Connecting Data to Decisions
News Roundup - April 2026
Frictionless Decisions brings you counterintuitive, original, jargon-free ideas for connecting data to decisions. Every week.
Maybe you’re racing to adopt AI in your business intelligence solution, maybe you’re avoiding it at all costs, or maybe you’re just terrified. Why do I think parts of all these responses are helpful? Well, they’ll keep you humble and bold at the same time.
Readers, especially those of you in CIO roles, please take note! People in the data engineering community at the leading edge are saying something you’ve heard here many times: to make your data usable for AI, make it usable for humans. The context AI needs is the same context data analysts need for decisions.
The articles below suggest a deeper, more thoughtful approach to data and AI than most. Digesting all this takes a lot of time (which you probably don’t have), so I’ve started condensing and curating the best articles and posts I’ve read on this topic for you.
Give them a read!
The AI Data Modeling Tax: Working On Human Readiness Before AI Readiness
By Alejandro Aboy, Modern Data 101, April 9, 2026
I love the way the author states this obvious point: if your data isn’t ready for humans, it’s not ready for AI. I’ve heard that somewhere before!
I asked Alejandro about who made the decisions that led to his state of AI complexity - was it the data engineers or a top-down management decision? He says, “Expectations increased drastically, so it’s pretty easy to end up with all the slop if not maintained consistently. I would say is not a management decision nor a data engineering team one but an indirect mix of both actually that compounds into this.”
Every CIO and data engineer should hear this: you’re all tempted to cut corners. Don’t do it.
Layer by Layer, We Built Data Systems No One Understands
By Ben Rogojan, Seattle Data Guy, March 2, 2026.
Did the previous article not convince you that complexity is the problem? Have you read any of my Frictionless Decisions articles on technical debt? Well, then, dig into this one. Hear the same message from one of the most trusted data engineering writers on Substack (and LinkedIn).
Data Products: The Essential Context for Enterprise AI
By Animesh Kumar, et. al., Modern Data 101, April 22, 2026.
Friends, someone should ask why leading IT thinkers are just now reaching this conclusion: “The shape that was merely good discipline for human analysts is structurally required for agents, and the cost calculation has flipped.”
Does this sound like something you’ve heard here at Frictionless Decisions before? Kumar and his colleagues make this message clear once again.
Fusion’s DeepSeek Moment?
By Caleb Harding, ChinaTalk, March 26, 2026
Is AI inevitable? What’s the next technology frontier? Who wins? You’ll enjoy this article if you want to get an edge on the future tech landscape. This fusion-founder says, “[Think] about leaving Earth: spaceflight consumes enormous energy. If energy is cheap, you wouldn’t worry about that as much; you could provide the energy needed for interstellar colonization. That’s the basic idea.”
Want to follow this story? Then don’t forget about thorium.
GoPro, Roomba, and Iteration Speed
By Liang-rong Chen, Tech Taiwan, April 11, 2026
A quick but interesting take on why American tech companies move too slow. He uses a new term - “iteration speed” - to explain how Western tech companies lack the speed and execution agility to keep up with their Chinese counterparts. Frictionless Decisions readers need to hear that simple perspective, take it to heart, and make a difference right where you are.
This Innovation Could Make the Perfect Silicon Chip—and End Moore’s Law
By Christopher Mims, The Wall Street Journal, February 27, 2026.
You’ve heard a lot about Moore’s Law here at Frictionless Decisions, and you’ll hear more, too. If this thread interests you, read on about the next transistor transformation. Maybe the power of AI impresses you; this article could convince you that we’re just getting started.
To Write Well Is Human
By Nadya Williams, Christianity Today, April 9, 2026.
Williams writes a thesis near to my heart: people don’t use AI for writing because they love it. They use it because they’re in a hurry. Give that some thought. You’ll hear more on it in this space.
A foundation model of vision, audition, and language for in-silico neuroscience
By FAIR at Meta, Ai.Meta.Com, March 26, 2026.
Meta released TRIBE v2 in March, a tri-modal (audio, video, and language) foundation model for human brain activity. It uses fMRI to predict the human brain's responses to different types of content. Does it creep you out to think about why Meta needs this research? I’m sure there are some social goods for it, but…?
Here’s the most terrifying quote: “Integrating neuro-developmental trajectories and clinical pathology remains a primary goal to move beyond a static, adult brain state and capture the full diversity of the global population.”
Are You Ready for the AI Apocalypse?
By Chris Watkin, The Keller Center for Cultural Apologetics, August 4, 2025.
Wow. Here’s a perspective on AI you probably won’t hear anywhere else. The value of AI isn’t (ironically) its technical capabilities; instead, it reveals something about us. Watkin says, “The real AI apocalypse, the true exposé of our human condition, isn’t the rise of killer robots. It’s about the unveiling of our hearts, our priorities, our idols, and our hopes.”
To remind you of this week’s data concept, enjoy Safety Dance by Men Without Hats, from the Frictionless Data Spotify playlist.
For the full story about making data flow faster and better, check out Frictionless Data on Amazon.
Some great stuff here to add to my reading list for the upcoming week.