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Writing on AI engineering

Prompt engineering, system design, and building AI products that hold up past the demo. Cross-posted from Substack.

Allai engineeringalgorithmsarchitecturecareerclean codeconcurrencyedafoundersgood codeharness engineeringleetcodelockingmoatprompt engineeringragsaassdlcsoftware engineeringstartupsystem design
Lock, check, or reserve: the concurrency decision nobody teaches
· 6 min read

Lock, check, or reserve: the concurrency decision nobody teaches

Somewhere right now, a transaction is holding a lock open while it waits on a payment gateway to respond.

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concurrencysystem designlocking
Your engineers are already using AI agents. You just don’t know how.
· 5 min read

Your engineers are already using AI agents. You just don’t know how.

Fragmented adoption feels like progress.

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sdlcsoftware engineering
The Hidden Cost Curve of 'Go Horse' Code
· 5 min read

The Hidden Cost Curve of 'Go Horse' Code

Every shortcut in engineering is a loan — and the interest rate is decided long before you know you’re paying it.

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software engineering
The Hidden Cost of Chatty I/O
· 5 min read

The Hidden Cost of Chatty I/O

Every network call has a fixed tax.

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system design
I asked 7 definitions of good code to judge the same function. they disagreed.
· 10 min read

I asked 7 definitions of good code to judge the same function. they disagreed.

There is no universal standard for good code.

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clean codegood codearchitecture
Before You Scale: What Chapter 1 of Designing Data-Intensive Applications Actually Teaches You
· 8 min read

Before You Scale: What Chapter 1 of Designing Data-Intensive Applications Actually Teaches You

Everyone cites Designing Data-Intensive Applications. It’s on the reading list of every serious engineering team. Engineers drop it in interviews. CTOs reference it in system design discussions. But most people read it once, nod along, and move on without internalizing what the first chapter is actually saying.

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system design
MCP + Skills: The New Interface for Engineering Work
· 5 min read

MCP + Skills: The New Interface for Engineering Work

There’s a type of cognitive overhead that engineers have normalized so completely they stopped noticing it.

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ai engineeringharness engineering
Streaming in LLM Agents Isn’t Just a UX Feature. It’s an Architecture Decision.
· 4 min read

Streaming in LLM Agents Isn’t Just a UX Feature. It’s an Architecture Decision.

Most teams add streaming to their AI products because it feels faster.

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ai engineeringsystem design
Building Internal Chatbots That Actually Work
· 7 min read

Building Internal Chatbots That Actually Work

Every company I’ve worked with has the same problem dressed in different clothes.

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ragai engineeringsystem design
The Unit Economics of AI Products
· 12 min read

The Unit Economics of AI Products

Traditional SaaS has a comforting property: infrastructure costs are largely fixed.

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ai engineering
Caveman Prompting: I Tested the Claim. The Real Finding Is Somewhere Else.
· 18 min read

Caveman Prompting: I Tested the Claim. The Real Finding Is Somewhere Else.

There’s an idea that circulates in AI engineering circles called “caveman prompting.” The premise: write your instructions in stripped-down, telegraphic English — almost no grammar, no courtesy, just the bare intent — and the model will still deliver.

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prompt engineeringai engineering
Your Micro SaaS Will Be Cloned. Here’s What Actually Protects You.
· 5 min read

Your Micro SaaS Will Be Cloned. Here’s What Actually Protects You.

Everyone tells you to build the moat.

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startupsaasmoat
Designing AI Products That Users Actually Trust
· 11 min read

Designing AI Products That Users Actually Trust

Getting the architecture right is necessary.

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ai engineering
How to Build AI Agents That Don’t Collapse in Production
· 12 min read

How to Build AI Agents That Don’t Collapse in Production

The previous chapter made the case for workflows.

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ai engineering
You Don’t Need an Agent. You Need a Workflow
· 9 min read

You Don’t Need an Agent. You Need a Workflow

Agents are everywhere in the AI conversation right now.

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ai engineering
The AI Stack Trap
· 8 min read

The AI Stack Trap

Every week there’s a new framework, a new model, a new tool that promises to change how you build AI products.

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ai engineering
Base case, smaller input, leap of faith: the only three things you need to understand recursion
· 6 min read

Base case, smaller input, leap of faith: the only three things you need to understand recursion

Most developers learn recursion by memorizing examples.

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algorithms
The AI Product Trap
· 7 min read

The AI Product Trap

Most AI products look great in a demo.

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foundersai engineering
Without Constraints, Any Solution Works. That's Exactly the Problem.
· 8 min read

Without Constraints, Any Solution Works. That's Exactly the Problem.

Most people read a problem looking for what they need to do.

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leetcodecareeralgorithms
Event-Driven Architecture: What It Is, Why It Matters, and When to Use It
· 5 min read

Event-Driven Architecture: What It Is, Why It Matters, and When to Use It

Most teams adopt event-driven architecture because someone said it scales.

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edaarchitecture