Archive - The Automation Navigator - Sean Dotson

The PE Phone Call - Validation or Diligence Request

Honeywell just told investors it wants to buy automation companies. Here is what that means for the owner on the other end of the phone.

Jun 17 • Sean Dotson

The Change Order You Should Have Written But Did Not

Scope creep is not a client problem. It is a documentation failure, and it is almost always yours.

Jun 9 • Sean Dotson

The Boring Robotics Deal Nobody Is Writing About

GE just paid to stop writing checks to its own integrators.

Jun 5 • Sean Dotson

You Are Financing Your Client's Project: Have You Priced That?

The payment schedule you wrote to avoid friction is financing your client’s project. You are the bank. You just forgot to charge interest.

Jun 1 • Sean Dotson

May 2026

A Billion Dollars for a Name

The Mind Robotics Round Is a Pedigree Trade

May 20 • Sean Dotson

Three Things Are Happening to Rockwell at Once

But the earnings call is pretending there is only one

May 13 • Sean Dotson

The Integrator Squeeze Is Already Here, and Most Owners Are Pretending Otherwise

SoftBank, Skild, and the 2026 platform consolidation just rewrote the margin model I built my career inside

May 5 • Sean Dotson

April 2026

Your Star Employee Is Breaking Your Company with AI

The Productivity Paradox Nobody Talks About

Apr 20 • Sean Dotson

March 2026

AI S.L.O.P. (Simple Language of Prompting)

A deterministic language for nondeterministic systems

Mar 24 • Sean Dotson

The Hidden Cost of Vibe Coding

Your AI API bill Is not the problem. Vague thinking is.

Mar 19 • Sean Dotson

Authentication Purgatory

Why Passwords, 2FA, and Account Sprawl Are Breaking the User Experience

Mar 17 • Sean Dotson

AI Judges: From Murder Trials to Contract Disputes

Let Humans Handle Morality: Let Machines Handle the Math

Mar 3 • Sean Dotson