diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 4e387d2f6..0fe2019c5 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -126,7 +126,7 @@ people groups of the world. When you work here, the goal is one of these:
   library and the checks.
 - **One plugin per folder** in `plugin-designs/`; shared code goes in `library/` only if it stays reusable for
   every other plugin.
-- **Land on `development`**, one change at a time through the lock, with `gates:pre`, `gates:post` and the landing checks passing. `main` is
+- **Join `development`** (the pilot), one change at a time through the lock, with `gates:pre`, `gates:post` and the landing checks passing. `main` is
   production and moves only on a publish.
 - These 8 maps are in production: the 7 production maps in the gallery, plus the country map for DX Life's country pages. The
   other maps are experimental: leave them as they are unless your task is one
@@ -500,7 +500,7 @@ files in the repo. The `Dockerfile` and `compose.yaml` sit at the repo root; rec
 
 **Plugin Studio: the public Studio, with PocketBase.** The highest route: the same container with
 `ACCESS=public`, on your research subdomain.
-- The Plugin Studio follows `development` and is open to everyone, so what agents land shows up live.
+- The Plugin Studio follows `development` and is open to everyone, so what agents add to the pilot shows up live.
 - Its `/cdn`, built from `main`, serves your site's production maps.
 - Publishing and PocketBase's dashboard ask for a password you set when you deploy; OIDC stays available.
 
@@ -960,7 +960,7 @@ The studio is a plugin like any other: `plugin-designs/plugin-studio/plugin-stud
 ### Run it in the cloud
 
 **One shared dev server for the whole team, no laptop setup.** A container clones the repo, follows
-`development`, and hot-reloads every change an agent lands, so everyone sees the Plugin Studio update in
+`development`, and hot-reloads every change that joins the pilot, so everyone sees the Plugin Studio update in
 their browser within seconds, with no rebuild. Add OIDC settings and it puts a "Sign in with *your
 provider*" page in front of everything, open only to the groups you allow. Recipe and settings:
 [deployment/cloud/](./deployment/cloud/README.md).
@@ -971,7 +971,7 @@ The three ways dx-maps ships (a drop-in into your own site, the container on its
 
 ### Cloud development environment
 
-**Your laptop can follow what agents land somewhere else.** By default `bun run dev` is fully local: no
+**Your laptop can follow what agents add to the pilot somewhere else.** By default `bun run dev` is fully local: no
 settings, nothing fetched, and only your own edits hot-reload. To also see what agents push to a shared
 branch (an agent on a server, or the whole team), add two lines to `.env.local` (gitignored):