Rust in Production Scythe with Andrew Tinka
48 snips
Oct 16, 2025 Andrew Tinka, Director of Software Engineering at Scythe Robotics, shares insights on building autonomous electric mowers. He discusses the unique challenges of safety-critical robotics and why Rust is the ideal choice for reliable software. Andrew emphasizes Scythe's commitment to reducing pollution and enhancing efficiency through autonomy. He explains how Rust’s features, like its borrow checker and expressive types, create a robust codebase. Finally, he highlights the evolving nature of robotics software and the importance of community in developing safe, efficient solutions.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Robots For Professional Landscaping
- Scythe builds heavy-duty 1,400 lb autonomous electric mowers for commercial landscapers to free crews for higher-value tasks.
- The goal is efficient, electric replacements for polluting gas equipment to scale professional landscaping productivity.
Rewrote The Stack After Funding
- Scythe started with a C++ prototype to move fast and win seed funding in 2018.
- After funding they discarded that prototype and rewrote core logic in Rust to prioritize long-term correctness.
Rust For Long-Term Reliability
- Founders chose Rust for long-term code quality, performance, and reliable C++ interop at the edges.
- Rust let them keep vendor drivers in C++ while central autonomy logic benefited from Rust's guarantees.