◆ Field notes from the freelance economy ◆
Notes on running a freelance studio, delivering client work, and building Delivvo.
The Lede
Letter from the desk
Vol. 01 · Note No. 23
“We started writing because every freelancer we knew was getting the same questions wrong — pricing, scope, taxes, when to leave a platform. Each issue picks one of those questions and answers it with the data, the scripts, and the playbook we wish we’d had at year three.”
The Delivvo Team — Spring Issue
Off the press
The GPT Store has `500,000+` custom GPTs. Anthropic Agent Skills hit `20,000` GitHub stars in weeks. The two marketplaces are bigger, the monetisation models are clearer, and the freelance angle is still wide open.
The Delivvo team · 8 min read
Freelancer tools
MCP SDK downloads went from `100K/month` to `97M/month` in 18 months. Here is how independent devs are pricing, packaging, and selling Model Context Protocol work in 2026.
Freelancer life
Anthropic's own data says `78.7%` of Claude interactions are augmentation, not automation. Goldman puts immediate displacement risk at just `2.5%`. Here are the 10 niches still raising rates.
Departments
Business
Most retainer renewals are lost or won in the 90 days before the contract expires. Here is the week by week playbook.
10 min read
How senior freelancers stay 100 percent booked without cold outreach, pitching, or proposal writing. The four mechanics that replace the pipeline.
10 min read
Two weeks off without losing a client, refunding a deposit, or missing a single deadline. The operational plan most freelancers never write.
10 min read
Cash plus a slice of upside is a fine deal sometimes. It is a terrible deal most of the time. Here is the math.
11 min read
Guides
How senior freelancers stay 100 percent booked without cold outreach, pitching, or proposal writing. The four mechanics that replace the pipeline.
10 min read
Two weeks off without losing a client, refunding a deposit, or missing a single deadline. The operational plan most freelancers never write.
10 min read
The exact math behind a $10,000 month, by skill tier, with the seven mix templates that actually get there.
10 min read
Why the freelancers winning fast deals in 2026 stopped pitching marketing directors and went straight to the people who sign.
9 min read
Freelancer life
How senior freelancers stay 100 percent booked without cold outreach, pitching, or proposal writing. The four mechanics that replace the pipeline.
10 min read
Two weeks off without losing a client, refunding a deposit, or missing a single deadline. The operational plan most freelancers never write.
10 min read
Ask at the right moment, with the right questions, and turn one project into proof that wins the next.
8 min read
A practical system for files, comms, money, and priorities across every client you serve.
9 min read
Freelancer tools
How freelancers are turning "where do I show up in ChatGPT?" into a $1,500 to $5,000 retainer.
8 min read
A calm, repeatable system for sending video, design source files, photo sets, and code archives that clients can actually open.
7 min read
Cursor went from `$1B` to `$2B` ARR in three months. AWS Kiro launched broadly at re:Invent 2025 with EARS-notation specs. The fastest freelance devs in 2026 are picking a spec workflow, not just an editor.
8 min read
n8n hit a `$2.5B` valuation in October 2025 with `230,000+` users. Zapier still owns the SMB market with `3M+` users. Here is the real 2026 automation stack for freelance ops, with rates and break-even math.
8 min read
Evergreen reads
Freelancer tools
AI-related GSV on Upwork crossed `$300M` annualized in Q4 2025, up `50%+` YoY, while AI Integration & Automation work jumped `90%+` YoY. Here is what senior freelancers are doing about it.
The Delivvo team · 10 min
Freelancer tools
Honest read on what's different — and what isn't — since Zoom bought Bonsai in November 2025.
The Delivvo team · 5 min
Comparisons
Cursor shipped Composer and a multi-agent interface on October 29, 2025. GitHub Copilot Agent Mode hit general availability in April 2025. A year in, which one actually wins on client codebases?
The Delivvo team · 7 min
The Delivvo Dispatch
Every fresh post, plus the occasional Delivvo product update. No drip sequences. No upsell ladders. Drop the address, get the writing.
From the archive
Jun 7
Jun 7
Jun 7
Jun 7
Jun 7
Jun 7
Jun 7
Jun 7
Jun 7
Jun 5
May 30
May 30
May 30
May 30
May 30
May 28
May 28
May 28
May 28
May 28
Apr 30
Apr 30
Apr 30
Apr 30
Apr 30
Apr 29
Apr 29
Apr 29
Apr 29
Apr 29