Stress-test your ideas before reality does.
Long-reads, frameworks and red-team playbooks for founders and SMB operators. No consultants required.
Long-reads
In-depth essays on building, configuring, and arguing with AI for serious decisions.- Long-read·16 min read·Founder · Marketplace · Long-read · AI Characters
Bet on the Human
I started building adversarial second brains long before AI could do it for me. Here's why the marketplace for those voices belongs to the humans who built them.
- Long-read·13 min read·Synthesis · Strategy · Long-read · Established Business
Dear Captain: The Ship Is Fine. The Crow's Nest Was Empty.
A long-read for the women and men who already run the industry — and the AI layer that finally earns a seat above deck.
- Long-read·14 min read·Red Team · AI Configuration · Long-read · Founders
The Professional Pessimist: Why the Most Useful AI Configuration Is the One That Tries to Destroy Your Idea
Helpful AI is the right default for almost everything you'll ever do. It is the worst possible advisor for the one decision that defines whether your company exists in 18 months. Here is the configuration that fixes it.
Essays & playbooks
Frameworks, brutal questions, and red-team playbooks for founders and SMB operators.- ·9 min read·Validation · Founders · SMB
How to Stress-Test Your Business Idea Without Hiring a $50,000 Consultant
Consultants charge $400/hour to ask uncomfortable questions. Here's how to ask them yourself — at 3am, in your pyjamas, for free.
- ·11 min read·Red Team · Strategy · Pre-mortem
Red-Teaming Your Startup Idea: The Pentagon Technique Founders Are Quietly Stealing
Amazon, OpenAI, and the US military all use red teams before they ship. Your startup doesn't. Guess which one is most likely to blow up.
- ·10 min read·Brand · AI Council · Press · Voices
The Only AI Council With a Charter, a Heat Dial, and a Latticework Pack With Chapter Citations
There are a lot of AI advisors. There is exactly one AI council with a written charter, a heat dial, and a Latticework pack that cites the page. Spoiler: it's us. Less spoiler: here's why that's a category, not a feature.
- ·12 min read·AI Feedback · Founders · Brand · Red Team
AI Characters With Depth: Why a Roast From a Real Voice Beats a Score From a Wrapper
Anyone can prompt GPT to insult your pitch deck. The hard part — and the only part that changes your business — is character. Here's the difference, and why we built a brand around it instead of a wrapper.
- ·10 min read·SMB · Bootstrapping · Validation
Critical Assessment of Business Ideas for SMBs: 12 Brutal Questions That Cost Less Than Lunch
You wouldn't buy a $30,000 car without a test drive. People quit their jobs for ideas they've never stress-tested for $0.