Build a better shipyard.
The ship can only be as strong as the yard that builds it. In the age of AI the yard is changing faster than the ships, so here is how we intend to build ours.
- I
The yard is the product.
A ship can only be as strong as the yard that builds it. We don't just build products, we build the system that builds them: the tools, the rituals, the agents. Every part of the yard gets the same care as anything a customer touches.
- II
Three voices, one hull.
Every builder carries three voices: a general manager who loves the business, a scientist who hunts for the truth, and an artist who gives the work a soul. AI makes all three louder. Knowing which one to listen to, and when, is still the job.
- III
Less, but more.
When making something costs almost nothing, restraint becomes the craft. The hard part is no longer building the feature. It's deciding the feature shouldn't exist.
- IV
Find the truth before the feature.
A model can draft a hundred answers by lunch. Only evidence, taste and a customer's own words can tell you which one is right. We go looking for the truth first and let it pick the work.
- V
Show, don't spec.
Never write a document describing something you could show. Draw it, generate it, put it in front of an owner, then write down what you learned. The prototype is the spec.
- VI
Agents on deck, people at the helm.
Delegate the work, never the accountability. Every agent has a captain and every decision has exactly one driver. Machines can row; people choose where the ship goes.
- VII
Stories for belief, facts for decisions.
Tell the story when you need the crew to believe. Bring the numbers when it's time to decide. Know which room you're in before you open your mouth.
- VIII
Small crews, short voyages.
A handful of people with great tools now out-ships a department. Keep crews small, keep voyages to weeks, and always come back to port with something real.
- IX
Unlearn on purpose.
Waterfall, then agile, then data-driven, now AI-native. Each wave turns the last playbook into a liability. We set aside time to throw rules away, these included.
- X
Start a movement, not a mandate.
Good practice spreads because people choose it, not because a memo says so. Show the work, share the tools, and let the best idea win the yard.
Ships are for open water.
This list will change too.