Software Engineering Daily Radix UI with Chance Strickland
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Nov 18, 2025 
Chance Strickland is a software engineer at WorkOS and a maintainer of Radix UI, an open-source library of headless React components. He discusses the evolution of Radix, focusing on its accessibility and composability. Chance delves into Radix Themes, customization options, and the meticulous design behind its icons and color systems. He also shares insights on the relationship between Radix and ShadCN, the influence of AI on Radix's future, and how community feedback shapes new primitives.
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Headless, Composition-First Primitives
- Radix provides composition-first, headless React primitives that handle complex logic and accessibility without dictating styles.
- This lets teams apply their own design while avoiding reinventing accessible behaviors.
Bootstrap With Radix Themes
- Use Radix Themes to bootstrap a polished UI and then tweak fonts and primary colors as needed.
- Let the theme handle color scales to reduce mental overhead and ensure accessibility.
Design Details Drive Perceived Quality
- Visual cohesion relies on meticulous icon and color system design that most teams underestimate.
- Small mismatches in icon weight or color scale make interfaces feel off even if users can't name why.
