Insights · November 2026
Field notes from senior architects shipping AI agents, mobile apps, cloud platforms, cybersecurity playbooks, and enterprise rollouts. Practical, technical, opinionated — and updated as we ship.
Newest first
DOJ's April 2026 interim rule gives large state and local governments until 26 April 2027 to make websites and apps meet WCAG 2.1 AA, vendor-built tools included, while a court challenge is pending.
2027 per-user prices for Dynamics 365 Business Central and Odoo, Odoo's higher Custom plan, published implementation fees, US sales tax and UK MTD VAT, with a 25-user cost example.
Manu Shukla 20 min 
CMMC is paused in Phase 1. What Level 1 and Level 2 require of defence contractors and their software and IT subcontractors, how SPRS fits, and when a C3PAO still makes sense.
Manu Shukla 18 min 
2027 list prices, tier contents and MDR options for CrowdStrike Falcon, SentinelOne Singularity and Microsoft Defender, with worked US and UK costs for 50 and 250 endpoints.
Manu Shukla 18 min 
Datadog bills per host, New Relic per GB and per engineer, Grafana Cloud per series and host hour. We price one 50-node Kubernetes estate with logs and APM on all three.
Manu Shukla 20 min 
FedRAMP plans to close new Rev5 applications on 11 June 2027. What 20x Class A, B and C ask of a SaaS vendor, how they compare with Rev5, and when to start.
Manu Shukla 19 min 
Google Play's split fee model for US and UK users against Apple's 15% and 30% commissions, with USD and GBP math, the US link-out court fight and the CMA's pending UK steering rules.
Manu Shukla 19 min 
The H-1B $100,000 payment now runs to 21 September 2027, yet court orders have stopped its collection. What US employers pay today, what is only proposed, and how to price offshore teams.
Manu Shukla 20 min 
HHS's May 2026 interim final rule gives funded providers with 15 or more employees until 11 May 2027 to make websites, portals and apps meet WCAG 2.1 AA; smaller ones until 10 May 2028.
Manu Shukla 19 min 
Higher Companies Act size limits change who runs IR35 from 6 April 2027. Which UK clients flip to small, why the year-end decides it, and checklists for clients and agencies.
Manu Shukla 18 min 
Who joins Making Tax Digital for Income Tax on 6 April 2027, how qualifying income works, the 2027-28 deadlines, the Budget 2026 penalty easement and what MTD software must support.
Manu Shukla 20 min 
2027 US list prices for Microsoft 365 Business Premium, E3, E5 and E7, what the July 2026 update added, the security gaps between tiers and the 300-user cap.
Manu Shukla 17 min 
The DSPT 2026-27 deadline is 30 June 2027. What NHS IT and software suppliers must evidence for the 12 audited assertions, plus new product rules and a month-by-month plan.
Manu Shukla 19 min 
2027 US and UK list prices, minimums and features for Okta Workforce Identity, Microsoft Entra ID and Google Cloud Identity, with passkey support and a worked cost for 200 users.
Manu Shukla 18 min 
HMRC's 9 November 2026 guidance sets which benefits move onto the FPS from 6 April 2027, what stays on the P11D, and the payroll and HR data changes to make first.
Manu Shukla 20 min 
PJM's 2027/2028 auction cleared at the $333.44/MW-day cap. What that adds per MW for AI data centres, colocation tenants and enterprises from 1 June 2027, and which large-load rules stand.
Manu Shukla 20 min 
Per-user and capacity prices for Power BI, Tableau and Looker in dollars and pounds, the Data Studio rename, AI costs, and a worked bill for 20 creators and 200 viewers.
Manu Shukla 18 min 
Nacha lifts the Same Day ACH cap to $10 million on 17 September 2027, matching FedNow and RTP. Limits, windows, 2027 network fees and a rail decision table for US payment teams.
Manu Shukla 20 min 
Domestic software development is deductible in the year paid under Section 174A; foreign R&E is amortised over 15 years under Section 174. The statute, IRS guidance and a worked example in USD.
Manu Shukla 19 min 
Plan prices in dollars and pounds, card rates, BigCommerce GMV caps and open-provider fees, WooPayments rates, and worked annual costs for a US and a UK store, checked 13 November 2026.
Manu Shukla 18 min 
Card rates, premium and international surcharges, payout and FX fees for Stripe, Adyen and Checkout.com in the US and UK, with worked costs for a SaaS firm and an online shop.
Manu Shukla 20 min 
US and UK per-message SMS rates, carrier surcharges, 10DLC and toll-free registration fees, UK sender ID rules and a worked monthly bill for Twilio, Plivo and Telnyx.
Manu Shukla 17 min 
What the CMA has decided and only proposed on UK app steering for Apple and Google, what Google already allows, and the break-even steering fee for a UK subscription app.
Manu Shukla 16 min 
UKPI launched the UK's first commercial VRP scheme on 2 June 2026. The Wave 1 use cases, the unpublished access fee, the July 2027 pricing clock and a build plan for billers and PISPs.
Manu Shukla 19 min 
The UK cryptoasset regime starts on 25 October 2027. Apply to the FCA by 28 February 2027 to keep trading, and build custody, stablecoin, surveillance and reporting systems now.
Manu Shukla 20 min Pillar guides
Long-form, reference-grade guides on the architectures and decisions we make most often. Bookmark these.
Ultimate guide to SEO in 2026 — Google ranking factors, AI search (ChatGPT, Perplexity, AI Overviews), AEO, GEO, technical SEO, content, schema, links.
Indian EdTech in 2026: a $7.5B market after the Byju’s reset, NEP 2020, PM eVidya, phygital learning, AI from Grade 3, and eCorpIT’s 90-day school digitization playbook.
Why Delhi NCR businesses now hire agencies from Gurgaon instead of Delhi. Better understanding of the B2B/startup market, faster turnaround, more competition driving up quality.
How startups in Gurgaon with Rs 50K/month budgets actually get their first 100 customers — pick one channel, do things that don't scale, write content only you can write, amplify organic with paid.
Most social media in Gurgaon optimizes for vanity (likes, followers) instead of customers. How to evaluate agencies that actually convert: platform fit, content type, community building, paid + organic mix, real metrics.
Most website design in Gurgaon looks good but doesn't convert. What separates the pretty agencies from the ones that build sales machines: mobile-first, fast, tested, business-aligned.
Actual market pricing for SEO, PPC, social media, content, web design, and local SEO in Gurugram. No "starting at" hedges — real ranges, what you get at each tier, and the price traps to avoid.
From insight to engagement
Every article here comes from building production systems for clients. If one resonates, the same team can build it for you.
Past the writing
A senior architect responds in 24 working hours with scope, indicative cost, and a timeline. NDA before any technical conversation.
