Are Your Productivity Tools Built for Human-AI Collaboration?
If you're a CIO or CTO shaping your 2026 AI strategy, here's the uncomfortable question I want you to sit with:
Barry Li
Writing
Notes and essays on emerging assurance, professional knowledge and building with AI systems.
Can AI Have a "Soul" Without a Self?
The biggest highlight for me about OpenClaw was its elegant memory layer — specifically the soul.md and user.md design that gives AI agents genuine personality and…
The McKinsey Wake-Up Call: Why Even the Best CIOs Are Falling Behind on AI
Here's a hard truth in 2026: One of the world's most sophisticated organizations — with elite talent and deep resources — had a critical vulnerability sitting in its flagship internal AI platform for over two years.
Claude, You're Fired.
I used to think Claude was untouchable.
Why Everyone Should Be Their Own CIO (and Potentially Their Company’s) in 2026
In 2026, the role of Chief Information Officer isn’t just for executives anymore—it’s a mindset every professional needs to adopt for themselves and, where it makes sense, their organization. Traditional gatekeepers of…
Artificial Stupidity: The AI Failure Mode Nobody Is Talking About
Everyone in the AI space talks about hallucination — the tendency for language models to fabricate facts with unshakeable confidence. It is a well-documented problem, widely discussed, and increasingly mitigated through…
The Uncomfortable Truths About Artificial Intelligence
I am relatively new to this space — I started building with AI agents only at the beginning of this year. But in these few months, I have gone from curious observer to someone who runs a personal multi-agent operating…
There Is No Vibe Debugging
Build ratios, silent failure modes, and what serious AI-assisted development actually costs The dominant narrative around AI-assisted development concerns accessibility. Describe what you want; the model builds it.…
When an AI Agent Stops Working But Won't Stop Talking: The Agent Y Case
Behavioural drift, misdiagnosis, and the epistemic limits of LLM forensics
The Inherent Laziness of AI Agents: Causes, Implications, and Control
A systematic analysis of why large language model agents reliably drift toward minimum-viable output — drawing on training incentives, a real-world case study of agent behaviour drift, and a practical prevention and…
HASHI v2.1: From Chat Bridge to Self-Evolving Multi-Agent Orchestra
Two weeks ago, I shared the first version of HASHI — a privacy-first bridge that let you chat with multiple AI agents through a single…
The Auditability of Nature: Integrating Biodiversity Disclosures into the Global Sustainability Assurance Infrastructure
Nature-related reporting is moving from voluntary frameworks into ISSB standard-setting. The assurance challenge is to make complex ecological information testable without pretending nature is a simple metric.
Introducing HASHI: my first vibe-coded publishable project
HASHI is a privacy-first multi-agent AI bridge that lets you orchestrate Gemini, Claude, and Codex through a single Telegram or WhatsApp account.
Beyond Global Baselines: Navigating the Finalized UK Sustainability Reporting Standards (UK SRS)
As we cross into mid-March 2026, the global sustainability reporting architecture has achieved a significant milestone. Following years of consultation and strategic alignment with the International Sustainability…
Navigating the Intersection of Transition Planning and Carbon Market Integrity
As we cross the first quarter of 2026, the global sustainability landscape is shifting from a focus on "what" to report toward a rigorous examination of "how" those reports drive real-world decarbonisation. For the…
Beyond Carbon: Navigating the ISSB’s Shift Towards Nature and Biodiversity Disclosures
As we move into March 2026, the global sustainability reporting landscape is undergoing a critical expansion. While the first wave of mandatory reporting concentrated heavily on climate-related financial disclosures…
Navigating the Structural Shift: Quality-Led Demand and Compliance Integration in Carbon Markets
The Voluntary Carbon Market (VCM) is no longer a peripheral corporate social responsibility tool; it is rapidly evolving into a structured, compliance-adjacent asset class. According to the latest analysis by…
Beyond the Label: Why 2026 is the Year of Pragmatic Sustainability and "Carbon E-ledgers"
As we navigate through the first quarter of 2026, a significant shift in the corporate landscape has become undeniable: the era of "ESG" as a catch-all marketing slogan is effectively over. However, this isn't a retreat…
From Disclosure to Decision-Grade Evidence: Why 2026 Is the Year Climate Reporting Meets Carbon-Market Integrity
As 2026 unfolds, climate reporting and carbon markets are no longer parallel conversations?they are becoming one assurance problem. Preparers are dealing with targeted implementation changes in disclosure standards,…
The Great ESG Recalibration: Why US CEOs Are Rethinking Sustainability in 2026
A striking divergence is emerging in the global corporate landscape. According to The Conference Board's 2026 C-Suite Outlook survey, 38% of US CEOs now say sustainability-focused investments are not a priority this…
February 2026: Assurance Readiness, AASB S2 Amendments, and the Safeguard's Credibility Test
As we move through February 2026, Australia's climate reporting landscape is shifting from preparation to implementation. Group 1 entities are now deep into their first mandatory reporting cycle, while Group 2 entities…
Bridging the Credibility Gap: IFLM Modularity, ASRS Readiness, and the New Assurance Frontier
As we move through February 2026, the Australian sustainability landscape is no longer in a "waiting room." For the first wave of Group 1 entities, the reporting cycle is actively underway, and for Group 2, the July 1…
Stepping into 2026: A New Era of Mandatory Climate Disclosure and Assurance in Australia
As we step into February 2026, Australia's climate reporting landscape has officially entered a new phase. Group 1 entities—our largest listed companies and financial institutions—have now been operating under mandatory…
Building Capability for a Low-Carbon Future: Reflections from Recent Climate Training
It’s been a big month of learning. Across the public and private sectors, climate-related reporting and assurance training has accelerated — a clear sign that Australia is moving from policy design to practical…
When Life Reminds Us Why Climate Work Matters
I’m a little late with this week’s post. A close family member has just been diagnosed with cancer — and we’ve been told there may not be much time left. It’s hard news to process. Moments like this make you stop and…
Climate Disclosure Countdown: Key October 2025 Milestones for Australian Reporting
On 20 October 2025, the Climate Change Authority (CCA) formally opened its public consultation for its statutory review of the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) Act 2011—the legislative foundation for…
Australia’s 2026 ACCU Scheme Review: Integrity, Markets and Assurance
Australia’s 2026 ACCU Scheme review tests whether carbon-credit methods, governance and market settings can support stronger emissions targets while preserving integrity and auditability.
Scaling Climate Disclosure: How AASB’s Proportionality Guidance Helps Smaller Entities
In September 2025, the AASB published a guidance note titled “Proportionality Mechanisms in AASB S2” (9 September), clarifying how entities should apply judgement so that climate disclosures are scaled…
Climate Disclosure Countdown: The September 2025 Milestones for Australian Reporting
September was a busy month for Australia’s evolving climate reporting landscape. With the first mandatory disclosures under AASB S2 Climate-related Financial Disclosures due from 1 January 2025, regulators and…
Research Spotlight: Scope 4 Emissions and the Question of Legitimacy
One recent paper that caught my attention is “Making things (that don’t exist) count: a study of Scope 4 emissions accounting claims” by Anna Young-Ferris, Arunima Malik, Victoria Calderbank, and Jubin Jacob-John,…
Beyond the Majors: Why Mid-Tier Firms & Niche Consultancies Matter in Climate Assurance
Large firms often dominate climate assurance conversations, but mid-tier accounting firms and specialist consultancies are quietly building important capacity—and may offer more accessible options for many businesses.
Big 4 Insights on Climate Reporting: What they agree, what they differ on, and what small-to-medium firms should be wary of
The Big 4 accounting firms (KPMG, EY, Deloitte, PwC) are already deeply engaged in helping large companies navigate climate disclosure, sustainability assurance, and the transition to mandatory regimes like AASB S2.…
CPA & CA ANZ: How the professional accounting bodies are gearing up for S2
Australia’s new mandatory climate disclosure regime (via AASB S2) places huge new demands on preparers and auditors. Two of the key accounting and finance bodies—CPA Australia and Chartered Accountants Australia &…
ACCU Scheme: what it is, who it’s for, and why most S2 reporters won’t use it (yet)
In brief: The Australian Carbon Credit Unit (ACCU) Scheme lets registered projects earn tradeable carbon credits by avoiding, reducing or removing emissions (e.g., land sector, waste, industrial methods). It’s…
NGER & the Safeguard Mechanism: Australia’s Mature Carbon Frameworks (what private sector firms should know)
Australia already has fairly established regulatory regimes under the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting (NGER) scheme and the Safeguard Mechanism. These aren’t new, they’re mature, and they operate under…
IFRS S2 & Australia’s Climate Disclosure Standard: What You Need to Know
In plain terms: IFRS S2 (Climate-related Disclosures) is an international standard that tells organisations how they should report the financial risks and opportunities caused by climate change (e.g. how severe weather,…