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    • Writing

    I write to clarify my thinking.

    Mostly about startups, systems, and the gap between how things are supposed to work and how they actually do.

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    Illustrative mockup of Elio Fernandes's proposed contribution to the Short-Term Rental White Paper, in preparation; not the official cover25 October 2026 · 6 min

    The Short-Term Rental White Paper: the contribution I'm preparing

    From the question I brought home from the summit to conversations with managers: what I want to learn from our first pilots, starting in November.

    Short-Term RentalsFlix HomeDataPorto
    Elio Fernandes (Mvuemba Fernando Bemvindo, mvfernando) with David Almeida, president of ALPN, at the first National Short-Term Rental Summit in Porto12 October 2026 · 6 min

    I went to the Short-Term Rental Summit to listen. I left with a question that can't wait.

    In the room, the sector asked for indicators. In the corridors, managers spoke of scattered information. I came home with a question about the data.

    Short-Term RentalsFlix HomeDataProductPorto
    Our team with the mentors at Techstars Startup Weekend Porto2 October 2026 · 6 min

    I didn't believe in the problem. That was the problem.

    54 hours, almost 30 replies in a day, and the moment I realised I was the wrong person to rule the problem out.

    FounderProductValidationStartup Weekend
    A founder, a small team of AI workers and one shared library of skills30 September 2026 · 13 min

    I Built the Product. Then I Had to Learn How to Sell It.

    100 leads, five meetings in the first week and two 60-day pilots. The workflow behind 16 AI skills you can use with any AI worker.

    AI skillsFounder salesFlix HomeAI workers
    Cover of the agent harness article: an AI model at the centre, surrounded by layers of tools, context and an execution loop.25 September 2026 · 8 min

    Agent Harness: what changes when we stop prompting and start designing the agent's environment

    Prompt engineering tells the model who it is. Context engineering decides what it sees. Harness engineering defines the environment, the rules and the cycle it works in. Here is the difference, and why a loop is only as good as the requirements it receives.

    AI AgentsAgent HarnessContext EngineeringCoding AgentsPainstack
    Cover of the EU AI Act article for e-commerce teams: an online store with AI-generated content labels.25 September 2026 · 8 min

    EU AI Act: What E-commerce Teams Need to Know

    Since 2 August 2026, Article 50 of the EU AI Act applies to chatbots, synthetic content and deepfakes. For an online store, that does not mean stamping "made by AI" on everything. It means knowing which content requires disclosure, who is accountable for it, and how to protect customer trust.

    EU AI ActE-commerceTransparencyAI-generated contentPainstack
    Cover of the EU AI Act article for startup founders, with the line AI compliance starts before launch.9 September 2026 · 16 min

    EU AI Act: What Startup Founders Need to Know and Do Now

    The EU AI Act already creates real obligations for startups using chatbots, synthetic content, recruitment systems or products built on third-party models. This guide explains what already applies, what was delayed, and how to prepare the company without turning compliance into bureaucracy.

    EU AI ActStartupsComplianceAIPainstack
    Split browser window: on the left a Playwright test running, on the right market signals feeding a Painstack dashboard, with the line Test the product. Validate the problem.9 September 2026 · 9 min

    Building fast is not enough: what Playwright teaches about validating before scaling

    Playwright checks whether an application works as expected. Market validation checks whether we are solving a real problem. Here is why a solid product needs both disciplines.

    PlaywrightE2E TestingProduct validationPainstack

    • Essays