The conversation centers on practical techniques: breaking monolithic PCB designs into modular "feature boards" connected via shields (think Arduino-style), using Git for hardware version control with SHA-1s printed on silkscreens, and leveraging tools like Zephyr RTOS to enable plug-and-play firmware that matches the modularity of the hardware. Tobias explains how relaxing constraints like board size and using automation to merge schematics allowed his team to iterate rapidly while maintaining a clear path to final form-factor designs. We discuss how this approach scaled to projects with 120+ people across multiple teams, and why the interplay between system architecture, organizational structure, and information flow matters more than most realize.

Key Topics

• [02:30] The painful reality of traditional hardware development: six-month wait for hardware, nine months of debugging
• [08:00] Breaking apart monolithic PCB designs into modular feature boards with shield connectors
• [12:45] Relaxing constraints: larger board areas, autorouting, and prioritizing testability over final form factor
• [18:20] Version control for hardware: putting schematics in Git and printing SHA-1s on silkscreens
• [22:00] Using automation to merge feature board schematics into final form-factor designs
• [26:15] Firmware architecture: NuttX, Zephyr, KConfig, and device trees for modular, plug-and-play software
• [35:40] Scaling agile hardware-software co-development to 120+ person projects across multiple teams
• [39:00] The interplay of system architecture, organizational architecture, and information architecture

Notable Quotes

"When the board arrived, not a single line of code had been written for it because no one had been able to touch it. It took us nine additional months to debug all the things out of it." — Tobias Kästner

"I've never seen any board working the first time. I've never seen any prototype without thin wires patching things out, but that's maybe a different story." — Tobias Kästner

"We cannot think these architectures as independent of one another. If we have limitations in two of these architectures, we will see these limitations in the third architecture as well." — Tobias Kästner

Resources Mentioned

• Inovex - Tobias's company offering engineering consulting services, trainings, and expertise in embedded systems, IoT, and full-stack development
• Zephyr RTOS - Open-source real-time operating system with KConfig, device tree support, and extensive driver library that Tobias recommends for modular firmware development
• NuttX RTOS - Apache Foundation RTOS with clean device driver model and KConfig support that Tobias used in earlier projects
• KiCad - Open-source PCB design software with emerging Python API support for schematic automation

Services and Contact

Through Inovex, Tobias provides trainings for both Zephyr and Yocto Linux, as well as consultancy and engineering support for embedded projects -- from 1-2 day workshops evaluating architectural state and cost/benefit analysis, to first prototypes, to full-fledged software development. With partners such as alpha-board (Berlin) and Blunk electronic (Erfurt), they also offer agile hardware services and help teams get started with the methods discussed in this episode.

• Email: tobias.kaestner@inovex.de
• Tobias Kästner on LinkedIn
• tobiaskaestner on the Zephyr Discord Channel

Links

Companies:

• Inovex -- Embedded Systems
• Blunk electronic
• alpha-board
• Navimatix

Talks and publications:

• Modular and Agile HW Development (2018 talk)
• Leveraging Zephyr's HW Abstraction for Agile Systems Engineering (2023 talk)
• Whitepaper: Agile in der Hardware -- by Gregor Gross, Christoph Schmiedinger, and Tobias Kästner
• Leveraging Zephyr for Functional Architecture Decomposition (2025 talk)

Books recommended by Tobias:

• Small Groups as Complex Systems -- Holly Arrow et al., SAGE Publications
• The Dao of Complexity -- Jean Boulton, DeGruyter

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

The conversation covers practical challenges like AI's tendency toward "success theater" (overly generous assertions), the importance of maintaining tight control over code quality, and why the bottleneck in AI-assisted development isn't code generation—it's expressing clear intent. We also touch on code spikes, large-scale refactorings, and why treating AI development as pair programming keeps you in the driver's seat. If you're wondering whether TDD still matters when AI writes your code, this episode makes a compelling case that it matters more than ever.

Key Topics

• [02:30] Why TDD still matters with AI: confidence and control over generated code
• [06:45] Tests as specifications: describing desired behavior to AI rather than writing prompts
• [09:20] The three-phase test workflow: test ideas, test outlines, and implementations
• [15:30] Pair programming with AI: staying at the conceptual level while AI handles implementation
• [20:15] Code spikes and exploration: using AI to answer questions before writing production tests
• [24:40] AI failure modes: over-mocking and "success theater" with weak assertions
• [28:50] Large-scale refactorings: how AI excels at updating hundreds of tests simultaneously
• [32:10] The real bottleneck: expressing intent and specifications, not code generation speed

Notable Quotes

"As far as I am concerned, test-driven development is just about writing prompts for the AI that it can then use to build what you want it to build." — Luca

"If you expect that a five-line prompt resulting in 10,000 lines of code will not result in 9,995 lines of uncertainty, you're just deluding yourself." — Luca

"You can be five times faster than you were before and still maintain a very high production level quality code, but you probably can't be a hundred times faster." — Jeff

Resources Mentioned

• Claude Code - Terminal-based AI coding assistant that Luca uses for TDD workflows, keeping conceptual work separate from code-level work
• Embedded AI Podcast - Luca's separate podcast focusing on AI in embedded systems, co-hosted with Ryan Torvik
• Luca's AI Training Courses - Hands-on trainings for using AI in embedded systems development (and much more!)
• links to all of Luca's work - Training, consulting, podcasts, conference talks and everything else

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Moving up the ladder, we examine narrow-focus companies that have found their niche—like the German firm that does nothing but maintain a 100-year-old anchor chain machine, or specialists in medium-power electrical switches. These companies win through efficiency and deep expertise, but face existential risk if the market shifts. Finally, we tackle wide-focus companies introducing multiple product lines, where the challenge becomes running internal startups while managing established products, each requiring radically different approaches. The key insight: your focus must match your product's lifecycle stage, whether that's ruthless speed, cost optimization, or high-level process learning.

Key Topics

• [02:30] Startups and early-stage companies: the existential search for product-market fit
• [06:45] The MVP philosophy: if you're not embarrassed, you waited too long
• [11:20] Quality vs. speed vs. scope: why quality doesn't matter in early stages
• [15:40] The Potemkin village approach: building facades to validate demand
• [19:15] Embedded products and MVPs: when physical products need creative shortcuts
• [23:50] The critical switch: from prototypes to proper engineering after validation
• [28:30] Narrow-focus companies: German hidden champions and deep specialization
• [34:10] Wide-focus companies: running internal startups within established organizations
• [40:25] Product teams and parallel focuses: managing different lifecycle stages simultaneously
• [45:00] Large established companies: high-level process learning and avoiding organizational weight

Notable Quotes

"If you read the Lean Startup, they will explicitly say: if you weren't embarrassed by your MVP, you waited too long. It really has to be painfully flimsy because you cannot afford to do it well." — Luca

"Quality doesn't even factor because you're very explicitly building mock-ups from chewing gum and paper mache. They are fully intended to be thrown away." — Luca

"Getting that product-market fit is existential. You will die if you do not get it and get it relatively quickly." — Jeff

Resources Mentioned

• The Lean Startup - Eric Ries' book discussing MVP philosophy and the importance of being embarrassed by your first product
• The Mom Test - Rob Fitzpatrick's book about getting real customer feedback and validation through financial commitment
• The Art of Innovation - Tom Kelley's book on IDEO's design process, including the clothespin switch story
• Luca's Website - Trainings on embedded agile, AI in embedded systems, and more
• Jeff's Website - Consulting services for medical device software development

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

The core insight: what you should focus on learning depends entirely on what you're actually selling. Product development firms need to master the entire client journey and product design process, not just engineering excellence. Engineering development firms must become technical wizards in a specific domain that clients actually value. Solo engineers face the challenge of needing deep expertise while wearing every business hat. Across all three types, the common traps are the same: focusing too much on craft and too little on client experience, failing to specialize, and not investing enough in teaching as marketing.

Throughout the discussion, Jeff and Luca emphasize that for service firms, you are the product - and that changes everything about where you should direct your improvement efforts. The conversation is grounded in real experiences, including some cautionary tales about firms that tried to be everything to everyone.

Key Topics

• [00:00] Introduction: Two-part series on engineering organizations and their different focuses
• [02:30] Overview of the framework: Service firms vs. product-building companies
• [05:15] Product development firms: Why engineering excellence isn't enough
• [08:45] The critical importance of product design and client guidance over pure engineering
• [12:20] Process-level learning: Shortening cycle times and enabling rapid prototyping
• [15:40] The Irinos example: In-house board manufacturing to tighten feedback loops
• [18:30] Requirements will always change - designing for learning, not perfection
• [21:00] The danger of being a generalist: Why specialization matters for service firms
• [24:15] Engineering development firms: Selling technical expertise, not complete products
• [27:45] Technology-focused learning: Going deep on specific technical capabilities
• [30:20] The trap of becoming a commodity: Why domain expertise beats technology alone
• [33:40] The forklift invoice review example: You can't specialize too narrowly
• [35:30] Solo engineers: The complete package vs. temporary employee trap
• [39:00] Common failures across all service firms: Too much craft focus, too little client experience and marketing
• [41:30] Teaching as the best form of marketing for technical service firms

Notable Quotes

"The customers don't actually hire them for their engineering skills. They are sort of a given. But what such a product development firm should offer the client is guiding them through the development process, which they don't have enough skills for to do it on their own." — Luca

"Engineering is not the point. The unit of work is delivering a working product to the client that satisfies their business case, that has a reasonable cost to manufacture, and that you feel confident your own client has validated their market." — Jeff

"It's not that engineering is irrelevant, but rather that it's table stakes. This is just taken for granted, but what such a product development firm should offer is guiding them through the development process." — Luca

"You almost can't be narrow enough. I remember our friend Philip Morgan having this example of a company that specializes in reviewing invoices of forklift repairs. This is what they do. They review forklift repair invoices. And they're doing very well apparently." — Luca

"Teaching and giving information and solving problems publicly is the best form of marketing. It's not advertising. It's building trust with an audience." — Jeff

Resources Mentioned

• IDEO - Prototypical design firm mentioned as an example of companies specializing in product design
• IRNAS - Product development firm with in-house board manufacturing capabilities, featured in previous episodes, exemplifying tight feedback loops
• Philip Morgan - Consultant and friend mentioned for his example about specialization (forklift invoice review company)
• Jeff Gable's website - Jeff's consulting services for medical device software development and advisory
• Luca Ingianni's website - Luca's training products and resources for embedded systems, IoT, and AI

Connect With Us

• Stay tuned for Part 2, where we'll explore organizations that build products and what they should focus on when the market decides
• If you're in the medical device industry and need help with embedded software - either writing it or navigating the regulatory landscape - reach out to Jeff at jeffgable.com
• Check out Luca's training products for embedded systems, IoT, and AI at luca.engineer
• Reflect on your own organization: Are you focusing on the right things for the type of service firm you are? Are you specializing enough?

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

We explore the practical realities of learning Rust as an experienced C/C++ developer - yes, there's a learning curve, and yes, the compiler will slap you on the wrist frequently. But Milica explains how the development experience, with cargo as a package manager and built-in tooling for testing and static analysis, makes the journey worthwhile. She's candid about where Rust shines (embedded Linux, greenfield projects) and where challenges remain (microcontroller support, IDE tooling, vendor backing).

The conversation touches on the bigger question facing our industry: with memory safety becoming critical in our connected world, what role should Rust play in new embedded projects? While Milica takes a measured stance - acknowledging that C and C++ aren't going anywhere - she's clearly excited about Rust's potential, especially in safety-critical domains like medical devices. Whether you're Rust-curious or still skeptical, this episode offers a grounded perspective from someone who's actually shipped production code in Rust.

Key Topics

• [02:30] Milica's background in embedded systems and her journey from electrical engineering to embedded software development, with focus on safety-critical industries like medical devices
• [04:15] The path to adopting Rust: from first hearing about it in 2020 to finding a client project willing to embrace it, and the importance of having experienced Rust developers on the team
• [07:00] Choosing the right project for Rust adoption: embedded Linux with microservice architecture as an ideal starting point, avoiding complex C/C++ interoperability
• [10:45] The learning curve: getting used to the Rust compiler's strictness, discovering the ecosystem of unofficial but widely-used crates, and how learning Rust improved C++ skills
• [14:20] What makes Rust development pleasant: cargo as package manager, built-in testing and static analysis, cleaner code organization with modules, and writing unit tests alongside source code
• [17:30] Current limitations: lack of official vendor support for microcontrollers, community-driven development, potential gaps in certified stacks (like BLE), and IDE support challenges
• [20:15] Interfacing Rust with C and C++: C binding works well, C++ has limitations with inheritance and templates, and the safety considerations when using unsafe code blocks
• [25:40] Integrating Rust into legacy projects: when it makes sense (isolated new features requiring memory safety) and when it doesn't (just for experimentation), plus maintenance considerations
• [30:00] The big question: Is it irresponsible not to use Rust for new projects? Discussion of Philip Marcraff's strong stance and Milica's more nuanced view considering team knowledge, existing tooling, and project context
• [33:45] The influence between languages: how C++ is learning from Rust's memory safety features, and why the borrow checker is harder to retrofit than basic safety improvements
• [36:20] Rust in operating systems: adoption in the Linux kernel and Microsoft Windows, and major tech companies pushing C++/Rust interoperability forward
• [39:00] The future of Rust in embedded: Milica's view that C, C++, and Rust will coexist, each with their own use cases, advantages, and trade-offs

Notable Quotes

"Learning Rust has also made me a better C++ developer as well. Once you get used to those rules, you apply them in C++ as well." — Milica

"Just like writing Rust code is pleasant. It flows much nicer than or easier than it would with C++, for example. The way you organize your code, in my opinion, is also cleaner." — Milica

"If you are developing Rust for embedded systems on microcontrollers, you need to be aware that there is no official vendor support. Everything currently is open source and driven by the community." — Milica

"You definitely do not lose benefits of using Rust for the rest of your codebase when using a C library. That C library is isolated, and if there are some memory issues, then you know where to look." — Milica

"I think most of the benefits come from starting with Rust in the first place. So having a clean slate, starting a new product, new project with Rust. That's where you see the most benefits." — Milica

Resources Mentioned

• Embassy - An async framework used in embedded Rust projects, mentioned as a good starting point for greenfield embedded development
• Zephyr RTOS - Real-time operating system that is working on official Rust integration, though not fully there yet
• Rust Rover - JetBrains' official IDE for Rust development, released about a year and a half ago, though with some limitations for embedded development
• Zed - A new IDE written completely in Rust, mentioned as an emerging option for Rust development
• Slint - A Rust-based GUI framework for embedded systems
• Embedded Online Conference - Conference where Milica gave a talk on Rust for embedded systems - link to her presentation in show notes
• Milica's LinkedIn
• Milica's talk on Rust at the Embedded Online Conference

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

We explore the practical realities of using an interpreted language on microcontrollers: how Planet Innovation uses it for Class B medical devices, what the performance trade-offs actually look like, and how features like the Unix port enable robust testing. Matt walks us through deployment considerations, explains how to integrate C code when needed, and shares compelling stories about real-time client demos that would be impossible in C++.

Whether you're skeptical about high-level languages in embedded systems or curious about alternatives to traditional development workflows, this conversation offers a grounded, engineering-focused look at what MicroPython can—and can't—do in production environments.

Key Topics

• [03:30] Matt's background and why he left embedded development before MicroPython brought him back
• [08:45] What MicroPython is: a complete re-implementation of Python for microcontrollers with REPL, filesystem, and machine module
• [13:20] How Planet Innovation introduced MicroPython through an OpenMV vision processing project
• [17:15] The game-changing power of the REPL for interactive hardware development and testing
• [21:40] Running MicroPython code on x86 for testing, and the mock machine library approach
• [26:30] Python library compatibility: what works, what doesn't, and memory considerations
• [29:50] Integrating C and C++ code through extension modules for performance-critical sections
• [33:10] Performance realities: 10-100x slower in interpreter, but can always drop to C speed when needed
• [37:45] Tooling: MPRemote, the magical mount feature, and development workflow
• [42:20] When NOT to use MicroPython: cost-sensitive high-volume products and resource constraints
• [45:30] Using MicroPython in Class B medical devices and safety-critical applications
• [49:15] Garbage collection: simple, predictable, and controllable—can be disabled when needed
• [52:40] Real-time client demo story: modifying state machines during a call and showing results immediately
• [56:20] Deployment: frozen code, disabling REPL and filesystem, and OTA considerations
• [01:01:30] Common mistakes: logic errors and inadvertent allocations rather than memory corruption
• [01:05:45] Threading, AsyncIO, and the Global Interpreter Lock across different ports
• [01:08:20] State machine frameworks: StateChart, Yasme, and PyTransitions
• [01:11:40] Junior developer productivity: faster onboarding compared to C/C++ embedded development
• [01:15:10] Getting started: board bring-up as an ideal first use case for MicroPython
• [01:17:50] Hardware-in-the-loop testing as a low-risk way to try MicroPython

Notable Quotes

"It's hard to overstate how game changing the REPL is. Particularly as an embedded engineer, once you see that you can interactively talk to a peripheral, you can generate your own I2C, squirt it across and see what the peripheral does with it—suddenly driver development has just become easy to experiment with." — Matt Trentini

"My trite answer is that MicroPython is slow—10 to 100 times slower than C in the interpreter. But my flip side answer is that it can always be made as fast as C because you can always drop into C to write things." — Matt Trentini

"There was a moment in a recent project where we were discussing the workflow of a state machine with the client, and while we were on a call, another engineer was actually making changes to MicroPython code. Literally a couple minutes after we'd been hashing out the details, they showed the changes in the state machine using the REPL. The client was blown away—in 25 years of development, I have never had that kind of turnaround in C and C++." — Matt Trentini

"If you want to make a good friend of your electronics engineers, give them a build of MicroPython that can run on their custom board. In the past, they would typically be waiting for weeks or sometimes months before a software resource could be assigned. Now I can turn around a MicroPython build in a day or two, and they can test I2C, GPIOs, and UARTs themselves." — Matt Trentini

"The irony is that the people who have embedded C knowledge are actually the people that can benefit the most from MicroPython. It's like having a superpower—you understand what MicroPython is doing in the background, you know you're just effectively writing a lot less code." — Matt Trentini

Resources Mentioned

• MicroPython Official Site - The official MicroPython project website with documentation and downloads
• OpenMV - Computer vision project using MicroPython for camera-based applications
• MPRemote - Tool for interacting with MicroPython devices, including the magical mount feature
• Planet Innovation - Medical device consultancy using MicroPython in production devices
• StateChart - State machine library compatible with Python and MicroPython
• Yasme - Yet another state machine library developed at Planet Innovation
• PyTransitions - Popular Python state machine library being ported to MicroPython
• CircuitPython - Adafruit's fork of MicroPython with additional features and CPython compatibility focus

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

The conversation moves through common pitfalls: skipping documentation because "it's all in my head," letting code reviews slide, making questionable architecture decisions without a sounding board, and neglecting tools like simulators under time pressure.

But this isn't just a catalog of problems - Jeff and Luca share practical strategies for staying disciplined, from creating mastermind groups with fellow solo developers to strategically hiring third-party reviewers for architecture decisions. They discuss how to push back on arbitrary deadlines, the value of enforcing process on yourself, and why sometimes the best productivity hack is spending money on training to force yourself to sharpen your skills.

Whether you're a solo consultant, the only developer at a startup, or part of a small team, this episode offers honest insights into maintaining quality and sanity when you're working largely on your own.

Key Topics

• [00:00] Introduction: Can you do agile as a solo developer?
• [03:30] First principles of agile development and why they work for solo developers
• [06:15] Unique difficulties: Making progress in only one area at a time
• [10:45] Wearing three hats: Being leader, manager, and contributor simultaneously
• [15:20] Budget pressure and the challenge of 'nice to haves' that actually matter
• [22:30] The importance of delivering something palpable after the first sprint
• [28:00] Bad habit #1: No documentation because 'it's all in my head'
• [35:45] Bad habit #2: No code reviews and potential solutions
• [40:15] Using LLMs for code review: What works and what doesn't
• [44:30] Bad habit #3: Idiosyncratic or terrible code architecture
• [50:00] Bad habit #4: Not making it easy for other developers to take over
• [53:20] Bad habit #5: Neglecting simulators and development board support
• [57:00] Breaking bad habits: Working solo together through mastermind groups
• [62:30] Enforcing process on yourself and recognizing arbitrary deadlines
• [67:45] Applying agility to agility: Inspecting and adapting your own process
• [71:00] Sharpening the axe: Jeff's experience with the Embedded Summit

Notable Quotes

"When you're a solo developer, you have to be the leader, the manager, and the contributor for the software effort. Those are different roles and different skills." — Jeff

"You must apply agility to agility. Inspect your process, figure out what works, what doesn't work. If something is annoying to you, either it's pointing you towards a real deficiency or it's just objectively a terrible process and you should change it." — Luca

"It's really scary how effective rubber duck debugging is. You start to think of what the other person would answer, even though you're just talking to a rubber duck." — Jeff

"Simple and easy are not the same things. Having good development practices, just like losing weight, is simple. It's just not easy." — Jeff

"Dear listeners, have you ever paid with your own money for software development? Because I have. And it's really unnerving. You tell this developer to go do something and they just sort of disappear and you can hear the meter running." — Luca

Resources Mentioned

QP Real-Time Framework - Event-driven framework by Miro Samek for embedded systems, mentioned as a game-changing architecture choice for medical device development with active object patterns and hierarchical state machines

Zephyr RTOS - Open-source real-time operating system for embedded devices, discussed as an important technology for solo developers to master for modern IoT and connected device projects

Embedded Online Conference / Embedded Summit - Premier embedded systems conference offering both online and in-person training, including hands-on bootcamps for technologies like Zephyr RTOS, organized by Jacob Beningo and Stephane Boucher

Agile Embedded Academy - Luca's newly launched training platform focused on applying agile methodologies specifically to embedded systems development, offering practical courses for embedded teams

FDA Software Documentation Requirements - Regulatory documentation standards for medical device software including requirements specifications, architecture documents, detailed design, and test protocols required for FDA submissions

Mob Programming Methodology - Collaborative development approach where entire team works on single task together, referenced as an alternative to traditional multitasking, promoted by Austin Chadwick and Chris

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

We explore the practical challenges of agile hardware development, from structuring contracts differently to breaking complex PCBs into testable modules and shields. Gregor discusses the importance of mixed hardware-software teams, the role of automated documentation, and why his engineers resist pair programming despite its proven benefits. The conversation also touches on the cultural barriers to adopting agile practices in traditional hardware companies and the innovative approaches needed to make agile hardware development work in a service provider context.

Key Topics

• [02:30] Introduction to Alpha-board and agile hardware development services
• [05:15] Defining agile principles: functionality-focused development and prioritization
• [12:45] Contract challenges: moving from fixed-price to hourly service contracts
• [18:20] Practical agile hardware: breaking PCBs into testable modules and shields
• [25:10] Mixed teams and automated documentation for hardware-software collaboration
• [32:40] The pair programming experiment: better results but team resistance
• [38:55] Customer expectations and the need for end-user access in agile projects
• [44:30] Version control and Git integration for hardware design workflows

Notable Quotes

"We are probably the only service provider in Germany that offers agile hardware development because I don't see so many people speaking about it." — Gregor Gross

"Software is soft, hardware is hard. I was waiting to say that." — Gregor Gross

"My experience from pairing was they work harder. They feel like they observe themselves... but there wasn't any mistakes. And actually they themselves said they were surprised by how much they did because they did more than twice what they expected." — Gregor Gross

"It's better to have different shields and modules that have some of the functionality. And so you can start iterating through these functionalities and test them." — Gregor Gross

Resources Mentioned

• Alpha-board - Gregor's PCB design and agile hardware development service company
• Zephyr OS - Real-time operating system mentioned for prototyping with sample boards
• KiCad - Open source EDA tool recommended for mixed teams and transparency
• Andrew Greenberg's KiCon Presentation - Presentation on schematic style guides for better readability

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

The conversation addresses common anti-patterns that developers encounter when first adopting LLM-assisted coding, such as "vibe coding" yourself off a cliff by letting the AI generate too much code at once, losing control of architectural decisions, and failing to maintain proper test coverage. The hosts emphasize that while LLMs can dramatically accelerate prototyping and reduce boilerplate coding, they require even more rigorous engineering discipline - not less. They discuss how traditional agile practices like small commits, continuous integration, test-driven development, and frequent context resets become even more critical when working with AI tools.

For embedded systems engineers working in safety-critical domains like medical devices, automotive, and aerospace, the episode provides valuable guidance on integrating AI tools while maintaining deterministic quality processes. The hosts stress that LLMs should augment, not replace, static analysis tools and human code reviews, and that developers remain fully responsible for AI-generated code. Whether you're just starting with AI-assisted development or looking to refine your approach, this episode offers actionable insights for leveraging LLMs effectively while keeping the reins firmly in hand.

## Key Topics

* [03:45] LLM Interface Options: Web, CLI, and IDE Plugins - Choosing the Right Tool for Your Workflow

* [08:30] Prompt Engineering Fundamentals: Being Specific and Iterative with LLMs

* [12:15] Building Effective Base Prompts: Learning from Experience vs. Starting from Templates

* [16:40] Context Window Management: Avoiding Information Overload and Hallucinations

* [22:10] Understanding LLM Context: Files, Prompts, and Conversation History

* [26:50] The Nature of Hallucinations: Why LLMs Always Generate, Never Judge

* [29:20] Test-Driven Development with AI: More Critical Than Ever

* [35:45] Avoiding 'Vibe Coding' Disasters: The Importance of Small, Testable Increments

* [42:30] Requirements Engineering in the AI Era: Becoming More Specific About What You Want

* [48:15] Extreme Programming Principles Applied to LLM Development: Small Steps and Frequent Commits

* [52:40] Context Reset Strategies: When and How to Start Fresh Sessions

* [56:20] The V-Model Approach: Breaking Down Problems into Manageable LLM-Sized Chunks

* [01:01:10] AI in Safety-Critical Systems: Augmenting, Not Replacing, Deterministic Tools

* [01:06:45] Code Review in the AI Age: Maintaining Standards Despite Faster Iteration

* [01:12:30] Prototyping vs. Production Code: The Superpower and the Danger

* [01:16:50] Shifting Left with AI: Empowering Product Owners and Accelerating Feedback Loops

* [01:19:40] Bootstrapping New Technologies: From Zero to One in Minutes Instead of Weeks

* [01:23:15] Advice for Junior Engineers: Building Intuition in the Age of AI-Assisted Development

## Notable Quotes

> "All of us are new to this experience. Nobody went to school back in the 80s and has been doing this for 40 years. We're all just running around, bumping into things and seeing what works for us." — Ryan Torvik

> "An LLM is just a token generator. You stick an input in, and it returns an output, and it has no way of judging whether this is correct or valid or useful. It's just whatever it generated. So it's up to you to give it input data that will very likely result in useful output data." — Luca Ingianni

> "Tests tell you how this is supposed to work. You can have it write the test first and then evaluate the test. Using tests helps communicate - just like you would to another person - no, it needs to function like this, it needs to have this functionality and behave in this way." — Ryan Torvik

> "I find myself being even more aggressively biased towards test-driven development. While I'm reasonably lenient about the code that the LLM writes, I am very pedantic about the tests that I'm using. I will very thoroughly review them and really tweak them until they have the level of detail that I'm interested in." — Luca Ingianni

> "It's really forcing me to be a better engineer by using the LLM. You have to go and do that system level understanding of the problem space before you actually ask the LLM to do something. This is what responsible people have been saying - this is how you do engineering." — Ryan Torvik

> "I can use LLMs to jumpstart me or bootstrap me from zero to one. Once there's something on the screen that kind of works, I can usually then apply my general programming skill, my general engineering taste to improve it. Getting from that zero to one is now not days or weeks of learning - it's 20 minutes of playing with it." — Jeff Gable

> "LLMs are fantastic at small-scale stuff. They will be wonderful at finding better alternatives for how to implement a certain function. But they are absolutely atrocious at large-scale stuff. They will gleefully mess up your architecture and not even notice because they cannot fit it into their tiny electronic brains." — Luca Ingianni

> "Don't be afraid to try it out. We're all noobs to this. This is the brave noob world of AI exploration. Be curious about it, but also be cautious about it. Don't ever take your hands off the reins. Trust your engineering intuition - even young folks that are just starting, trust your engineering intuition." — Ryan Torvik

> "As the saying goes, good judgment comes from experience. Experience comes from bad judgment. You'll find spectacular ways of messing up - that is how you become a decent engineer. LLMs do not change that. Junior engineers will still be necessary, will still be around, and they will still evolve into senior engineers eventually after they've fallen on their faces enough times." — Luca Ingianni

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

The conversation explores technical challenges in AI-assisted embedded development, particularly the importance of context management when working with LLMs. Luca reveals that effective AI-assisted coding requires treating prompts like code itself—version controlling them, refining them iteratively, and building project-specific prompt libraries. He discusses the economics of LLM-based development (approximately one cent per line of code), the dramatic tightening of feedback loops from days to minutes, and how this fundamentally changes agile workflows for embedded teams.

The episode concludes with a discussion about the evolving role of embedded developers—from code writers to AI supervisors and eventually to product owners with deep technical skills. Luca and Jeff address concerns about maintaining core software engineering competencies while embracing these powerful new tools, emphasizing that understanding the craft remains essential even as the tools evolve.

Key Topics

• [02:15] LLM-only hackathon constraints: No human-written code in version control
• [04:30] Context management as the critical skill for effective LLM-assisted development
• [08:45] Explicit context control: Files, directories, API documentation, and web content integration
• [11:20] LLM hallucinations: When AI invents file contents and generates diffs against phantom code
• [13:00] Economics of AI-assisted coding: Approximately $0.01 per line of code
• [15:30] Tightening feedback loops: From day-long iterations to minutes in agile embedded workflows
• [17:45] Rapid technical debt accumulation: How LLMs can create problems faster than humans notice
• [19:30] The essential role of comprehensive testing in AI-assisted development workflows
• [22:00] Challenges with TDD and LLMs: Getting AI to take small steps and wait for feedback
• [26:15] Treating prompts like code: Version control, libraries, and project-specific prompt management
• [29:40] External context management: Coding style guides, plan files, and todo.txt workflows
• [32:00] LLM attention patterns: Beginning and end of context receive more focus than middle content
• [34:30] The evolving developer role: From coder to prompt engineer to AI supervisor to technical product owner
• [38:00] Code wireframing: Rapid prototyping for embedded systems using AI-generated implementations
• [40:15] Maintaining software engineering skills in the age of AI: The importance of manual practice
• [43:00] Software engineering vs. software carpentry: Architecture and goals over syntax and implementation

Notable Quotes

"One of the hardest things to get an LLM to do is nothing. Sometimes I just want to brainstorm with it and say, let's look at the code base, let's figure out how we're going to tackle this next piece of functionality. And then it says, 'Yeah, I think we should do it like this. You know what? I'm going to do it right now.' And it's so terrible. Stop. You didn't even wait for me to weigh in." — Luca Ingianni

"LLMs making everything faster also means they can create technical debt at a spectacular rate. And it gets a little worse because if you're not paying close attention and if you're not disciplined, then it kind of passes you by at first. It generates code and the code kind of looks fine. And you say, yeah, let's keep going. And then you notice that actually it's quite terrible." — Luca Ingianni

"I would not trust myself to review an LLM's code and be able to spot all of the little subtleties that it gets wrong. But if I at least have tests that express my goals and maybe also my worries in terms of robustness, then I can feel a lot safer to iterate very quickly within those guardrails." — Luca Ingianni

"Roughly speaking, the way I was using the tool, I was spending about a cent per line. Which is about two orders of magnitude below what a human programmer roughly costs. It really is a fraction. So that's nice because it makes certain things approachable. It changes certain build versus buy decisions." — Luca Ingianni

"You can tighten your feedback loops to an absurd degree. Maybe before, if you had a really tight feedback loop between a product owner and a developer, it was maybe a day long. And now it can be minutes or quarters of an hour. It is so much faster. And that's not just a quantitative step. It's also a qualitative step." — Luca Ingianni

"Some of my best performing prompts came from a place of desperation where one of my prompts is literally 'wait wait wait you didn't do what we agreed you would do you did not read the files carefully.' And I'd like to use this prompt now, even before it did something wrong. And then it apologizes as the first step. And I feel terrible because I hurt the LLM's feelings. But it is very effective." — Luca Ingianni

"As you tighten your feedback loops, quality must be maintained through code review and tests. Test first, new feature, review, passing tests—you need to go through that red-green-refactor loop. You can just hopefully do it much more quickly, and maybe in slightly bigger steps than you did before manually." — Jeff Gable

"A lot of what I'm doing is really intended to rein in an LLM's propensity to sort of ramble. It's very hard to get them to practice TDD because you can ask them to write the test first, then they will. And then they will just trample on and write the implementation right with it without stopping and returning control back to you." — Luca Ingianni

"Those prompts tend to be to some degree specific to the particular code base or the particular problem domain. Every now and then you stumble across ways of making an LLM do exactly what you want it to do within the context of the particular code base. And once you find a nugget like this, you keep it. You don't just keep it in the generic library. Some of those tricks will be very specific to a particular code base." — Luca Ingianni

"Just like humans, LLMs tend to pay more attention to the stuff at the beginning of the context and at the end, and the middle sort of gets not quite forgotten but kind of fuzzy. You really need to have a way to extract all of that before it becomes fuzzy and store it in a safe place where it can't be damaged, like a file." — Luca Ingianni

"I think we will hit this weird valley in the coming five years where everyone's just using LLMs and no one knows how to write code anymore. And there will be a need for people who can leverage the tools, but still have the skills that serve as the solid foundation." — Jeff Gable

"Maybe this is essentially software engineering finally becoming true to its name. At the moment, software engineering is sort of more like software carpentry. You're really doing the craft. You're laboring to put the curly brackets at the right places. And maybe now it's more about taking a step back and thinking in terms of architecture, and thinking in terms of goals, as opposed to knowing how to swing a hammer." — Luca Ingianni

Resources Mentioned

• Embedded Online Conference - Premier online conference for embedded systems professionals featuring talks on AI integration, development practices, and cutting-edge embedded technologies. All sessions are recorded and available for on-demand viewing.
• Aider - AI pair programming tool mentioned for its ability to integrate web content into context using commands like '/web [URL]' to incorporate API documentation and other online resources directly into the development workflow.
• GitHub Copilot - AI-powered code completion tool integrated with VS Code and other IDEs, enabling context-aware code generation and assistance for embedded development workflows.

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

The discussion covers Zephyr's comprehensive testing framework (Twister), CI/CD integration capabilities, and the cultural shift required when moving from traditional bare-metal development to this modern RTOS approach. We explore real-world applications from low-power IoT devices consuming just 5 microamps to complex multi-core systems, while addressing the learning curve challenges and when Zephyr might not be the right choice. This episode is essential listening for embedded teams considering modernizing their development practices and leveraging community-driven software ecosystems.

Key Topics

• [03:15] Zephyr RTOS fundamentals and Linux Foundation ecosystem benefits
• [08:30] Hardware abstraction and device tree implementation for portable embedded code
• [12:45] Nordic Semiconductor strategic partnership and silicon vendor support landscape
• [18:20] Native POSIX development capabilities and cross-platform debugging strategies
• [25:10] Learning curve challenges: EE vs CS background adaptation to Zephyr development
• [32:40] Resource requirements and low-power implementation on constrained microcontrollers
• [38:15] Multi-vendor chip support: STMicroelectronics, NXP, and industry adoption trends
• [42:30] Safety-critical applications and ongoing certification processes
• [45:50] Organizational transformation strategies and cultural adaptation challenges
• [52:20] Zbus inter-process communication and modular development architecture
• [58:45] Twister testing framework and comprehensive CI/CD pipeline integration
• [65:30] Sample-driven development methodology and long-lived characterization tests
• [72:15] Production testing automation and shell interface utilization
• [78:40] Model-based development integration and requirements traceability
• [82:10] When not to use Zephyr: Arduino simplicity vs RTOS complexity trade-offs

Notable Quotes

"With Zephyr, porting a Bluetooth project from one chip architecture to another took an hour for an intern, compared to what would traditionally be months of effort." — Luka Mustafa

"How many times have you written a logging subsystem? If the answer is more than zero, then it shouldn't be the case. Someone needs to write it once, and every three years someone needs to rewrite it with a better idea." — Luka Mustafa

"The real benefit comes from doing things the Zephyr way in Zephyr, because then you are adopting all of the best practices of developing the code, using all of the subsystems to the maximum extent." — Luka Mustafa

"You want to make sure your team is spending time on things that make money for you, not on writing logging, for example." — Luka Mustafa

• Zephyr Project - Linux Foundation-backed RTOS project providing comprehensive embedded development ecosystem
• Twister Testing Framework - Zephyr's built-in testing framework for unit tests, hardware-in-the-loop, and CI/CD integration
• Zbus Inter-Process Communication - Advanced event bus system for modular embedded development and component decoupling
• iirnas - Open-source examples of Zephyr best practices and CI/CD pipeline implementations
• Carles Cufi's Talk - Detailed presentation on Nordic's strategic decision to support Zephyr RTOS

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

• [05:30] Cross-disciplinary mobbing with firmware and hardware engineers in IoT development
• [12:45] Addressing efficiency objections: Local vs global optimization in embedded teams
• [18:20] DevOps collaboration patterns and reducing friction between software and infrastructure teams
• [25:10] Selling mob programming to management: Building trust through continuous delivery
• [35:40] Dynamic team composition and the law of personal mobility in technical teams
• [42:15] Coordinating mob teams with waterfall processes and hardware gate systems
• [48:30] Automated firmware protocol documentation and testing infrastructure

Notable Quotes

"When you initially hear about mobbing, you think everybody's inactive, but there's a lot of excess thought capacity around programming that can happen - somebody can be thinking about refactorings while others are typing the solution." — Chris Lucian

"If you're all there, that whole feedback loop can happen in 15 minutes as opposed to 15 days. It's like technical debt - you pay now or pay later, and if you pay later, it's going to be more expensive." — Austin Chadwick

"We tend to have multiple releases a day all the way to production. Most mobs will deliver to production at least twice a day - four hours of work and then deliver to prod." — Chris Lucian

Resources Mentioned

• Mob Mentality Show - Podcast dedicated to mob programming practices and extreme programming techniques
• Kent Beck's Test-Driven Development Book - Foundational resource for understanding true TDD practices in embedded development
• Amy Edmondson's Teaming Book - Framework for understanding high uncertainty and high interdependence scenarios in technical teams
• Liminal Thinking - Mental framework for breaking through belief-based barriers in agile transformation

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

• [03:45] Hardware-software coupling challenges and decoupling strategies
• [08:20] Documentation overhead in safety-critical medical device development
• [12:15] Breaking down silos between electrical, mechanical, and software engineering teams
• [18:30] Hardware abstraction layers as database abstraction equivalents
• [22:10] Introduction to mob programming: all brilliant minds working together
• [28:45] Flow efficiency and eliminating handoffs in embedded product development
• [35:20] Optimal mob sizes and team organization strategies
• [42:15] Inverse Conway maneuver for architectural alignment
• [48:30] Getting started with mob programming in embedded teams

Notable Quotes

"If you can run unit tests on your host and run your embedded code in a simulator on your PC, that's a pretty good indicator that you've successfully decoupled it from the hardware." — Jeff Gable

"You need to understand that documentation is actually part of your product. It's not separate from your product made of curly brackets - it's one and the same thing." — Luca Ingianni

"Typing is not the bottleneck. It's the problem solving. This is a method of problem solving together faster." — Chris Lucian

"If you get the whole system in the room and in the same mob, things just start cranking. You're not waiting for anything because everyone you need is there." — Austin Chadwick

Find the Mob Mentality Show at https://mobmentalityshow.podbean.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

In this episode of the Agile Embedded Podcast, Luca speaks with Violet Su, Business Development Manager at Seed Studio, about the challenges and opportunities in hardware manufacturing. 

The conversation explores the realities of hardware development, from initial prototyping to mass production. Violet emphasizes the importance of getting products into users' hands quickly to gather feedback, even if they're not perfect. She highlights common pitfalls for newcomers to hardware manufacturing, including underestimating costs, certification requirements, and supply chain complexities. The discussion also covers the growing influence of AI in hardware development and how emerging connectivity technologies are shaping the future of embedded systems.

Key Topics

• [01:30] Introduction to Seed Studio and its focus on open source hardware and AI
• [03:15] Changes in hardware development landscape over the past decade
• [06:45] Common challenges for hardware startups and innovators
• [12:30] The importance of early feedback and iterative development
• [16:20] Success story: OpenUC2 microscopy project collaboration
• [23:40] Indicators of a successful hardware project
• [28:15] Insights from Embedded World 2024 conference
• [33:10] Future trends in hardware beyond AI

Notable Quotes

"You might be able to design one and it really works when you have a sample or 10 samples, but when we talk about products, there are a lot of nuances that we really need to think about." — Violet Su

"You can fail faster so that you can succeed faster. We couldn't make a perfect project and we shouldn't expect to make a perfect product." — Violet Su

"When they give you the complaints early on, you will be very thankful, and they know you listened as well." — Violet Su

"The projects that might take off either really solve the pain of some people, or get people excited because it's something new." — Violet Su

"There's nothing better than getting customer complaints early on, so you don't get them later on." — Luca Ingianni

Resources Mentioned

• Seed Studio - Company providing open source hardware and AI solutions
• OpenUC2 - Open source modular microscopy project mentioned as a success story

Connect With Us

• Reach out to Violet Su at violet@seed.cc to discuss potential hardware collaborations with Seed Studio
• Visit seedstudio.com to explore their range of AI hardware and customization services
• Connect with Violet Su on LinkedIn for updates on hardware manufacturing trends

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

A key insight they discuss is that while AI tools offer amazing productivity boosts (much like IDEs did), they're not replacing experienced developers anytime soon. However, they raise interesting questions about the future job market for junior developers. Their take? Modern developers should absolutely embrace AI tools, but use them thoughtfully - especially when learning.

Key Timestamps and Topics:

00:00:00 - Welcome and episode overview

00:00:43 - Why this topic won't age well (but that's okay!)

00:02:20 - Breaking down different AI coding tools

00:08:00 - Deep dive into aider and workflow integration

00:20:02 - Using AI for testing and test-driven development

00:27:00 - AI-assisted architecture work and its limitations

00:30:40 - How AI helps explore unfamiliar codebases

00:33:30 - Debugging with AI - pros and cons

00:38:50 - What this means for development jobs

00:43:59 - Using AI to learn new frameworks/languages

00:46:15 - Embedded Online Conference preview

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

* [00:30] Introduction to the listener's question about repository granularity in embedded development

* [01:15] The listener's approach: separate repositories for different work products in safety-critical industries

* [03:20] Luca's initial reaction and concerns about over-complication

* [05:45] Discussion of monorepo approaches and configuration management

* [08:10] The concept of micro-repositories and parallels to microservices

* [11:30] Using feature flags and CI pipelines instead of repository separation

## Notable Quotes

> "You're splitting something which ought to be joined together into different repositories and hiding whatever is happening within the repositories from the different users, from the different developers." — Luca Ingianni

> "The risk of course is that you will not spot divergence early enough because people just don't merge because it's a chore and because things might break, and of course that is the point - the earlier you notice that something breaks, the easier it will be to fix it." — Luca Ingianni

> "I'm willing to guarantee that you're going to get the architecture wrong at least on the first try. You think you're being really smart and you cut it up into a bunch of microservices or micro-repositories, and you're just going to get the boundaries wrong." — Luca Ingianni

> "I would opt for fewer repositories and rather do configuration management within the repositories as opposed to between repositories. Use feature flags, use tagging, use whatever you want to insulate changes that might be breaking from the rest of the code base." — Luca Ingianni

## Resources Mentioned

* John Taylor's Embedded Project Cookbook - A resource mentioned by the listener that discusses sequential events in embedded projects

* Trunk-Based Development - Development methodology discussed throughout the episode

* Minimum CD Podcast - Previous podcast episode referenced by the listener

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

The discussion covers the fundamental requirements for continuous delivery, including automated testing, pipeline-driven deployments, and trunk-based development. The hosts emphasize that while these practices may seem challenging for embedded systems, they become increasingly important as devices become more sophisticated and connected.

A key theme throughout the episode is the importance of building trust in the development process through automation, consistent practices, and cultural commitment. The hosts stress that while some practices may seem difficult to implement in embedded systems, the more challenging they are, the more valuable they become when successfully implemented.

Timestamps and Topics:
00:00:00 - Introduction and overview of Minimum CD
00:02:00 - Discussion of Minimum CD as counter-movement to complex frameworks
00:03:45 - Continuous Integration fundamentals
00:15:35 - Pipeline as the only way to deploy
00:27:00 - Production-like test environments
00:29:45 - Rollback capabilities for connected devices
00:32:25 - Configuration deployment with artifacts
00:34:50 - Trunk-based development principles
00:39:30 - Automated testing requirements
00:41:10 - Maintaining delivered work integrity
00:45:55 - Wrap-up and closing thoughts

Shownotes:

Link to minimumcd.org: https://minimumcd.org/
Reference to Brian Finster as instigator of Minimum CD
Reference to Raymond Chen's blog about Windows backward compatibility
Reference to previous episode on trunk-based development
Reference to interviews with Philip Johnston from Embedded Artistry
Reference to interview with Francois from Mend Fault
Link to Agile Embedded Slack group

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

* [03:00] Ryan's background in offensive cybersecurity and defense contracting

* [04:30] The mindset and challenges of vulnerability research and hacking

* [09:15] How security researchers approach attacking embedded devices

* [13:45] Techniques for extracting and analyzing firmware

* [19:30] Security considerations for embedded developers

* [24:00] The importance of designing security from the beginning

* [28:45] Security challenges for small companies without dedicated security staff

* [33:20] Address Space Layout Randomization (ASLR) and other security measures

* [37:00] Emulation technology for testing embedded systems

* [45:30] Tulip Tree's approach to embedded system emulation and security testing

* [50:15] Resources for learning about cybersecurity and hacking

Notable Quotes

> "When you're on the vulnerability research side, you're trying to find a time when the software does something wrong. When it does something unexpected." — Ryan Torvik

> "Don't roll your own cryptography. Use a standard library for cryptography." — Ryan Torvik

> "We're seeing that the maintenance costs are what are getting people now. You're expected to maintain this device, but now you got to be able to actually update the device." — Ryan Torvik

> "It's so much more expensive to put security in after the fact if it's possible in the first place. Why is that even something that needs to be debated?" — Luca Ingianni

Resources Mentioned

[Tulip Tree Technology](tuliptreetech.com) - Ryan's company focused on embedded system security and emulation

* IDA Pro - Interactive disassembler for firmware analysis

* Binary Ninja - Interactive disassembler from Vector35

* Ghidra - NSA's open-source software reverse engineering tool

* Microcorruption - Beginner-friendly CTF challenge for learning embedded system hacking

* National Vulnerability Database - Public database of security vulnerabilities

Things to do

* Join the Agile Embedded Podcast Slack channel to connect with the hosts and other listeners

* Check out Tulip Tree Technology's website for their emulation tools and security services

* Try Microcorruption CTF challenges to learn about embedded system security vulnerabilities

* Consider security implications early in your design process rather than as an afterthought

* Use secure programming languages like Rust that help prevent common security issues

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

• [02:30] Definition of BDD as an additional layer of discipline on top of TDD
• [03:15] Common pitfalls of TDD, including testing to implementation and brittle tests
• [08:30] The structure of BDD tests using Given-When-Then format
• [12:00] Applying BDD at different levels, from unit tests to system tests
• [15:45] Using test doubles and spies for hardware interactions in embedded systems
• [22:30] Testing state machines with BDD
• [27:00] Off-target testing and hardware abstraction layers
• [33:00] Why BDD isn't more widely used in embedded systems
• [36:30] Using code coverage as a signal rather than a goal metric
• [39:00] Overcoming the learning curve and maintaining discipline in BDD

Notable Quotes

"BDD is an additional layer of discipline on top of TDD. Dan North's goal was to get straight to the good stuff of TDD without getting into the pitfalls." — Steve

"The key thing that BDD does by saying we're going to focus on behavior is you look at the API that you've written and you say, what can I do through the public API to affect this, to check the results and so forth?" — Steve

"By having abstraction layers, you create your thin layer that's substitutable with either the real code on target, or with a test double off target." — Steve

"Code coverage as a goal metric is not a good thing. Rather than using code coverage as just this almost dimensionless metric, use it as a signal to guide you." — Steve

"By adhering very strictly to the simple rules of how to do BDD, by forcing yourself to the discipline of that strict adherence, it keeps you on track." — Steve

Resources Mentioned

• James Grenning's book
• Steve's blog post
• Embedded Online Talk
• Ian Cooper's video

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

The book provides opinionated guidance on setting up project infrastructure, managing requirements, software architecture, and release processes. While organized in a waterfall-like structure for clarity, it emphasizes the need for agility in embedded development. A key theme is establishing good practices early to make releases boring and predictable rather than chaotic.

The content is valuable for different roles - from junior developers seeking context about the full development lifecycle, to technical leads implementing processes, to managers needing justification for development infrastructure investments. While the book presents John's specific approaches, he emphasizes that teams can adapt the recipes to their needs as long as they deliberately address the underlying challenges.

Key Topics Discussed (Timestamps):
00:00:00 - Introduction and background on John Taylor
00:02:00 - Comparison to previous book "Patterns in the Machine"
00:06:00 - Target audience and use cases
00:15:00 - Software Development Plans and their value
00:20:00 - Foundation setup before coding begins
00:27:00 - Managing project variants and configurations
00:30:00 - Communication and collaboration practices
00:35:00 - Release management and ongoing development
00:40:00 - Iterative development cycles
00:43:00 - Book availability and contact information

Links:
Embedded Systems Cookbook: https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/979-8-8688-0327-7
Patterns in the machine (the previous book): https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-1-4842-6440-9
John's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-tanner-taylor/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

The discussion highlights how trunk-based development acts as a "forcing function" that encourages better development practices, smaller changes, and more frequent collaboration between team members. They explain that while this approach originated in web development, it's equally applicable to embedded systems. The hosts cite research from the book "Accelerate" showing that trunk-based development is a predictor of high-performing software teams.

The episode concludes by emphasizing that most objections to trunk-based development actually point to underlying process issues that need to be addressed, and that the benefits of early integration and feedback outweigh the perceived downsides.

Timestamps:
00:00:00 - Introduction and topic overview
00:03:00 - Basic version control concepts and branching
00:08:00 - Definition and principles of trunk-based development
00:13:00 - Feature flags explanation and implementation
00:20:00 - Common objections to trunk-based development
00:27:00 - Application to embedded systems
00:34:00 - Benefits of trunk-based development
00:40:00 - Impact on team dynamics and collaboration
00:47:00 - Research backing and evidence from "Accelerate"

Shownotes / Links:
MinimumCD: https://minimumcd.org/
Accelerate: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35747076-accelerate
The nvie branching model: https://nvie.com/posts/a-successful-git-branching-model/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

The discussion covers how QP's hierarchical state machine framework makes it easier to manage complex state transitions and system behaviors. They share their experience using QP on a blood analyzer project, discussing how they structured the code with different layers of abstraction and maintained multiple test builds throughout development. The team found that QP's architecture helped make the system's complexity more manageable and testable.

A key learning they shared was about event communication - while they initially used direct posting between active objects, they later realized that using the publish-subscribe pattern more extensively would have made testing easier and the system more flexible. They recommend starting with QP's simple examples and gradually building up complexity rather than trying to implement complex examples right away.

Key Timestamps:
00:00:00 - Introduction and background
00:03:00 - Overview of QP framework and actor model
00:06:30 - Discussion of hierarchical state machines
00:19:30 - Project architecture and implementation approach
00:27:00 - Testing strategies and development process
00:30:00 - Team structure and collaboration
00:35:00 - Hardware/software integration
00:39:00 - Advice for getting started with QP
00:41:50 - About Inertia and contact information

Links:

Miro Samek's QP framework: https://www.state-machine.com/products/qp
Miro's book on QP framework: https://www.state-machine.com/psicc2
QP GitHub repository with example code: https://github.com/QuantumLeaps/qpc-examples
Inertia website: http://www.inertiapd.com/
Mitch English LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mitchellenglish/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

The discussion covers the origins of their tools, the challenges of maintaining open-source projects, and the different needs of various embedded development communities. We also explore the gaps in current testing tools, particularly in system and integration testing for embedded systems. The episode concludes with exciting news about the upcoming Ceedling 1.0 release and the launch of Ceedling Pro, a new commercial support offering.

Key Topics Discussed:

1. Origins of Unity, CMock, and Ceedling (3:00)
2. Challenges of open-source maintenance (14:30)
3. Barriers to entry for test-driven development in embedded systems (9:15)
4. System and integration testing tools for embedded systems (28:00)
5. Use of simulators and emulators in testing (37:30)
6. Changes in embedded development communities over time (41:30)
7. Upcoming Ceedling 1.0 release and Ceedling Pro launch (52:00)

Notable Quotes:

"The tools were really easy to develop in the first place. Unity is a very simple thing, and some people just use that without any of the rest of our tools. So the tool concept is not that hard. The thing that's hard, I think, for people getting into test-driven development or even test after is, more conceptual, like what do you test and how do you test it and what's worth doing and what's not." - Mark VanderVoord (10:15)

"GitHub as a tool is amazing. And also there's a couple, I love that they have all these metrics for like contributing to projects and stuff like that. And that really motivates some people, but also that occasionally gets in our way because as Mike said, the easiest path isn't always directly merging something and then they don't get credit for." - Mark VanderVoord (21:30)

"Arduino actually cured me of my hatred for C++. I, for a long time, despised C++. I just, it was just so stupidly complicated and arcane and just a junk drawer of software concepts." - Michael Karlesky (47:30)

Timestamps:

0:00 - Introduction and guest introductions
3:00 - Origins of Unity, CMock, and Ceedling
9:15 - Barriers to entry for test-driven development in embedded systems
14:30 - Challenges of open-source maintenance
28:00 - Discussion on system and integration testing tools
37:30 - Thoughts on simulators and emulators in testing
41:30 - Changes observed in embedded development communities
47:30 - Arduino and its impact on C++ perception
52:00 - Upcoming Ceedling 1.0 release and Ceedling Pro launch
55:30 - Closing remarks and contact information

For more information about the topics discussed, visit throwtheswitch.org or reach out to Mark and Michael directly.

https://www.linkedin.com/company/100875285/
mark.vandervoord@thingamabyte.com
michael.karlesky@thingamabyte.com
www.throwtheswitch.org
www.github.com/ThrowTheSwitch/Ceedling

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

In this episode of the Agile Embedded Podcast, hosts Jeff Gable and Luca Ingianni play buzzword bingo, discussing various modern development techniques, tools, and methodologies in the context of embedded systems. They explore the relevance and applicability of terms like microservices, serverless, Kubernetes, Docker, continuous integration, continuous delivery, continuous deployment, A/B testing, API-first design, behavior-driven development, and modern languages such as Rust and C++. They also touch upon the use of AI in development and deployment processes, along with debugging, observability, monitoring, and simulation tools like Memfault, Mender, and Renode. The conversation seeks to provide insights and opinions on which of these techniques and tools are worth investigating or applying to embedded projects.

00:00 Introduction to the Agile Embedded Podcast
00:06 Exploring Modern Development Buzzwords
01:26 Web Technologies in Embedded Systems
05:28 Diving into Docker for Embedded Development
07:49 Understanding Immutable Infrastructure
13:32 Continuous Integration, Delivery, and Deployment
19:53 A/B Testing in IoT Devices
23:06 API First Design in Embedded Systems
26:08 Modern Languages: The Case for Rust
27:54 Exploring Rust in Embedded Systems
28:37 Challenges with Modern C Programming
30:10 Embedded Linux and Language Flexibility
32:27 Model-Based Development with Simulink
33:53 Modern Tooling for Embedded Systems
40:25 AI in Embedded Systems
44:05 AI-Assisted Development
47:36 Conclusion and Contact Information

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

In this episode of the Agile Embedded Podcast, hosts Jeff Gable and Luca Ingianni are joined by Philip Markgraf, an experienced software developer and technical leader, to discuss the use of Rust in embedded systems. Philip shares his background in C/C++ development, his journey with Rust, and the advantages he discovered while using it in a large development project. The conversation touches on memory safety, efficient resource management, the benefits of Rust's type system, and the supportive Rust community. They also explore the practical considerations for adopting Rust, including its tooling, ecosystem, and applicability to Agile development. The episode concludes with Philip offering resources for learning Rust and connecting with its community.

00:00 Introduction and Guest Welcome
00:26 Philip's Journey with Rust
01:01 The Evolution of Programming Languages
02:27 Evaluating Programming Languages for Embedded Systems
06:13 Adopting Rust for a Green Energy Project
08:57 Benefits of Using Rust
11:24 Rust's Memory Management and Borrow Checker
15:50 Comparing Rust and C/C++
19:32 Industry Trends and Future of Rust
22:30 Rust in Cloud Computing and Embedded Systems
23:11 Vendor-Supplied Driver Support and ARM Processors
24:09 Open Source Hardware Abstraction Libraries
25:52 Advantages of Rust's Memory Model
29:32 Test-Driven Development in Rust
30:35 Refactoring and Tooling in Rust
31:14 Simplicity and Coding Standards in Rust
32:14 Error Messages and Linting Tools
33:32 Sustainable Pace and Developer Satisfaction
36:15 Adoption and Transition to Rust
39:37 Hiring Rust Developers
42:23 Conclusion and Resources

Resources

Phil's Linkedin

The Rust Language
Rust chat rooms (at the Awesome Embedded Rust Resources List)

The Ferrocene functional-safety qualified Rust compiler

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

In this episode of the Agile Embedded Podcast, hosts Jeff Gable and Luca Ingianni discuss the pitfalls of relying on 'magic' in software development, particularly in tooling, build systems, and frameworks. They illuminate how seemingly helpful abstractions can become burdensome when they obscure necessary complexities or become hard to debug. Through various examples, including comparisons of Arduino and CMake, they explore what makes a good abstraction versus a bad one. The conversation also delves into the importance of composability, testability, and the real-world impact of overly simplistic or 'magical' solutions in long-term projects. The episode wraps up with practical advice for selecting and designing more effective coding abstractions to mitigate risks.

00:00 Introduction and Episode Theme
00:19 The Problem with Magic in Programming
02:54 Examples of Good and Bad Abstractions
04:45 Frameworks and Tools: Arduino vs. CMake
08:10 Vendor-Supplied Tools and Their Pitfalls
13:05 Characteristics of Good Abstractions
29:04 Testing and Abstractions
37:10 Final Thoughts and Contact Information

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

In this episode of the Agile Embedded Podcast, hosts Jeff Gable and Luca Ingianni are joined by Bailey Steinfadt, owner of Stonepath Engineering. Bailey discusses her experiences in teaching Git and other software tools to non-software engineers, particularly in small manufacturing companies. Topics include the importance of visibility and trust in code projects, the typical profiles of her clients, and strategies for effective communication and trust-building between technical and non-technical stakeholders. The episode also touches on useful tools like GitHub, Miro, and Draw.io for managing projects and fostering collaboration.

00:00 Introduction and Guest Welcome
00:24 Bailey's Background and Stonepath Engineering
01:41 Challenges with Non-Software Engineers Using Git
05:46 Teaching Git to Non-Software Engineers
14:35 Building Trust Through Git and Communication
20:45 Tools and Techniques for Effective Communication
37:32 Final Thoughts and Contact Information

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Welcome to the latest episode of the Agile Embedded Podcast with Jeff Gable and Luca Ingianni! In this episode, we address a listener's question about the book 'Accelerate' by Nicole Forsgren, Jez Humble, and Gene Kim. Jeff and Luca delve into how the principles from this book, which focuses on Lean Software and DevOps, can be applied to embedded systems development. They discuss the nuances of embedded systems, the relevance of DORA metrics, and share insights on how capabilities and processes from the book translate to the unique challenges of embedded systems. Tune in to understand how you can adapt and implement these best practices in your projects.

00:00 Introduction to the Agile Embedded Podcast
00:06 Overview of the Book 'Accelerate'
00:50 Research Methodology and Key Findings
02:56 DORA Metrics Explained
05:30 Key Capabilities for Effective Organizations
18:41 Applying 'Accelerate' Principles to Embedded Systems
20:19 Challenges and Considerations in Embedded Systems
34:10 The Importance of Logging and Feedback Loops
37:43 Empowering Teams and Encouraging Experimentation
41:58 Final Thoughts and Recommendations

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

In this episode of the Agile Embedded Podcast, hosts Jeff Gable and Luca Ingianni are joined by Weronika Michaluk, Software as a Medical Device Practice Lead at HTD Health. Weronika shares her experiences and lessons learned from working with firmware teams, bridging cross-functional collaboration, and discussing the importance of version control, aligning technical aspects, and clear communication. The conversation delves into agile methodologies, customer interactions, and strategies for efficient requirement management in the medical device industry. Tune in to gain valuable insights from Weronika's extensive expertise.

00:00 Introduction and Guest Introduction
00:38 Veronica's Background and Experience
01:54 Understanding Software as a Medical Device (SAMD)
04:14 Lessons Learned in Cross-Functional Teams
05:42 Importance of Version Control
08:58 Team Collaboration and Communication
21:17 Managing Requirements in Agile Development
25:49 Effective Team Collaboration and Documentation
26:24 Tools and Processes for Project Management
26:42 Client and Team Meetings
27:13 Refinement and Feedback Loops
29:38 Change Order Process
36:11 Client Perspectives on Agile
38:09 Challenges with Agile in Medical Device Development
40:18 Differences in Client Types
45:47 Final Thoughts and Conclusion

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Get in touch with Milton Yarberry at:
  - email:  myarberry@ics.com
  - LinkedIn:   https://www.linkedin.com/in/milton-yarberry-06a2311

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Code Retreat -- a community event to practice Software Development:  https://www.coderetreat.org  

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Reach out to Ross on Linkedin:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/rdehmoobed/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Max offers embedded software and controls engineering consulting for automotive applications.

Website: http://mks.technology
Email: max.kolesnikov@mks.technology
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/max-kolesnikov-phd-9b41617/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Try Renode at https://renode.io/

 Github:  https://github.com/renode/renode

 Check out the Antmicro blog for Renode news:
   - ARMv8-A and 64-bit peripheral support in Renode
   - Simulating NB-IoT networking in Renode

See the boards supported by Renode:  zephyr-dashboard.renode.io

Watch our keynote about Organizing the Hardware Ecosystem with Open Source: Antmicro Visual System Designer during the Embedded Open Source Summit 2023 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XtnTkCRrww

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Git for Hardware Guide - 80+ page book on how to apply these principles to hardware development
  https://content.allspice.io/en-us/git-for-hardware-guide

See the hardware collaboration platform in action:
  https://content.allspice.io/schedule-allspice-demo-allie
 

Get in touch with Valentina Ratner:
  Valentina@allspice.io
  https://www.linkedin.com/in/valentinaratner/

Get in touch with Kyle Dumont:
  Kyle@allspice.io
  https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyledumont/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Feabhas training courses
https://www.feabhas.com/course-list

blog (over 10 years of content)
https://blog.feabhas.com

YouTube list:
Is C+ a Safer C?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1lrN5bti-b4

A brief introduction to concepts in Modern C++
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vdr-q-uEBjI

Why Rust won't replace C (just yet anyway)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojEXMM_1bVA

Other shownotes from things mentioned during the podcast:
Doctest: https://github.com/doctest/doctest
Dev Containers for VSCode: https://microsoft.github.io/code-with-engineering-playbook/developer-experience/devcontainers/

GodBolt compiler explorer: https://godbolt.org/
CPP Insights: https://cppinsights.io/
Catch2 unit testing framework: https://github.com/catchorg/Catch2
Clang-tidy: https://clang.llvm.org/extra/clang-tidy/
Clang-format: https://clang.llvm.org/docs/ClangFormat.html
Mbed OS for ARM: https://os.mbed.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Find Jonathan Hall here:  https://jhall.io/

Minimum Viable CD:  https://minimumcd.org/minimumcd/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Elecia's book "Making Embedded Systems" is highly recommended for junior and senior developers alike!

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Email: hello@dojofive.com
Website:   https://dojofive.com/
LinkedIn:   https://www.linkedin.com/in/schneiderjoseph/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Learn more about Embedded Artistry's consulting services!

Virtual panel discussion with Memfault on "Debugging Embedded Devices in Production", recorded in August 2022.

Get in touch with Phillip Johnston here.

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Learn more about Embedded Artistry's consulting services!

Virtual panel discussion with Memfault on "Debugging Embedded Devices in Production", recorded in August 2022.

Get in touch with Phillip Johnston here.

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

An excellent blog post covering practical implications of the Three Ways of Devops

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Get in touch with James:

• Email: james@wingman-sw.com
• Web: https://wingman-sw.com
• Twitter: @jwgrenning
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jwgrenning/

More from James:

• Stories from alumni of James Grenning's TDD Training
• The ZOMBIE guide to writing useful unit tests
• The classic book: Test-Driven Development for Embedded C
  Buy it here

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

His original "Matthew Test" article is here.

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

His original "Matthew Test" article is here.

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.

You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Matt is hiring at RISE Robotics!  

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer. 

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.

You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer. 

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer. 

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Embedded Online Conference
IoT Online Conference
RTOS Training with Jacob
Reusable Firmware Development (Book)

ARM TrustZone

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Accompanying course materials are here. 

Miro's company, Quantum Leaps, can be found at https://www.state-machine.com. 

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.

You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.

You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer. 

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer. 

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

A Field Manual for Ceedling by Matt Chernosky

How to use Ceedling for Embedded Test-Driven Development (FREE)

Get in touch with Matt Chernosky:  matt@electronvector.com

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.

You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer. 

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer. 

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Easy Approach to Requirements Syntax:   https://qracorp.com/easy-approach-to-requirements-syntax-ears-guide/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.

You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer. 

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer. 

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

https://luca.engineer

“Data Model” pattern -- see Patterns in the Machine by John Taylor
    https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/patterns-in-the-machine-john-taylor/1137499000

“MHC - Model-Hardware-Controller” pattern -- see Test Driven Development course from Throw the Switch  

    http://www.throwtheswitch.org/dr-surlys-school

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer. 

The Git-Flow branching model:  https://nvie.com/posts/a-successful-git-branching-model/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer. 

The Devops Handbook by Gene Kim, Jez Humble, Patrick Debois, and John Willis

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Read more about Living Documentation at Bluefruit.

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.

You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer. 

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.

You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer. 

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer. 

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.

You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer. 

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer. 

"Working Effectively with Legacy Code" by Michael Feathers

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.

You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer. 

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Luca at luca.engineer.

Joel Spolsky's post "Getting Things Done when You're Only a Grunt"

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Luca at luca.engineer. 

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

You can find Luca at luca.engineer. 

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Jeff's website:  https://jeffgable.com

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Jeff's website:  https://jeffgable.com

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/

Jeff's website:  https://jeffgable.com

You can find Jeff at https://jeffgable.com.
You can find Luca at https://luca.engineer.

Want to join the agile Embedded Slack? Click here

Are you looking for embedded-focused trainings? Head to https://agileembedded.academy/
Ryan Torvik and Luca have started the Embedded AI podcast, check it out at https://embeddedaipodcast.com/