Assembly Never Left: Why I Still Write It in 2026
Assembly language isn't a relic - it's essential for voice AI, cryptography, and performance-critical paths. When 'compilers optimize better than humans' is marketing vs reality....
Agentic AI Is Just Automation With Better Marketing
Strip away the marketing and 'agentic AI' is workflow automation with LLM steps. Useful, but not the revolution the vendors are selling....
The Pivot That Kills
Most pivots destroy more value than they create. Knowing when to iterate versus pivot is a survival skill....
The ASR Industry Is Solving the Wrong Problem
Speech recognition vendors have spent decades perfecting noise filtering. Research shows it often hurts accuracy. A different approach to acoustic intelligence is needed....
Interview Alternatives That Actually Work
Evidence-based hiring methods that predict engineering success: structured interviews, work samples, and behavioral questions. Based on Sackett 2022 meta-analysis....
SQLite: Software Done Right
SQLite runs on more devices than any software in history. After 45 years watching technology disappoint, here's why SQLite is the rare project that delivered on its promises....
Serverless Was a Lie
Serverless promised to eliminate infrastructure concerns. Instead it created new problems: cold starts, vendor lock-in, debugging nightmares, and costs that spiral at scale. Containers won. Kubernetes...
The Founder Self-Awareness Advantage
Self-awareness isn't a trait you have or lack—it's a practice. The specific habits that enable honest self-evaluation, from feedback systems to reflection rituals....
The MVP Excuse: When 'Minimum' Became an Excuse for Garbage
MVP was meant to be a discipline for validated learning, not permission to ship half-finished software. The corruption of the concept has given founders an excuse to skip the hard work of building som...
Open Source Maintainer Burnout: Critical Infrastructure Is Dying
Kubernetes Ingress NGINX will receive no security patches after March 2026 due to maintainer burnout. 60% of open source maintainers work unpaid. Critical infrastructure is dying from neglect....
Why Hiring Senior Engineers Is Broken
The senior engineering interview process tests preparation, not ability. 63% of seniors get downleveled. Here's what actually predicts success and how to hire differently....
When Rewrites Actually Succeed
Most rewrites fail, but some succeed. The patterns that separate the 10% from the 90%: scope discipline, team continuity, good-enough architecture, and political protection....
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