Making tech literacy irrelevant | Infactory’s Ken Kocienda
Demoing to Steve Jobs and lessons from inventing autocorrect
What do you learn after spending 15 years at Apple and demoing your work directly to Steve Jobs? Ken Kocienda, co-founder of Infactory AI and author of Creative Selection, joins us to share the answer. As a former engineer at Apple who helped create the iPhone keyboard and autocorrect, Ken discusses his incredible journey from a history major to a key figure in building technology used by billions. He explains his core philosophy of bridging the gap between the liberal arts and technology to create meaningful products, and why he believes AI is the next frontier for this mission. (BTW – we also sat down with his co-founder Brooke, so if you like this episode be sure to check that one out!)
The conversation dives into his disciplined, spec-driven approach to coding with AI and the power of "extractive AI" to unlock hidden value in data. Ken reveals the crucial lesson he learned from Steve Jobs - that "everything is provisional" - and how his "evolutionary design" process is perfectly suited for today's AI challenges. This episode is a deep dive into the timeless principles of design and a powerful argument for why the best technology is so intuitive, it makes technical literacy irrelevant.
"The end result is to create something useful and meaningful for other people. It's not about the tech; it's about how you get the tech to transcend itself—to the point where other people will say, 'Yeah, I want that thing, that thing can help me." - Ken Kocienda
The Download
Tech’s messy middle, decoded weekly. 🪞
1. MCP still has more builders than users 🤔
MCP might just be the first protocol in tech history where more people are building with it than actually using it. According to a post by Eduardo Ordax the top 10 MCP servers hoard almost half of the attention, with the top 10% gobbling up 90+% of all stars and user attention. This trend highlights a fascinating dynamic: MCP is a builder's playground, and only the simplest and most necessary tools have staying power, for now.
Read: MCP is probably the first protocol in tech history with more builders than users
2. Albania appoints an AI minister, resulting in an extremely mixed reception 🤖
Albania has appointed the world's first AI-made minister to tackle corruption, sparking controversy and some trash-tossing in parliament. Albania has long battled with corruption, particularly in public administration and in the area of public procurement, and this is the latest development to curb those issues. While the move is seen as radical, it raises questions about accountability and the role of AI in governance. Is an AI-powered algorithm incorruptible? Is it even culpable in its own actions?
Read: Albania appoints world’s first AI-made minister
3. ELC recap on why fundamentals still matter in the AI era 📐
At ELC Annual earlier this month, the throughline was clear: AI is powerful, but fundamentals win. Thanos Diacakis (a past Dev Interrupted guest, catch his episode here) reminded leaders that putting people in a room to collaborate often beats any model. Kashyap Tumkur (Verily) mapped out how to spot the sweet spot between context and verifiability when applying AI. And Michael Woodley (GoodCo) cautioned against leaders offloading responsibilities to algorithms, because accountability can’t be automated.
4. Measure AI like it matters 📝
Are you struggling to prove the impact of AI in your engineering org? LinearB’s new AI Productivity Guide gives leaders a structured framework to track adoption and tie results to outcomes that matter - throughput, quality, and real ROI.
Inside: tactical advice on measuring adoption with developer surveys and AI acceptance metrics, plus five workflow automations to cut dev toil across the SDLC. Don’t settle for vanity metrics. Grab your free copy today.
5. Going direct: why engineers should own their accountability 🎯
James Stanier at The Engineering Manager dropped a killer essay on the power of going direct. His case? Engineers and leaders should build audiences without middlemen, owning the channel and the conversation. It’s a move we’re seeing everywhere that’s reshaping how devs learn, share, and grow. We loved this article in particular for the recommended guardrails that managers can use to empower their teams while still keeping a check on alignment.
