13 min read
Hardening OpenCLAW on Azure after a live audit
A live audit of my OpenCLAW Azure VM found two critical gaps: no Azure-native VM backup and no Azure Monitor Agent. Here is what I fixed, what it cost, and what is still unproven.
Mark Smith · AI Strategist · Microsoft MVP
Helping people build practical AI skill in the Intelligence Age
Principal AI Strategist at Cloverbase. Microsoft MVP since 2012. Co-author of Microsoft 365 Copilot Adoption. Host of the Microsoft Innovation Podcast with 800+ episodes.
Recent posts
View all14 min read
The Microsoft Innovation Podcast: A Nine-Year Wrap
After 836 episodes across seven shows and nearly a decade, I'm wrapping up the Microsoft Innovation Podcast. Here's what the numbers say, what the stats don't capture, and what's next.
15 min read
I found 268 plaintext secrets in my AI stack
Six weeks ago a security audit told me I had 268 plaintext secrets scattered across my AI agent platform. This week I closed out the migration that fixed it. Here is what I learned about credentials, AI agents, and the gap between what we build and what we secure.
8 min read
Can I Build This? The Question That Saved Me $10,000 a Year in SaaS Subscriptions
A Speechify renewal email made me question every subscription my business pays for. Since January 2026, I have eliminated nearly $10,000 in annual SaaS costs by building alternatives with AI. Here is what I learned about the subscription economy along the way.
12 min read
44 Safety Rules, 58 Commands, and Microsoft Loop's Missing API - Building Enterprise AI Agent Governance
cb365 adds 28 new commands across four workloads with a governance framework inspired by real enterprise AI policy. Three workloads went smoothly. Loop exposed a gap in Microsoft's platform that competitors solved years ago.
0+
Podcast episodes
0+
Years as Microsoft MVP
0+
Articles published
The Intelligence Age
A weekly letter from Mark and Meg Smith on AI, Microsoft, and staying future ready. No fluff, no hype. Unsubscribe anytime.