FROM THE TRENCHES Issue №288

Practical decisions for AI and software

Technical guides to choose models, verify software and plan delivery.

Latest articles

New comparisons, practical guides and engineering lessons.

Opportunity map for AI, software and automation in grocery retail Delivery & QA

AI in Grocery Retail: An MPREIS Opportunity Map

An independent outside-in analysis of demand forecasting, fresh-food workflows, the customer app and a pragmatic 90-day validation path for grocery retail.

A stateful LLM platform connected to persistence, access control, background jobs, APIs, deployment and QA gates Delivery & QA

Stateful LLM Platform Production Architecture

An anonymized field guide to persistence, tenant access, long-running jobs, external interfaces, deployment controls and continuous QA without a full rewrite.

Semantica decision provenance graph connecting evidence, policy gates and an AI agent outcome Business & Regulation

Semantica Review 2026: Can It Explain Every AI Agent Decision?

A buyer-focused review of Semantica for decision provenance, policy gates and regulated AI audit trails, including security limits and a two-week pilot scorecard.

A layered healthcare operations map connecting patient services, clinical workflows, automation and AI governance Delivery & QA

Tirol Kliniken (TILAK): A Digital Operations Opportunity Map

An independent outside-in analysis of how a public hospital group could connect patient services, telehealth, workflow automation and governed AI into repeatable operational capabilities.

Layered digital energy services connecting customer journeys, deterministic controls, AI assistance and human operations Delivery & QA

TIWAG Digital Energy: A Software and AI Opportunity Map

An independent outside-in analysis of five product, automation and AI opportunities around smart tariffs, energy communities and utility operations.

A structured specification turns a vague AI coding prompt into reviewed requirements, a plan and testable tasks AI & Agents

GitHub Spec Kit Review: Is It Worth the Process?

GitHub Spec Kit replaces one-shot vibe coding with reviewed specifications, plans and tasks. Here is where that structure pays off, where it adds ceremony and how to run a production pilot.

Governed internal AI agent marketplace with catalog, company context, identity, evaluation and lifecycle controls AI & Agents

Internal AI Agent Marketplace: A 2026 Enterprise Build Guide

Build a governed internal agent catalog employees will use. Architecture, listing contract, identity, context, evaluations, approvals, metrics and a 90-day rollout.

Self-hosted LiteLLM production gateway architecture AI & Agents

How to Self-Host LiteLLM in Production: 2026 Guide

A security-first LiteLLM deployment guide for teams choosing their own AI gateway: architecture, Postgres, Redis, keys, upgrades, cost and go-live checks.

Two software providers transferring a live codebase through a controlled transition Business & Regulation

Software Project Takeover: A 30-Day Provider Change Plan

Changing the team behind a live product is not a repository transfer. Use this 30-day plan to regain control, prove releases and recovery, and select a provider that can inherit before it rebuilds.

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