM observability platform.
5 Critical LLM Prompt Management Mistakes EU Teams Make (2026 Guide)
Learn how EU AI teams avoid version control chaos, compliance gaps, and cost overruns. Includes Python code examples, EU AI Act checklists (Articles 11 & 12), and testing frameworks.
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