ADSP: Algorithms + Data Structures = Programs Episode 251: Sean Parent C++ Under the Sea Keynote Preview
Sep 12, 2025
Sean Parent, a senior principal scientist at Adobe and co-creator of Photoshop Mobile, shares fascinating insights ahead of his keynote at C++ Under the Sea. He humorously discusses career opportunities at Adobe and the intriguing idea of AI-generated digital replicas. The conversation also dives into the evolution of software development, misconceptions about generic programming, and the potential of declarative languages, particularly in AI. Sean reflects on his diverse experiences in tech and the exciting rivalry among programming languages.
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Generic Programming Enables Reuse
- Sean Parent argues generic programming reduces repeated rewrites by expressing algorithms in terms of algebraic structures.
- He suggests declarative forms let programmers state intent while the system picks data structures and algorithms.
Generic Programming Has Matured
- Sean reflects that generic programming has advanced greatly in 20 years and is now pervasive across major languages.
- He also warns the industry still misunderstands parts of generic programming and will address that in his talk.
Build Interoperable Declarative DSLs
- Explore declarative languages and domain-specific languages that interoperate to express intent, not low-level steps.
- Design each language to solve a class of problems well and to be as provable as possible.