agent@jjm:~$ ls ./field-notes — 74 entries · 22 categories

Field notes from thefrontier of AI

How we build AI-driven marketing systems — the experiments, the breakdowns, the strategy, and the wider story of where this is all heading.

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The $300M-a-Week Bet Behind Claude Opus 4.8
AI Development·29 May 2026·7 min

The $300M-a-Week Bet Behind Claude Opus 4.8

Claude Opus 4.8 landed on 28 May 2026. The real story isn't the model — it's the compute bill funding it, and why that means the updates won't slow down.

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Latest dispatches

73 articles
Who Really Controls Frontier AI?
14 min
AI Development

Who Really Controls Frontier AI?

The Fable 5 shutdown was reported as a security story. Underneath sits a tangle of money, rivalry and government power. A map of the forces, the players, and the scenarios from here.

14 June 2026Read
How to Spend a $5,000/Month Ad Budget for a Local Business
9 min
PPC

How to Spend a $5,000/Month Ad Budget for a Local Business

A $5k/month local ad budget rarely fails on the split. It fails on what you optimise to. Here's the allocation, the defaults to refuse, and the 2026 edge.

14 June 2026Read
They Built the Safest AI. Three Days Later It Was Switched Off.
13 min
AI Development

They Built the Safest AI. Three Days Later It Was Switched Off.

The US government switched off Claude Fable 5 three days after launch — no public test, no proven harm. A Richard Jewell moment, and a vendor-risk wake-up call for every business renting AI.

13 June 2026Read
The Secondary Conversion Trap: When Google Ads Reports Zero
10 min
PPC

The Secondary Conversion Trap: When Google Ads Reports Zero

Google Ads said zero conversions while real leads sat in the CRM. The culprit: conversion actions demoted to secondary — invisible to Smart Bidding.

11 June 2026Read
Why Your AI Agent Has Amnesia — and the Librarian Fix
10 min
AI Development

Why Your AI Agent Has Amnesia — and the Librarian Fix

Your AI doesn't have a memory problem — it has a retrieval problem. How we measured the amnesia and built a librarian that hands you the thread.

9 June 2026Read
AI Brochures Can Hallucinate Your Client's Google Rating
10 min
AI Development

AI Brochures Can Hallucinate Your Client's Google Rating

Image-native AI brochures bake every fact into a pixel. If the model hallucinates a Google rating, you cannot find-and-replace it. Here is how to catch it.

21 May 2026Read
AI Image Generators Can Render Perfect Typography
10 min
AI Development

AI Image Generators Can Render Perfect Typography

AI image generators render clean, typo-free text if you keep each line short and feed the model your logo. Here is how we built a brochure from images.

21 May 2026Read
Recover Claude Code Sessions After a Reboot (Whole Fleet)
13 min
AI Development

Recover Claude Code Sessions After a Reboot (Whole Fleet)

Your Claude Code sessions did not crash — the machine rebooted under them. How to prove it, recover a whole fleet from disk, and orchestrate the survivors.

21 May 2026Read
Google Ads Conversions: Fire Them on a Thank-You Page
7 min
Conversion Optimization

Google Ads Conversions: Fire Them on a Thank-You Page

Fire your Google Ads conversion on a dedicated thank-you page, not a fragile JS callback. Here is why window.open silently fails on mobile and how to fix it.

21 May 2026Read
Parallel AI Audit Agents Exposed Our Doorway-Page Farm
10 min
SEO Guide

Parallel AI Audit Agents Exposed Our Doorway-Page Farm

Five parallel AI audit agents found a doorway-page farm hiding behind a clean technical audit — and why a sequential audit would have missed it.

21 May 2026Read
Why Your Logo Disappears in Dark-Mode Email (One-Line Fix)
9 min
Web Development

Why Your Logo Disappears in Dark-Mode Email (One-Line Fix)

Your email logo looks perfect in your editor but vanishes white-on-white in dark-mode inboxes. Here is the raster-bake fix and the one-line CSS guard.

21 May 2026Read
Netlify Site Stopped Updating? Auto-Publish Is Off
6 min
Web Development

Netlify Site Stopped Updating? Auto-Publish Is Off

Netlify builds go green, deploys say ready, but the live site never changes. The cause is auto-publishing disabled by a forgotten rollback. Here's the fix.

21 May 2026Read
Auto-Draft Blog Posts From AI Sessions (Building JJM 2)
14 min
Marketing Automation

Auto-Draft Blog Posts From AI Sessions (Building JJM 2)

Auto-draft blog posts from every AI coding session with a three-subagent pipeline — sanitised summaries only, never raw logs reach your blog.

18 May 2026Read
Karpathy's LLM Wiki: The Knowledge Base That Beats RAG
7 min
AI Development

Karpathy's LLM Wiki: The Knowledge Base That Beats RAG

Andrej Karpathy's LLM Wiki proposes a structured synthesis layer that beats raw RAG. Here's the pattern, why it works, and how to run it yourself.

11 May 2026Read
How Orphan PHP Files Hijacked 9 SEO Location Pages
8 min
Technical SEO

How Orphan PHP Files Hijacked 9 SEO Location Pages

A client's location pages weren't updating despite template changes. The culprit: orphan PHP files overriding the URL rewrite system. Here's how we found them.

10 Mar 2026Read
How to Use Claude Code Agent Teams: The Complete Guide
11 min
AI Development

How to Use Claude Code Agent Teams: The Complete Guide

Claude Code Agent Teams run AI agents in parallel on complex projects. Real case study: 7 deliverables in 15 minutes across a plumbing franchise.

9 Feb 2026Read
Claude Code Background Tasks: AI That Works While You Sleep
11 min
AI Development

Claude Code Background Tasks: AI That Works While You Sleep

Claude Code background tasks let AI agents run builds, audits, and research autonomously while you work. Here's how we use async agents.

9 Feb 2026Read
Claude Code Checkpoints: Instantly Rewind Any Bad AI Edit
11 min
AI Development

Claude Code Checkpoints: Instantly Rewind Any Bad AI Edit

Claude Code checkpoints auto-save your code before every AI edit, so you can rewind instantly when a change goes wrong. Here's how to use them.

9 Feb 2026Read
Claude Code Custom Subagents: Build Specialised AI Workers
12 min
AI Development

Claude Code Custom Subagents: Build Specialised AI Workers

Build custom subagents in Claude Code with specialised prompts and tool access. Create SEO auditors, content writers and reusable AI workers.

9 Feb 2026Read
Claude Code's 7 Best New Features for Building Websites
14 min
AI Development

Claude Code's 7 Best New Features for Building Websites

We used Claude Code's new Agent Teams to audit 20+ sites in parallel. Here are the 7 features every developer and agency needs to know about in 2026.

9 Feb 2026Read
Claude Code MCP: Connect Your AI to Every Tool
12 min
AI Development

Claude Code MCP: Connect Your AI to Every Tool

See how Claude Code uses the Model Context Protocol (MCP) to connect your AI to databases, GitHub, analytics, and hundreds of external tools.

9 Feb 2026Read
Claude Code Plan Mode: Think Before You Build
10 min
AI Development

Claude Code Plan Mode: Think Before You Build

Claude Code Plan Mode separates thinking from execution. Learn how to use Shift+Tab to plan changes before making them - with real agency workflow examples.

9 Feb 2026Read
Claude Code Skills: Build Your First One (2026 Guide)
12 min
AI Development

Claude Code Skills: Build Your First One (2026 Guide)

Claude Code Skills turn your repeatable processes into reusable AI instructions any agent can execute. Build your first one, step by step.

9 Feb 2026Read
ChatGPT Ads Australia: The Local Business Guide for 2026
11 min
PPC

ChatGPT Ads Australia: The Local Business Guide for 2026

How Australian businesses can reach customers with ChatGPT Ads — local market insights, top industries, regulations, and a practical 2026 strategy.

5 Feb 2026Read
ChatGPT Ads Best Practices: 12 Rules That Get Results
12 min
PPC

ChatGPT Ads Best Practices: 12 Rules That Get Results

ChatGPT Ads best practices: 12 proven rules covering creative, topic targeting and measurement to get better results for Australian businesses.

5 Feb 2026Read
ChatGPT Ads vs Google Ads: Which Wins for Australia?
10 min
PPC

ChatGPT Ads vs Google Ads: Which Wins for Australia?

Compare ChatGPT Ads and Google Ads side-by-side. Targeting, pricing, intent, and ROI - which platform wins for Australian businesses?

5 Feb 2026Read
ChatGPT Ads Cost in 2026: Pricing, Budgets & ROI
9 min
PPC

ChatGPT Ads Cost in 2026: Pricing, Budgets & ROI

ChatGPT Ads pricing for Australian businesses: CPM rates, minimum budgets, expected ROI, and how costs stack up against Google and Meta Ads.

5 Feb 2026Read
ChatGPT Ads: The Complete Guide for Australian Business
12 min
PPC

ChatGPT Ads: The Complete Guide for Australian Business

Learn how ChatGPT ads work, who sees them, and what they mean for Australian businesses. Expert guide to OpenAI's new advertising platform.

5 Feb 2026Read
B2B Paid Media Strategy: A Multi-Channel Framework
14 min
PPC

B2B Paid Media Strategy: A Multi-Channel Framework

B2B paid media that converts: combine Google Ads intent capture, LinkedIn targeting, vertical landing pages, and automated nurture into one engine.

19 Jan 2026Read
Hub & Spoke SEO: The Complete 2026 Playbook & Examples
18 min
SEO Guide

Hub & Spoke SEO: The Complete 2026 Playbook & Examples

Hub & spoke SEO in plain English — real examples, a decision framework, and the 3 pitfalls most agencies miss. Content architecture that compounds.

10 Jan 2026Read
SEO Is Just an RPG: A Gamer's Guide to Search Rankings
15 min
SEO Guide

SEO Is Just an RPG: A Gamer's Guide to Search Rankings

SEO is just an RPG with a longer grind. Backlinks are XP, Domain Rating is your character level. The complete gamer's guide to search rankings.

10 Jan 2026Read
Automate Facebook Posting with React and Netlify Functions
12 min
Marketing Automation

Automate Facebook Posting with React and Netlify Functions

Build a scheduled Facebook posting system that captures React components as images and posts them automatically, with Netlify and no paid tools.

12 Dec 2025Read
AI Dev Session: Carousel Cards & Admin Dashboard
8 min
Web Development

AI Dev Session: Carousel Cards & Admin Dashboard

Building social carousel cards, admin dashboard, and fixing a sneaky TOC bug—in 3 hours.

8 Dec 2025Read
Volume 7: Branding Our Own Blog Series
6 min
Web Development

Volume 7: Branding Our Own Blog Series

The meta moment when we built custom branding for the Pink Slips NSW blog series - pink gradients, dual logos, and conditional styling in 2 hours.

7 Dec 2025Read
Building 500+ Location Pages with AI-Generated Content
20 min
Web Development

Building 500+ Location Pages with AI-Generated Content

Building 790 location pages with AI content, database schema, and SEO implementation.

7 Dec 2025Read
Multi-Technician Calendar System: Pink Slips NSW Build
18 min
Web Development

Multi-Technician Calendar System: Pink Slips NSW Build

Building a multi-technician calendar with drag-and-drop scheduling for Pink Slips NSW, plus the 5 bugs we hit and how we fixed them.

7 Dec 2025Read
Creating Branded Blog Series: The Pink Slips NSW Case Study
10 min
Web Development

Creating Branded Blog Series: The Pink Slips NSW Case Study

How we built a conditional styling system for branded blog series - one layout, smart overrides, zero code duplication.

7 Dec 2025Read
Redesigning the JJM Homepage with AI in 45 Minutes
14 min
Web Development

Redesigning the JJM Homepage with AI in 45 Minutes

A complete homepage repositioning from generic agency to AI-first - every component updated with new messaging, service names, CTAs, and SEO metadata.

7 Dec 2025Read
AI Blog Upgrades: Retrofit Features Across Your Archive
7 min
Web Development

AI Blog Upgrades: Retrofit Features Across Your Archive

How I use AI to add a feature once and apply it everywhere, turning months of blog posts into a living system. No plugins, no templates required.

6 Dec 2025Read
FAQ Schema, Service CTAs & a Slick Mobile TOC
8 min
Web Development

FAQ Schema, Service CTAs & a Slick Mobile TOC

Adding FAQ schema, service CTAs, and a camera-wheel inspired mobile TOC to blog posts.

4 Dec 2025Read
The Google Ads Excellent Score Trap
7 min
PPC

The Google Ads Excellent Score Trap

Adding videos to PMax sent budget to YouTube. Ad strength measures inventory, not effectiveness.

3 Dec 2025Read
Google Ads Is Rigged. I Can Prove It.
10 min
PPC

Google Ads Is Rigged. I Can Prove It.

Google Ads is rigged against advertisers. Not broken. Rigged. Here's the proof and what to do.

3 Dec 2025Read
The Truth About Maximize Conversions in Google Ads
8 min
PPC

The Truth About Maximize Conversions in Google Ads

The uncomfortable truth about 'Maximize Conversions' and why Target CPA is the only lever that matters.

3 Dec 2025Read
Google Ads Conversion Tracking: A $330K WWW Redirect Fix
10 min
Web Development

Google Ads Conversion Tracking: A $330K WWW Redirect Fix

How a www vs non-www mismatch killed $330K in Google Ads conversions—and the fix that saved it.

2 Dec 2025Read
AI-Powered Smart Scheduling for Mobile Vehicle Inspections
12 min
AI Development

AI-Powered Smart Scheduling for Mobile Vehicle Inspections

AI scheduling that clusters appointments geographically, cutting daily travel time by 40%.

30 Nov 2025Read
Pushing Limits: What Happens When You Let AI Blend Colors
6 min
AI Development

Pushing Limits: What Happens When You Let AI Blend Colors

I asked Claude to blend category colors together. Then I kept adding categories to see what would happen. This is about the process of playing with AI.

30 Nov 2025Read
Build an SEO ROI Calculator with Claude AI
10 min
Web Development

Build an SEO ROI Calculator with Claude AI

Build an interactive SEO ROI calculator with Claude AI by asking one question: 'What would YOU build?' Here's the step-by-step approach.

30 Nov 2025Read
Building a Smart Availability Picker in Real-Time with AI
10 min
Web Development

Building a Smart Availability Picker in Real-Time with AI

Building an availability calendar for a mobile mechanic with AI—bugs, pivots, and real-time fixes.

29 Nov 2025Read
Boosting Blog Engagement & Fixing Contact Forms with AI
8 min
Web Development

Boosting Blog Engagement & Fixing Contact Forms with AI

AI-assisted development to improve blog structure, UX, and lead capture—all in one session.

29 Nov 2025Read
Ebook Lead Magnets: When They Work for B2B Sales
12 min
Marketing Strategy

Ebook Lead Magnets: When They Work for B2B Sales

When ebooks work as lead magnets, when they do not, and the marketing ecosystem that makes them convert for complex B2B sales.

16 Oct 2025Read
AI-Powered Blog Creation Workflow
8 min
Marketing Automation

AI-Powered Blog Creation Workflow

Solo agency owner builds AI-powered workflow for stunning blog posts with social graphics in hours, not weeks.

9 Oct 2025Read
Building a Buyers Agent Landing Page with AI
8 min
Case Studies

Building a Buyers Agent Landing Page with AI

How I helped a Newcastle buyers agent go from 1 unqualified lead to 2 qualified leads in week one.

5 Oct 2025Read
Jordan James Media Blog Audit & Expansion Roadmap
14 min
Content Marketing

Jordan James Media Blog Audit & Expansion Roadmap

See the findings from our latest blog content audit alongside a 90-day roadmap to expand high-intent SEO coverage and capture more qualified demand.

10 Jan 2025Read
Enterprise Site Migration SEO Playbook
22 min
SEO Guide

Enterprise Site Migration SEO Playbook

A step-by-step SEO playbook to protect rankings, traffic, and revenue when replatforming or redesigning an enterprise website.

8 Jan 2025Read
Marketing Analytics Operating Model for Scale
17 min
Analytics

Marketing Analytics Operating Model for Scale

Implement a marketing analytics operating model that standardises data governance, reporting cadences, and optimisation loops across growth teams.

7 Jan 2025Read
RevOps Dashboard Blueprint for Full-Funnel Visibility
18 min
Revenue Operations

RevOps Dashboard Blueprint for Full-Funnel Visibility

Build a RevOps dashboard that unifies marketing, sales, and success metrics so leadership can spot bottlenecks and forecast revenue with confidence.

6 Jan 2025Read
B2B Paid Media Budget Framework for Predictable Pipeline
16 min
Paid Media

B2B Paid Media Budget Framework for Predictable Pipeline

Structure quarterly paid media budgets, forecast CAC, and align stakeholders around the channel mix that produces consistent B2B pipeline.

5 Jan 2025Read
Headless CMS SEO Playbook for High-Growth Teams
18 min
Web Development

Headless CMS SEO Playbook for High-Growth Teams

Learn how to structure content models, routing, and publishing workflows in a headless CMS without sacrificing SEO performance.

4 Jan 2025Read
LinkedIn Demand Generation Blueprint for B2B Brands
15 min
Social Media

LinkedIn Demand Generation Blueprint for B2B Brands

Design a LinkedIn demand generation program that blends paid and organic motions to warm target accounts and accelerate revenue.

3 Jan 2025Read
B2B Content Calendar Strategy Guide
16 min
Content Marketing

B2B Content Calendar Strategy Guide

Build an actionable B2B content calendar that aligns with buyer journeys, sales priorities, and SEO goals while keeping your team on schedule.

20 Dec 2024Read
Lead Scoring Playbook: Automate Qualification
15 min
Marketing Automation

Lead Scoring Playbook: Automate Qualification

Build a data-driven lead scoring model that aligns marketing and sales, improves follow-up timing, and keeps your pipeline healthy.

20 Dec 2024Read
Google Ads Optimisation Blueprint
17 min
PPC

Google Ads Optimisation Blueprint

Learn how to audit, restructure, and optimise Google Ads campaigns to cut wasted spend and scale profitable conversions.

20 Dec 2024Read
Technical SEO Audit Checklist for High-Performing Websites
18 min
SEO Guide

Technical SEO Audit Checklist for High-Performing Websites

Follow this step-by-step technical SEO audit checklist to uncover critical issues, prioritise fixes, and boost search visibility across your entire site.

20 Dec 2024Read
Social Media Analytics Framework: Prove Channel ROI
15 min
Social Media

Social Media Analytics Framework: Prove Channel ROI

Design a social media analytics framework that tracks meaningful KPIs, aligns with business goals, and proves channel ROI.

20 Dec 2024Read
High-Converting Landing Pages: 12 CRO Tactics That Convert
14 min
Web Development

High-Converting Landing Pages: 12 CRO Tactics That Convert

12 CRO tactics to turn service-business landing pages into qualified-lead engines: value proposition, social proof, form design and trust signals.

20 Dec 2024Read
Google Ads Management: The Complete Guide to Maximizing ROI
18 min
PPC Guide

Google Ads Management: The Complete Guide to Maximizing ROI

Master Google Ads with our comprehensive guide covering campaign setup, optimization strategies, and proven techniques to maximize your advertising ROI.

15 Dec 2024Read
Marketing Automation & CRM Integration Guide
15 min
Marketing Automation

Marketing Automation & CRM Integration Guide

Implement marketing automation and CRM integration to streamline processes and boost revenue growth.

12 Dec 2024Read
Website Design & Development: Best Practices That Convert
16 min
Web Development

Website Design & Development: Best Practices That Convert

Website design and development best practices that drive conversions, lift user experience, and boost your search rankings. Build a site that performs.

10 Dec 2024Read
Local SEO Guide for Australian Businesses
14 min
Local SEO

Local SEO Guide for Australian Businesses

Local SEO strategies for Australian businesses. Rank higher and attract more local customers.

8 Dec 2024Read
Why Your React Table of Contents Goes Missing (And the Fix)
8 min
Web Development

Why Your React Table of Contents Goes Missing (And the Fix)

How custom React components can break auto-generated features, and why understanding DOM-based tooling is essential for modern web development.

8 Dec 2024Read
Content Marketing Strategy: Complete Guide
17 min
Content Marketing

Content Marketing Strategy: Complete Guide

Develop a content marketing strategy that builds brand authority and drives sustainable business growth.

5 Dec 2024Read
Social Media Advertising: Complete Guide
19 min
Social Media

Social Media Advertising: Complete Guide

Master Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn ads with proven targeting and ROI optimization strategies.

1 Dec 2024Read
How to Optimize Your Website for Search Engines
15 min
SEO Guide

How to Optimize Your Website for Search Engines

Learn the fundamental SEO strategies that will help your website rank higher in search results and attract more organic traffic.

26 Aug 2024Read