Iteration Velocity is the Key to Engineering Success | Vercel’s Malte Ubl
Also, Trump's attack on Google, Ask vs Guess Culture, and more.
This week, our host Dan Lines chats with
, CTO of Vercel, about why iteration speed is a game-changer for teams trying to deliver more efficiently. Malte shares how accelerating the development cycle and embracing platform engineering can supercharge productivity, helping teams ship faster and innovate more effectively.We explore what it really means to streamline workflows, reduce bottlenecks, and create an environment where developers can focus on what they do best—building great products. Malte also gives us a behind-the-scenes look at how engineering strategies are evolving to keep up with the ever-growing demands.
“Iteration velocity solves all known software problems.”
Episode Highlights:
01:14 Introduction to platform engineering
04:52 Decentralized vs. centralized teams?
11:40 Vercel’s approach to AI
20:41 How should platform engineering teams be using AI?
28:02 Power struggles between ICs and high level managers
30:10 Key factors to focus on when optimizing AI applications
The Download
The Download is engineering leadership content we’re reading, watching, and attending that we think you might find valuable.
1. Trump vs. Google?
Piling onto Google’s political woes is former president and current Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.
On Friday, Trump claimed in a post on Truth Social that Google was attempting to interfere with the 2024 presidential election by displaying only “bad stories” about him, adding he would “request [Google’s] prosecution, at the maximum levels, when I win the election, and become president of the United States."
Google has been embroiled in an antitrust lawsuit with the DOJ and this latest news further puts the tech giant into political crosshairs.
Read the full story: Trump says he will seek Google's prosecution if he wins election
2. Can you do me a big favor?
Friend of the newsletter and podcast
, the mind behind Tech and Tea, wrote a piece last year exploring the difference between ‘ask’ and ‘guess’ culture that’s worth revisiting.
Engineering Leader's Guide to Accelerating Developer Productivity (Sponsor)
Developer productivity can make or break whether you deliver value to your customers. But are you tracking the right metrics that truly make a difference?
To highlight how you can adjust your approach to both measure what matters and identify the right corrective strategies, LinearB just released the engineering leader's guide to accelerating developer productivity. Download your copy here:
3. Read Become a Great Engineering Leader
We can’t claim to be the ‘No. 1 source for the insights and wisdom of what engineering leaders are thinking about, focusing on, and investing in’ without plugging
’s book, Become a Great Engineering Leader.Now available in print or ebook. Get your copy or discount code below.
4.The Promise of Platform Engineering
The talented, colorful, and always entertaining
has been pondering platform engineering long before it became commonplace among engineering teams. Listen to her prescient interview with Dan Lines ⬇️