About

I'm Jamie Lord, and Nearly Right is where I think through the world's complexities in public.

By day, I architect digital systems that serve millions of citizens across Britain's public sector. By evening, I disappear down research rabbit holes that begin with a curious headline and end spanning economics, technology, social policy, and human behaviour. Nearly Right emerged from my inability to let interesting questions go unanswered.

The name reflects my approach: I'm usually nearly right about most things, occasionally completely wrong, and constantly refining my thinking as evidence accumulates. I'd rather engage honestly with uncertainty than pretend to certainties I don't possess.

What fascinates me are the gaps between how systems are supposed to work and how they actually function—whether that's artificial intelligence, democratic institutions, healthcare delivery, or the unintended consequences of well-intentioned policies. I'm drawn to stories where conventional wisdom meets awkward realities, where individual experiences illuminate broader patterns, and where apparent contradictions reveal deeper truths about how the world operates.

Nearly Right covers whatever captures my genuine curiosity. The common thread isn't subject matter—it's following evidence wherever it leads, even when conclusions prove inconvenient or unexpected.

I write for readers who believe understanding complex systems requires patient investigation rather than quick takes, and that the most important insights emerge from combining perspectives across domains that rarely speak to each other.

My technical background spans mobile development, enterprise architecture, and emerging technologies, but Nearly Right isn't primarily about technology—it's about the human systems that technology increasingly shapes and disrupts. When I write about AI, quantum computing, or digital policy, it's because these developments reveal something significant about how power, institutions, or social relationships actually work.

I've lived through enough technological revolutions to be simultaneously excited by genuine innovation and sceptical of breathless predictions. I've seen enough organisational dysfunction to appreciate when systems work well, and enough policy failures to recognise the difference between good intentions and effective implementation.

The articles here represent my honest attempts to understand a world that often operates by rules nobody fully grasps. I aim to be wrong less often than I'm right, acknowledge uncertainty when it exists, and change my mind when evidence demands it. If something I've written helps you see a familiar problem from a new angle, or provides useful context for today's news, then Nearly Right has served its purpose.

All opinions expressed are entirely my own, which is probably for the best.