Google DeepMind's AI playbook for engineering at hyperspeed | Philipp Schmid
Inside the cost collapse, role revolution, and toolchain shift of high-impact engineering
What if the traditional engineering career path is being fundamentally rewritten by AI?
We're joined by Philipp Schmid, Senior AI Developer Relations Engineer at Google DeepMind, to explore how artificial intelligence is not just a tool, but a force reshaping engineering roles, team dynamics, and the foundational methods of skill development. Philipp, with his background at Hugging Face and now at the cutting edge with Google DeepMind, offers a unique perspective on the rise of AI-native teams and engineers who learn faster, work more broadly, and drive innovation at an unprecedented scale.
Philipp offers an inside look at Google DeepMind's engine of AI innovation and breaks down the key differences between Google's flagship Gemini models and the versatile Gemma family of open models, detailing their distinct purposes. We also touch upon exciting takeaways from the recent Google I/O event, including powerful new on-device capabilities and the mind-blowing text-to-video generation with Veo.
Finally, Philipp shares practical advice for engineers and their organizations on navigating this AI-driven landscape, emphasizing continuous learning, an adaptable mindset, and how to effectively leverage a diverse AI toolkit to thrive.
"It has never been easier to learn how Git works and the Git commands with having LLMs explain you the concepts… It might sound scary now to become a software developer, but I think there never has been a better or easier time to get started”
The Download
The Download is built for devs who run the show 🎬
1. OpenAI teams up with Mattel for AI-powered fun 🎉
In a surprising twist, OpenAI is partnering with Mattel to create interactive digital assistants based on beloved toy characters. This collaboration signals a fresh approach to AI in consumer culture, moving beyond just coding. As we see AI encroaching on various fields, one wonders: could this be the start of a more playful era in tech? The companies expect the first product collaboration later this year.
Read: OpenAI and Mattel announce strategic collaboration
2. Cloudflare’s AI commits: a peek behind the curtain 🔍
Cloudflare is making waves by encouraging engineers to commit the prompts they use for AI-generated code alongside the code itself. We loved this reflective article from Max Mitchell as he explored them all. This innovative practice not only clarifies intent but also fosters a culture of transparency and best practices. It’s a reminder that the human touch remains crucial in the development process, as is showing your intent. What’s stopping your teams from doing this?
Read: I Read All Of Cloudflare's Claude-Generated Commits
3. Developers say AI assistants aren’t boosting productivity 🚫
A recent article from Chantal Kapani (with a quote from our host
) reveals a disconnect between engineering leaders’ enthusiasm for AI coding assistants and developers’ actual productivity gains. While tools are being rolled out, simply adding AI to the mix isn’t a silver bullet. With many teams still grappling with broader software delivery challenges, it’s time to rethink how we integrate AI. After all, velocity without direction can lead to a dead end. So don’t speed towards new bottlenecks without knowing what to expect.Read: AI coding assistants aren’t really making devs feel more productive
Is your AI creating opportunities or bottlenecks? 🍾 (sponsored)
Speaking of velocity without direction: AI is everywhere in the SDLC, but what's the actual impact? LinearB surveyed over 400 developers (many from the Dev Interrupted audience) and found that 67% are already using AI to write code… But what else are they missing? Our new DevEx guide breaks down the opportunity costs, including adoption patterns, pitfalls, and the AI Collaboration Matrix that charts your own team’s journey with AI.
Check out the guide to learn more:
4. GitHub hits a billion repositories! 🎊
GitHub celebrated its billionth repository, which turned out to have a rather cheeky name. As developers flooded the comments with jokes and memes, it’s a reminder of the camaraderie around claiming unique usernames and IDs “just because”. Don’t miss the Hacker News comments where some devs reminisce on claiming things like the 1,000,000th IT help desk ticket at their company.
Read: Congratulations on creating the one billionth repository on GitHub
