What American folklore can teach us about what happens to software engineers when AI makes implementation labour cheap, tireless and abundant.
June 10, 2026
· Artificial Intelligence
· 8 min read
Writing
My interest is primarily in systems where software, organisations, and human psychology intersect.
I identify the mechanisms that power these systems, analyse downstream effects and suggest interventions that can improve outcomes. My perspective is grounded in over a decade of experience across engineering organisations globally.
I also use this space to share context and provide updates on ongoing projects.
Articles
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The Software Engineer and the Steam Drill
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The Engine Alone is Not EnoughAI is a generative engine capable of extraordinary power, but power only becomes leverage when harnessed within the right engineering operating system.June 04, 2026 · Artificial Intelligence · 6 min read
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Sextant MVP: Leveraging AI to build a style app over Easter WeekendA four-day AI-assisted MVP build of Sextant, a style app exploring signal calibration through software.May 29, 2026 · Projects · 7 min read
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Friction as Social InfrastructureHow modern systems can optimise away the everyday necessity of co-operation, eroding the mechanism through which social trust is built.May 19, 2026 · Software and Society · 6 min read
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The Importance of Expectation ManagementEstimates do not just predict outcomes; they construct the frame through which outcomes are judged.May 11, 2026 · Engineering Leadership · 6 min read
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The Priest and the PromptAI assistants are encountered as neutral tools, but increasingly operate as interpreters of meaning, shaping conscience in ways once associated with religious institutions.April 28, 2026 · Software and Society · 7 min read
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Initiative: Harnessing Adaptability under UncertaintyOn the nature of initiative, under what conditions it emerges, how it can be promoted, and how it can help or hinder an organisation.April 18, 2026 · Engineering Leadership · 10 min read
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Reality, Failure and FeedbackExposure to reality and the feedback from it determines the reliability of models and the systems which are built upon them.March 07, 2026 · Engineering Leadership · 7 min read
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The Signal and the SelfThe signal we emit often lags reality, but can be reconciled via calibration - introducing Sextant, a tool for Signal Calibration through Clothing.February 16, 2026 · Software and Society · 4 min read
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The Failure of Fridge FuturismA case study and analyis into why 'smart fridges' failed to take off and what this means for product design.February 12, 2026 · Software and Society · 5 min read
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What Ownership Really MeansExploring the nature of ownership as a structural force, and the profound effects that it can have upon behaviour through the aligning of incentives.January 24, 2026 · Engineering Leadership · 6 min read
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Why Reliability is Structurally UndervaluedReliability work is undervalued because its returns are difficult to attribute; The remedy depends upon ownership and aligned incentives.January 12, 2026 · Engineering Leadership · 6 min read
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The Properties that Sustain Organisational AlignmentOrganisations that remain aligned do not do so accidentally; They do so because they support properties that align incentives behind mission.December 17, 2025 · Engineering Leadership · 8 min read
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Incentives: The True Architecture of OrganisationsIncentives form the load bearing structure of an organisation and dictate whether an organisation's functions align with the mission or are drifting from it.December 03, 2025 · Engineering Leadership · 4 min read
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Security and Engineering - Competing IncentivesHow Security and Engineering's natural incentives can conflict and how they can be reconciled.November 19, 2025 · Engineering Leadership · 3 min read
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Building the BaconometerHow I built a film network exploration tool powered by a graph database.July 21, 2025 · Projects · 7 min read
