BrightMeld Research

Evidence first. Vendor tone never.

Papers on governing AI-assisted software development — and on owning what you build. Every number someone else's, published, and linked; every claim names what stands behind it.

No. 1 · August 2026~3,200 words · 13 min readMarc Epstein

Controlled AI: What the Evidence Says About Doing It Right

AI accelerates. Discipline decides.

An evidence guide to governing AI-assisted software development: where LLMs measurably fail — specification, self-assessment, security — what the research supports doing about it, and where the human gate belongs. 38 sources; every figure verified against its primary.

No. 2 · August 2026~2,900 words · 12 min readMarc Epstein & Mort Goldman

The Contract Is the Asset

You don’t own your software until you own its spec.

Why the durable asset of an AI-era engagement is the ratified, machine-readable contract — what full ownership physically looks like, what’s in the handoff bundle, and the one question to ask every software vendor you pay: if we parted ways tomorrow, what exactly would I hold? Includes unedited artifacts from a delivered build.