Plausible Legibility

We need to start talking about an AI benefit design

And more specifically: how we design it to actually work

Oct 1 • 

Dave Guarino

5

September 2025

AI Models Are Getting Dramatically Better at Complex Policy Questions

Evidence from SNAP Asset Limits

Sep 17 • 

Dave Guarino

3

Kernels 02: Claude Compadre (Claude Code for non-coding things)

Also: is curiosity all you need?

Sep 15 • 

Dave Guarino

7

2

August 2025

Kernels #01

Ideas I'm wrestling with (a first edition)

Aug 12 • 

Dave Guarino

5

5

Edge cases as policy reality: using AI to navigate SNAP purchase restrictions

*and* to front load the intrinsic complexity of implementation

Aug 7 • 

Dave Guarino

3

July 2025

Little-t tools for thought

On folk software, plumber programming, and agency from making things that work for you

Jul 23 • 

Dave Guarino

6

7

Misc: SF AI safety net HH, a legacy systems moonshot, screenshots without context

AI x safety net benefits happy hour in SF this Thursday

Jul 15 • 

Dave Guarino

1

1

Using AI to help SNAP recipients diagnose and restore lost benefits

This is a crosspost of a write-up on the Propel blog I wrote documenting some of our work on two different tests of using AI to help people deal with…

Jul 10 • 

Dave Guarino

5

2

The incoherence of the compromise in policy

I'd been drafting a different next post in my own piecemeal way over the past few weeks (more of a long term reflections note) but as they say: things…

Jul 4 • 

Dave Guarino

11

1

April 2025

Testing how AIs perform on nuanced SNAP problems

This is a crosspost of part 3 of a blog series on the Propel blog I’ve been writing about how to practically test how well (or poorly) AI models do with…

Apr 25 • 

Dave Guarino

2

March 2025

Benefits navigation and the potential of AI

From opportunity to specific mechanisms

Mar 31 • 

Dave Guarino

4

Sunday Misc: policy windows and paradigm shifts

"Misc” newsletters are my attempt to capture fragments/kernels of thoughts — and also try to continue writing in the midst of a general overload of…

Mar 9 • 

Dave Guarino

4

1