The Thermostat and the Garden

Why controlling AI agents is the wrong goal. And what to do instead.

“A good gardener does not mistake the absence of total control for the absence of influence.”

Here is a number worth sitting with. A survey of over 900 executives published in February 2026 found that 81 percent of technical teams have moved past the planning phase into active deployment of AI agents. Only 14 percent have full security approval for what …