Podcast Summary
Versailles AI expansion: Versailles, a cloud infrastructure provider and creator of Next.js, acquires Model Fusion and releases an AI SDK, marking the first step towards a complete AI framework for TypeScript. Their goal is to make AI more accessible and simplify its integration into web applications.
Versailles, a leading cloud infrastructure provider and creator of the popular web framework Next.js, is expanding its offerings with the acquisition of Model Fusion and the release of a new AI SDK. This marks the first step in Versailles' mission to create a complete AI framework for TypeScript. Jared Palmer, Versailles' VP of AI, shared his background in software development and design, and how he joined Versaelles after the acquisition of his product Turbo Repo. Turbo Repo is a build system for JavaScript and TypeScript code bases, which helps developers build, test, and compile their code faster. After building up the Turbo Repo team, Jared became the director of engineering for Versailles' frameworks. With the recent wave of AI integration, Versailles pivoted and Jared started the AI group, which has grown significantly over the past year and a half. Regarding the acquisition of Model Fusion, it enables developers to add AI to web pages through simple code functions. Versailles' goal is to make AI more accessible to developers and simplify its integration into web applications. By providing a user-friendly and efficient solution, Versailles aims to help developers build smarter and more intelligent applications. This expansion into AI aligns with Versailles' mission to help developers build the world's best products and further solidifies their position as a leading player in the cloud infrastructure and web development space.
Vercel AI initiatives: Vercel is investing in AI technology through partnerships, tools, and an AI SDK to make their platform the home for AI apps and enable AI-generated front-end components
Vercel is a leading infrastructure provider for hosting web applications, including those built with AI frameworks like Next.js, and they are actively investing in AI technology through three key pillars: making Vercel the home for AI apps, providing tools for developers to build better with AI, and offering an AI SDK for creating AI-native experiences. Vercel's AI initiatives include partnerships with major tech companies like Google and OpenAI, and the goal is to eventually enable fully AI-generated front-end components. Their current tool, V0, allows developers to generate layouts and UI components using simple text prompts and screenshots, which can then be copied and pasted into real applications. While we're not quite at the point of having models spin out entire applications, Vercel believes this is the future direction of web development and aims to make the transition as seamless as possible.
Generative UI components: Generative UI components offer a balance between pre-made and generated elements, allowing for a spectrum of design possibilities. AI plays a role in suggesting blueprints and generating code comments, but future advancements could lead to complex project iteration and user takeover.
While generative interfaces offer exciting possibilities, there's a need for a balance between generative and familiar components. An email client, for instance, might have a list view and editor that can be generated but remain consistent after the first generation. On the other hand, apps like TikTok and Instagram could share similar components, like a full scrolling newsfeed, with data swapped out. The future of user interfaces may lie on a spectrum, with some components pre-made and others generated on the fly. The Interactive Storytelling Development Kit (ISDK) is a step in this direction, allowing the mixing of text and components to build rich, interactive experiences. However, we're not quite there yet, and the role of AI in interface generation is evolving. Today, AI might suggest a rough blueprint or generate code comments, but in the future, it could work on complex projects and iterate on them, with the user stepping in to take over when needed. The non-deterministic nature of generative AI adds an element of surprise and creativity, making it interesting to use in interface design, especially when implementing elements like news feeds or suggestions.
Future UI design: The future of UI design will involve a hybrid approach of using pre-made primitives and customization, with a focus on efficiency, consistency, and user experience. Dependency management and documentation will be important for maintaining quality.
The future of UI design will likely involve a hybrid approach of using pre-made, optimized primitives that can be recycled and slightly modified, rather than generating completely new code each time. This approach will provide a good user experience, while also minimizing potential mistakes or inconsistencies. However, there will still be a need for some level of customization based on individual user preferences. Additionally, there may be challenges with dependency management when using AI-generated primitives, as these models may inherit certain dependencies based on their training. Keeping documentation up-to-date and ensuring that models can access this information will be important for maintaining the quality of the generated UI components. Furthermore, as design languages evolve and shift towards AI-native experiences, there will be a need to adapt to these changes while still providing a consistent and effective user experience. Overall, the future of UI design will involve a balance between pre-made primitives and customization, with a focus on efficiency, consistency, and user experience.
API licensing deals with AI: API licensing deals that leverage AI can provide developers with the latest libraries, allowing them to trust and use suggested libraries, potentially leading to better workflows and discoveries, but it's important to consider potential risks and have measures in place to mitigate them.
As developers, we're constantly dealing with new technologies and frameworks, and keeping up-to-date can be a challenge. API licensing deals that leverage Stack Overflow for the latest information allow us to inherit the libraries used by the AI, just like we would with a coworker. While some may prefer to use specific libraries or write code from scratch, the reality is that most developers will use the libraries that their AI counterparts suggest, as long as they meet the project's requirements. The interpretability of the AI's choices may be a concern, but it's no different than having a conversation with a junior engineer about their choices. The AI's suggestions may even lead to discovering better libraries or more productive workflows. However, it's important to consider the potential risks, such as the AI suggesting suboptimal or non-compliant libraries, and to have measures in place to mitigate these risks. Overall, the use of AI in software development is an interesting area of research, and the ability to inherit and trust the libraries used by the AI is a significant step forward in the integration of AI into the development process.
Code checks for enterprise security: Vercel's new code checks service acts as a powerful linter for enterprise customers, offering rules for codebases, deep integration into PR reviews, and security/compliance checks. It goes beyond ESLint and includes best practices from Vercel's engineering team, available as an SDK for AI model integration.
Vercel is offering a new service called "code checks," which acts as a super-powered linter for enterprise customers. This tool helps set rules for codebases, integrating deeply into code ownership and PR reviews. It goes beyond the capabilities of ESLint and includes best practices from Vercel's core engineering team. Rules can be set up for specific imports, requiring security or compliance checks. The service is available as an SDK, which simplifies the integration of AI models into various codebases, focusing on the gap between model results and UI development. The SDK, originally called AI connector, started as a solution for perfect streaming and React hooks for chatbot building. It has since expanded to include support for multiple AI providers and deep integration into various web frameworks. The first line of defense against potential security risks in codebases is seen as an essential role for this cybersecurity expert checker.
Vercel's AI SDK: Vercel's AI SDK introduces a generative UI component, enabling developers to stream down dynamic components in response to user queries, paving the way for scalable, interactive, and adaptive user experiences
Vercel's AI SDK (ASdk), specifically the generative UI component, is a significant step towards building next-generation, interactive, and adaptive user experiences. This component, which is based on React server components and streaming utilities, allows developers to integrate AI models with pre-made components, creating a unified experience. Instead of text-based interactions, developers can stream down dynamic components, such as weather widgets or stock charts, in response to user queries. This technology, which is also used in Vercel's V0, has the potential to scale to fully generative interfaces. The ASDK acts as a building block for this future, offering both the ability to pipe model outputs into interactive components and the flexibility to use it for premade or constrained generation. Vercel's approach to AI-driven user experiences is an exciting development in the software industry, as it moves towards a more adaptive and dynamic user interface era.
Federated and AI-driven software development: The future of software development is moving towards a federated and dynamic approach, allowing for independent deployment and integration of components, and the integration of AI for super apps and dynamic interfaces.
The future of software development, particularly in the realm of AI and React components, is heading towards a federated and dynamic approach. This means that instead of monolithic applications, we're moving towards independent deployment of components or modules, similar to microservices. With the help of tools like module federation and React Federation, we can stitch together these independently deployed components into one stream, allowing for greater flexibility and efficiency in application development. Furthermore, the integration of AI into this federated approach opens up exciting possibilities for super apps and dynamic interfaces. However, there are challenges to overcome, such as permission models, feature flags, and runtime issues, but the potential benefits make it a worthwhile endeavor. Overall, the future of software development is looking towards a more dynamic, federated, and AI-driven landscape.
Decentralized AI and web: The future of AI and the web is moving towards a decentralized and federated model, allowing for the creation of an 'internet of UIs' and democratizing user interaction through AI development and generative interfaces.
The future of AI and the web is headed towards a more decentralized and federated model, where various teams and companies can develop and integrate their own micro-applets and components, creating an "internet of UIs" routed through AI. This shift, as discussed by Ben Popper, Jack Palmer, and Ryan Donovan, is essential for democratizing the web and creating a better way for users to interact with applications and services. The acquisition of Model Fusion by Vercel is a step towards making AI development more accessible using TypeScript, and Vercel is actively researching generative interfaces to improve user interaction and build a better web. The team at Stack Overflow is open to suggestions for future content, events, and formats, and they encourage listeners to engage with them. Additionally, during the show, a lifeboat badge was awarded to Piers Derag for his helpful answer on Stack Overflow regarding splitting documents into a training set and a test set. The team at Stack Overflow appreciates the contributions of their community members and invites listeners to share their ideas and feedback. Overall, the future of AI and the web is exciting, and the team at Stack Overflow is dedicated to exploring this new frontier and providing valuable resources and insights for developers and users alike.