Writing
Essays on building AI systems, making decisions with incomplete evidence, and the boundaries between technical work and real organizations.
2026
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The Executive Summary Is Not a SummaryOct 9
An abstract says what the work found. An executive summary explains what it means for the decision.
CommunicationApplied research2 min read
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What Is Worth Learning?Oct 8
Work backward from a decision to identify the uncertainty and evidence actually worth pursuing.
LearningDecision-making2 min read
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Position Before You KnowOct 5
How to position for the transitions that matter while the future is uncertain, then commit when the play becomes clear.
UncertaintyDecision-making4 min read
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Crossing BoundariesOct 3
How understanding enough across roles can reveal gaps between experts—and where AI can help you get started.
Cross-functional workAI3 min read
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The Right Level of ReasoningSep 30
Why strategic sophistication is about matching the depth of reasoning to the situation, not always thinking more steps ahead.
Strategic reasoningDecision-making6 min read
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Two ClocksSep 30
A way to think about delayed decisions by comparing how quickly information improves with how quickly an option changes.
TimingDecision-making3 min read
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A Result Is Not the DecisionSep 28
Why the structure surrounding an experimental result matters when deciding whether the evidence is strong enough to act on.
ExperimentationDecision-making6 min read
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The Metric Can Be Right and the Decision Can Still Be WrongSep 25
Why a correct metric can still support the wrong decision when it measures only part of the system.
AI evaluationDecision-making5 min read
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Problems at the BoundarySep 24
Why capable specialists can miss problems that exist between their domains.
Cross-functional workDecision-making8 min read
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“This Feels Wrong” Is the Beginning, Not the ArgumentSep 21
Turning professional intuition into reasoning that other people can inspect.
CommunicationDecision-making8 min read
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When Is an Experiment Actually Done in Applied Research?Sep 18
Why synthesis and communication are part of completing an applied experiment.
Applied researchDecision-making5 min read
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Sometimes You Need Kirk. Sometimes You Need Spock.Sep 17
A framework for balancing adaptability, optionality, and reversibility in decisions.
Decision-makingLeadership5 min read
2024
- From NeurIPS to the Real World: Key Takeaways from Competing in PommermanJun 26 Lessons about deadlines, constraints, trade-offs, and ownership from an AI competition. Applied MLResearch9 min read
- Prompting, the Wonderful Wizard (Part 2)Jun 17 The risks of prompting, practical guidance, and what comes after prompt engineering. LLMsPrompting8 min read
- Prompting, the Wonderful Wizard (Part 1)Jun 12 How prompting emerged, why it works, and where in-context learning breaks down. LLMsPrompting11 min read
- Lessons From Six Years of Applied Machine Learning in IndustryJun 4 How applied machine learning changes when time, data, priorities, and impact become real constraints. Applied MLResearch9 min read
- Quantitative Research and Machine LearningMay 26 Why simplicity, skepticism, and hypothesis-driven work matter in quantitative research. Quantitative researchMachine learning7 min read
2021
- How to be a great supervisor (of an internship)?Dec 13 Practical ways to give interns direction, context, feedback, and room to grow. MentoringLeadership4 min read
- How to be a great intern?Nov 22 Suggestions for learning quickly, communicating well, and making the most of a technical internship. MentoringCareers5 min read
- Hello worldNov 17 A short introduction to the blog. Personal1 min read