The Automat

Field notes from the bleeding edge of business

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Choosing a Custom AI Development Partner for a Growth-Stage Company

Choosing a Custom AI Development Partner for a Growth-Stage Company

Choosing a Custom AI Development Partner for a Growth-Stage CompanyDrew Donaldson
Published on: 14/08/2026

Choosing a custom AI development company at growth stage: the four partner archetypes compared, 2026 rates, and the 30/90 day test that predicts delivery.

Buy vs Buildcustom AI development company2026growth-stage companiesAI partner selection
Multi-Agent or One Big Agent? A Practical Way to Choose

Multi-Agent or One Big Agent? A Practical Way to Choose

Multi-Agent or One Big Agent? A Practical Way to ChooseDrew Donaldson
Published on: 14/08/2026

Multi-agent vs single agent is a budget question, not an intelligence one. What extra agents really cost, and the failure-mode test for choosing.

Agentic AI & The Harness Racesmulti-agent vs single agent2026AI operatorsagent architecture
Who's Liable When Your AI Agent Makes a Bad Call?

Who's Liable When Your AI Agent Makes a Bad Call?

Who's Liable When Your AI Agent Makes a Bad Call?Drew Donaldson
Published on: 11/08/2026

AI liability rarely lands on the vendor or the model. Where the fallout falls, what contracts can and can't shift, and how to build a defensible record.

AI Governance, Privacy & SecurityAI liability2026AI operatorsAI agent accountability
The Difference Between a Dashboard and a Decision

The Difference Between a Dashboard and a Decision

The Difference Between a Dashboard and a DecisionDrew Donaldson
Published on: 10/08/2026

Data driven decision making fails when dashboards report status but never end in an action. Here is how to design analytics, human or agentic, that produce a decision instead of another meeting.

Data & Intelligencedata driven decision making2026AI operatorsactionable analytics