Journal
Notes from the studio
Practical writing on building software and applied AI, without the hype.
- June 5, 2026
Our first client: rolling AI out across all of Zecat
Zecat's whole team started using Claude Code on their own. Here is how we are turning that into safe, governed, real automation across the company, and why the people who know the business should build their own tools.
AI adoption Automation Case study
- May 26, 2026
How Much It Costs to Build a Custom AI Chatbot in 2026
A concrete 2026 cost breakdown for building a custom AI chatbot: build budgets, monthly running costs, the variables that move the number, and where teams overspend.
AI chatbots Pricing RAG
- May 20, 2026
n8n vs Make vs Custom Code for Workflow Automation: How We Choose
A practical n8n vs Make vs custom code comparison for workflow automation, with real cost, scaling, and maintenance tradeoffs from our build experience.
Workflow automation n8n Make
- May 20, 2026
RAG chatbots that do not make things up
Why grounding an AI chatbot in your own documents with retrieval augmented generation beats a raw model, and how to ship one you can trust.
AI chatbots RAG AI automation
- May 14, 2026
When to Hire an AI Automation Partner: A Practical Decision Guide
A concrete guide on when to hire an AI automation partner, the real cost and time tradeoffs, and the signals that tell you to build internally instead.
AI automation Hiring
- May 8, 2026
Nearshore AI and Software Development from Latin America for US Startups
How US startups use nearshore AI and software development from Latin America to ship faster: real timezone overlap, senior talent, and 40-60% cost savings.
Nearshore AI automation Latin America
- May 6, 2026
Where to find your first automation win
The fastest return from automation is rarely the flashy AI feature. It is the boring multi-step process your team repeats every week.
Workflow automation AI automation Operations
- May 2, 2026
The Realistic Timeline From Idea to SaaS MVP: A Builder's Breakdown
A concrete, week-by-week look at the realistic timeline from idea to SaaS MVP, with the tradeoffs and time sinks most teams underestimate before shipping.
SaaS MVP Product