Dev Interrupted

Elliot Marx, co-founder of Chalk and fintech infrastructure expert, discusses the crucial shift from pre-computed data towards real-time data pipelines for AI and ML. He highlights how real-time compute can significantly reduce costs and latency, and emphasizes the importance of strong problem-solving skills over specific programming language expertise. Elliot advocates for incremental development, empowering engineers, and maintaining close customer relationships to shape product roadmaps. He also touches on the necessity of leadership skills in the AI era.

Erin Yepis, Research Manager at Stack Overflow, discusses the 2025 Developer Survey. She highlights a rebound in developer job satisfaction, driven by autonomy and pay increases. Erin explores the happiness gap between junior and senior engineers and reveals a surprising decline in trust for AI tools despite rising adoption. They also analyze why 'vibe coding' isn't resonating with professionals and offer strategies for leaders to engage developers better in an evolving tech landscape.

Craig McLuckie, Co-founder and CEO of Stacklok and Kubernetes co-creator, navigates the future of AI with a bold 'AI maximalism' mindset. He argues for a shift in leadership thinking from 'can we?' to 'why can't we?' Delving into the probabilistic nature of large language models, Craig discusses their successes and failures. He also explores the evolving roles in teams, the concept of disposable code for rapid prototyping, and the risks of shadow IT. His insights aim to empower organizations to thrive in an AI-driven landscape.

Anush Elangovan, VP of AI Software at AMD, shares insights on the transformative power of innovation speed in AI. He advocates for AMD's open-source ROCm strategy, emphasizing how collaboration fuels faster development compared to proprietary systems. Anush explores the balance needed for diverse user needs and reveals how real-world applications like automating mundane tasks represent the 'last mile' opportunity in AI. His vision for openness not only accelerates progress but also empowers developers to tackle complex challenges collectively.

Amit Patel, Director of Software Development for Kiro at AWS, delves into the transformative power of spec-driven development. He explains how this structured approach helps maintain context in complex AI projects, unlike traditional 'vibe coding.' Learn how Kiro was built rapidly through user feedback and iterative design, allowing teams to complete tasks in days instead of weeks. Amit also emphasizes the importance of balancing structure with flexibility, creating an accessible development environment, and using Kiro to enhance team collaboration.

Join Lake Dai, an Adjunct Professor at Carnegie Mellon and founder of Sancus Ventures, as she reveals how AI is reshaping leadership roles. She emphasizes the shift of engineering leaders into CFO-like positions, managing soaring compute costs that can take up to 50% of operating expenses. Lake highlights the urgent need for comprehensive AI governance and suggests innovative solutions, such as AI 'flight simulators' for training. Her insightful advice? Focus on the fundamentals to successfully navigate this fast-evolving landscape.

Loic Houssier, Head of Engineering at Superhuman, shares insights on cultivating AI adoption in skeptical engineering teams. He discusses using a respected internal champion to shift perspectives on AI tools. Highlights include surprising productivity boosts like faster ramp-ups and quick creation of internal tools. Loic emphasizes a bottom-up approach through an AI Guild and the importance of blending trust with simple metrics for measuring success. A fascinating real-world example showcases AI transforming a lengthy compliance task into a 90-minute task.

Matt Culver, a senior engineering leader at Super.com, discusses the transformative potential of AI beyond cost-cutting. He argues that viewing AI as a tool to enhance developer impact can foster a high-trust culture. Culver advocates for reinvesting efficiency gains into improving the entire product lifecycle rather than just boosting coding output. He emphasizes the importance of aligning AI initiatives with developers' core incentives, promoting a frictionless experience, and nurturing creativity to drive value in engineering.

Ram Sriharsha, CTO of Pinecone and expert on vector databases and AI infrastructure, dives into the vital role of vector databases in today's AI landscape. He emphasizes that search is central to AI, guiding listeners on starting with Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) applications while implementing evaluation frameworks to manage AI hallucinations. Ram highlights the importance of curiosity and generalist engineers in leveraging AI effectively, urging leaders to build AI frameworks pragmatically and iteratively for better results.

Dan Fernandez, VP of Product for Developer Services at Salesforce, discusses the innovative concept of Enterprise Vibe Coding, which aims to merge agile development with governance. He emphasizes the importance of reusing existing systems instead of reinventing the wheel, and shares insights into Salesforce's safety protocols, like sandboxes and automated quality gates. Dan also highlights the necessity of building trust through strict data policies, advocating for a future where app building is democratized and accessible even to non-engineers.