Changelog Interviews

In this enlightening discussion, Arun Gupta, VP at Intel and author of "Fostering Open Source Culture," shares his insights on nurturing an open source ethos within organizations. He explores transforming corporate culture, emphasizing collaboration and practical strategies. Gupta discusses the role of AI in software development and its impact on creativity. He also underlines the significance of hackathons in driving innovation, likening them to high-intensity training. Throughout, he advocates for community engagement through open source contributions.

Bert Hubert, founder of PowerDNS and open-source guru with over 30 years in software, discusses building lasting software. He shares insights on system redundancy and the traps of relying on tech during rapid growth. Bert emphasizes the significance of foundational principles in long-term projects and warns against over-engineering. He also highlights the ethical dilemmas of AI in development and the need for careful dependency management. Dive into his unique anecdotes that blend humor with crucial lessons learned throughout his career!

Glauber Costa, co-founder and CEO of Turso, is reshaping database technology with Limbo, a transformative rewrite of SQLite in Rust. He delves into the limitations of SQLite's public domain status and the innovative LibSQL project designed for open contributions. Their use of Deterministic Simulation Testing ensures robust development, while engaging the community keeps the project dynamic. Glauber highlights the technical challenges of maintaining compatibility and introduces exciting enhancements like asynchronous I/O, all while paving the way for the future of database innovation.

Ashley Jeffs shares his journey with Benthos, an open-source stream processor acquired by Redpanda. He discusses the evolution of data streaming technologies and the challenges he faced while growing the project. The conversation delves into the decision between bootstrapping and seeking venture capital, as well as the emotional complexities of having a project acquired. Jeffs reflects on the balance of open-source ideals with the need for financial sustainability, and offers insights into the future of open-source work in the rapidly changing tech landscape.

Elecia White, host of Embedded.fm and author of Making Embedded Systems, shares her passion for embedded technology. She highlights innovative applications in self-driving cars and everyday devices like GoPros and birthday cards. The discussion uncovers the evolution of embedded systems, open-source projects, and the challenges faced in fields like robotics and medical devices. Elecia emphasizes making hardware coding accessible and engaging, especially for young learners, while exploring the balance between technology and data privacy.

Rachel Plotnick joins us for the first show of 2025 to discuss her book “Power Button” and the research she did, and why we love/hate buttons so much. We also discuss her upcoming book “License to Spill” as well as the research she’s doing on energy drinks. Join the discussionChangelog++ members save 9 minutes on this episode because they made the ads disappear. Join today!Sponsors:Sentry – Use the code CHANGELOG when you sign up to get $100 off the team plan. Notion – Notion is a place where any team can write, plan, organize, and rediscover the joy of play. It’s a workspace designed not just for making progress, but getting inspired. Notion is for everyone — whether you’re a Fortune 500 company or freelance designer, starting a new startup or a student juggling classes and clubs. DeleteMe – Text CHANGELOG to 64000 to join DeleteMe. They make it quick, easy, and safe to remove your personal data online. Featuring:Rachel Plotnick – Website, LinkedIn, BlueskyAdam Stacoviak – Website, GitHub, LinkedIn, Mastodon, XJerod Santo – GitHub, LinkedIn, Mastodon, XShow Notes: RachelPlotnick.com Touchscreens Are Out, and Tactile Controls Are Back. Power Button License To Spill Something missing or broken? PRs welcome!

Mitchell Hashimoto, co-founder of HashiCorp and creator of the innovative Ghostty terminal emulator, dives into the exciting world of terminal technology. He discusses the evolution of terminal emulators, revealing how Ghostty aims to enhance user experience while addressing the limitations of existing tools. Hashimoto reflects on the importance of community-driven projects and technical philanthropy in the software realm. He also shares his journey post-HashiCorp, balancing new parenthood and programming challenges, and offers a glimpse into the promising future of Ghostty as it approaches its 1.0 launch.

Kurt Mackey, Co-founder and CEO of Fly.io, dives into the intricacies of building a developer-centric cloud platform. He discusses the concept of a 'Rebel Alliance' among tech companies, highlighting the alliance's importance for cloud innovations. Kurt shares insights on balancing cloud complexity with usability, critiques of Neon and Supabase, and the exciting plans for a simplified CDN called Pipely. He candidly reflects on the emotional challenges of entrepreneurship while outlining future prospects for Fly.io and the evolving landscape of cloud services.

Jerod is joined by Hack Clubber Acon, who is fresh off the GitHub Universe stage and ready to tell us all about High Seas, a new initiative by Zach Latta and the Hack Club crew that’s incentivizing teens to build cool personal projects by giving away free stuff. Join the discussionChangelog++ members save 9 minutes on this episode because they made the ads disappear. Join today!Sponsors:Sentry – When your app breaks, fix it faster with Sentry Use the code CHANGELOG when you sign up to get $100 off the team plan. Learn more about what they shipped for Launch Week and Session Replay for Mobile. Fly.io – The home of Changelog.com — Deploy your apps close to your users — global Anycast load-balancing, zero-configuration private networking, hardware isolation, and instant WireGuard VPN connections. Push-button deployments that scale to thousands of instances. Check out the speedrun to get started in minutes. AssemblyAI – Turn voice data into summaries with AssemblyAI’s leading Speech AI models. Built by AI experts, their Speech AI models include accurate speech-to-text for voice data (such as calls, virtual meetings, and podcasts), speaker detection, sentiment analysis, chapter detection, PII redaction, and more. Featuring:Acon – Website, GitHubJerod Santo – GitHub, LinkedIn, Mastodon, XShow Notes: Leave us a voicemail for state of the “log”! How do you do, fellow Hack Clubbers? (Changelog Interviews #536) High Seas | Hack Club Apocalypse: Toronto’s zombified high school hackathon! Celeste Nitro Type | Competitive Typing Game | Race Your Friends Secret of Mana - Wikipedia Something missing or broken? PRs welcome!

Nick Sweeting, a full-stack software engineer and founder of ArchiveBox.io, dives into the crucial realm of digital content archiving. He shares personal experiences from China's censored internet, emphasizing the need for both centralized and distributed solutions. The conversation tackles the balance between access and responsibility in archiving, examines ethical considerations, and discusses innovations in preserving digital memories. Sweeting also introduces the idea of 'time unlock' for personal archives, sparking intriguing thoughts on nostalgia and privacy.