The CEO Should Have Been First

How AI deployment reveals power structure, not value and what would change if it didn't.

2026-04-26 · David H. Friedel Jr. · 8 min read

The Strike Price Illusion

The number on your option grant was calculated by an independent appraiser, blessed by the IRS, and may have almost nothing to do with what your equity is actually worth.

2026-03-31 · David H. Friedel Jr. · 13 min read

The Option Pool Shuffle

Every funding round quietly takes something from you before the money arrives. The people paying for it are never the ones who negotiated the terms.

2026-03-30 · David H. Friedel Jr. · 11 min read

The Waterfall

How a $30M exit left employees with nothing, and the liquidation preference mechanics that made it possible.

2026-03-29 · David H. Friedel Jr. · 8 min read

Don't Time the Cycle. Structure Behavior Around It.

Volatility, power demand, and why I built a calendar instead of a prediction

2026-02-27 · David H. Friedel Jr. · 6 min read

Walking the Line

Every cycle has a moment when discipline turns into something else.

2026-02-27 · David H. Friedel Jr. · 6 min read

The Art of Communicating

Why some developers love AI and others quietly resent it

2026-02-09 · David H. Friedel Jr. · 5 min read

The Inevitable Loop

Why AI’s Endgame Leads Straight Back to Crypto

2025-11-27 · David H. Friedel Jr. · 4 min read

The AI Bubble Isn’t Where Everyone Thinks

and the Break Won’t Come From GPUs

2025-11-24 · David H. Friedel Jr. · 8 min read