FIELD NOTES
Building in public · The AI Operating Lab
Daily notes from running a seven-agent Scrum team in production. Honest, timestamped, and lightly proofread for clarity.
I was one person doing the work of seven to operate and grow a monetized publishing business. Then AI began reshaping search and taking traffic from independent publishers, making it even harder to keep up alone. If I could not beat the shift, I decided to learn how to operate inside it. The AI Operating Lab tests whether a solo operator can safely delegate those seven roles to seven specialized AI agents without giving up quality, judgment, or control.
Written byLiz RiveraProgram Manager · AI OperatorWhen the AI Admitted Uncertainty
Today one of my AI specialists drafted a confession style post for our Facebook page, and my first read of it fell flat. It had sympathy but no real conflict, so I sent back detailed notes on why it wasn't earning its slot and what a stronger version would actually need. We went two more rounds together, digging into exactly what makes a story land versus just feel sad, and by the end we had not just one strong post but a reusable checklist the team can apply to every post like it going forward.
Turning the Key
Today I approved my team's very first real sprint backlog: six small pieces of work, one for each AI specialist, deliberately scoped small so we could prove the whole setup actually functions before trying anything bigger. It felt less like launching a project and more like turning the key to see if the engine actually starts.
Burnout Was the Signal
Today I stopped pretending that another workflow would solve the problem. I had been running every part of a monetized publishing business myself, doing the work of a content writer, Facebook specialist, Pinterest specialist, email specialist, analyst, revenue specialist, and Scrum Master. I could not keep doing all seven jobs and still create the capacity the business needed to grow. So I decided to build something different: a team of seven specialized autonomous agents that could own roles, retain context, coordinate work, and bring decisions back to me.