localfirst.fm

CfP for Local-first Conf 2026 is open. Adam and Johannes discuss this year’s conference themes.Mentioned in podcast:Adam Wiggins: x.com/_adamwiggins_ / adamwiggins.comLocal-First Conf 2026Links: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfm

In this special episode, together with Adam Wiggins and James Arthur, we’re excited to announce the first Sync Conf in San Francisco in November.Mentioned in podcast:James Arthur: x.com/thruflo / bsky.app/profile/thrufloAdam Wiggins: x.com/_adamwiggins_ / adamwiggins.comSyncConfLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmThank you to Jazz for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episode is Adam Fish, co-founder and CEO of Ditto, a end-to-end syncing platform with a focus on resilient connectivity. In this conversation Adam shares the origin story of Ditto, his prior related work on Realm and the hard networking problems that Ditto is solving.Mentioned in podcast:Adam Fish: X + GitHubRealmDittoLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmThank you to Jazz for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episode is Tanner Linsley, creator of the TanStack ecosystem including projects such as React Query and TanStack Router. This episode will talk about the newest project, TanStack DB and explore the problems it’s trying to solve and how it works.Mentioned in podcast:Tanner Linsley: X + GitHubTanStackTanStack QueryTanStack DBLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmThank you to Jazz for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episode is Ben Holmes, a senior web developer and educator known for his whiteboard videos. After having spent most of his career building server-centric applications, Ben recently explored local-first software by building a simple sync engine which we talk through in-depth. Mentioned in podcast:Ben Holmes: Website + X + YouTube + Bluesky + GitHubAstroSimple Sync EngineWarpStop Building Databases by Carl SverreSQLSyncGraftLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmThank you to Jazz for supporting the podcast.

This episode's guest is Sujay Jayakar, co-founder of Convex and early engineer at Dropbox. In this conversation, Sujay shares the story of how the sync engine powering Dropbox was initially built and later redesigned to address all sorts of distributed systems problems Mentioned in podcast:Sujay Jayakar: X + GitHub + Bluesky + LinkedinConvexDropboxTech Talk on Dropbox’s ArchitectureRewriting the heart of our sync engineTesting sync at DropboxHow Convex WorksA Map of SyncAn Object Sync Engine for Local-first AppsLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmThank you to Jazz for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episodeis Paul Butler, founder of Jamsocket and creator of the Y-Sweet project. This conversation will delve into building vs buying a sync engine and explore the various projects behind Jamsocket including Plane, Y-Sweet and ForeverVM.Mentioned in podcast:Paul Butler: Website + XJamsocketLearn YjsY-SweetPlaneForeverVMYou might not need a CRDTAI as a Player in MultiplayerBrowsertech Digest Trip Report: Local First ConfBrowsertech Digest: Encrypting offline storage for local-first appsBrowsertech Digest: Figma is a File EditorThe WebAssembly App GapLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmThank you to ElectricSQL and Jazz for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episode is Seph Gentle, a prolific software researcher who is behind projects such as the new eg-walker paper and ShareJS, one of the oldest local-first open source projects. Before, Seph also co-created Google Wave over 10 years ago which will be explored in-depth in this episode.Mentioned in podcast:Seph Gentle: Website + XCRDTs are the futureCollaborative Text Editing with Eg-WalkerHammock Driven Development - Rich HickeyLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmThank you to ElectricSQL for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episode is Adam Wulf, the engineer and solopreneur behind Muse, a local-first canvas-based tool for thought. This conversation will get trough the evolution of Muse as a product, company and people who made it, reflecting on the joys and struggles of building software as a team of one. Later, the conversation will dive deep into topics such as analytics and distribution of a local-first app. Mentioned in podcast:Adam Wulf: Website + Bluesky + Mastodon + GitHubMuse + Bluesky + X Muse Discord community Download MuseSetappMuse Setapp launchRebuilt iPhone app Adam Wiggins' RetrospectiveMuse Sync at Programming Local First Workshop – ECOOP’22Links: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmThank you to Convex and ElectricSQL for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episode is Brooklyn Zelenka, a local-first researcher and creator of various projects including UCAN and Beehive. This conversation, will go deep on authorization and access control in a decentralized, local-first environment and explore this topic by learning about UCAN and Beehive. Later, the conversation will also diving into Beelay, a new generic sync server implementation developed by Ink & Switch. Mentioned in podcast:Brooklyn Zelenka: Website + GitHub + Bluesky + MastodonMessaging Layer Security (MLS)Messaging layer security: Encrypting a group chatTreeKEMGroup Messaging for Secure Asynchronous Collaboration by Matthew A. WeidnerBeehive lab notebookUCAN Working GroupUCAN - Be in control of your auth: Brooklyn Zelenka (Local-First Conf)AutomergeWNFS Working GroupRobust Composition: Towards a Unified Approach to Access Control and Concurrency Control by Mark Samuel MillerSPKI Certificate TheoryEdwards-Curve Digital Signature Algorithm (EdDSA)Comparison of Symmetric Encryption MethodsLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmThank you to Convex and ElectricSQL for supporting the podcast.

This is a special episode which was recorded as a Twitter space conversation between Gordon Brander, Peter Van Hardenberg, and Jess Martin.This conversation explores the ideas and trade offs of apps versus files.Mentioned in podcastGordon Brander Peter van HardenbergJess MartinLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfm

The guest of this episode is James Arthur, founder and CEO of Electric SQL, a Postgres-centric sync engine for local-first apps. This conversation will dive deep into how Electric works and explore its design decisions such as read-path syncing and using HTTP as the network layer to improve scalability. Towards the end we are also covering PGLite, a new Postgres in WASM project by Electric. Mentioned in podcastJames Arthur: x.com/thruflo / bsky.app/profile/thrufloElectricSQLElectricSQL - QuickstartElectricSQL - GithubDiscord - ElectricSQLPGlitePGlite - Githubdatabase.buildtrigger.devLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmThank you to PowerSync and Rocicorp for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episode is Kyle Simpson, a prolific JavaScript engineer and author of the book You Don’t Know JS. Over the past years, Kyle has been researching user identity and encryption in a local-first context which we explore in depth in this episode. This conversation will dive into the story that led Kyle to local-first including what he calls Web 2.5 and Zero Servers.Editor's Note: when Kyle speaks about SilentJS, is actually referring to QuiteJS (link below)Mentioned in podcastKyle Simpson: x.com/getifyX / me.getify.comLocal-peer-to-peerWebauthn-local-clientLocal-data-lockLocal-vaultStorageQr-data-syncVella.aiSocket SupplyYou-Dont-Know-JSLoFi.soQuietJSLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmThank you to PowerSync and Rocicorp for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episode is Anselm Eickhoff, creator of Jazz and founder of Garden Computing. This conversation will dive deep into Jazz to learn how it works and which use cases it’s a good fit for by exploring various apps already built on top of Jazz. Mentioned in podcastAnselm Eickhoff: x.com/anselm_io / anselm.iojazz.toolsGarden ComputingLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmThank you to PowerSync and Rocicorp for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episode is Tuomas Artman, co-founder and CTO of Linear. Prior to Linear, Tuomas had already built sync engines for over a decade at companies like Groupon and Uber. This conversation will explore how local-first and software quality was crucial for Linear’s success and how the concept of a startup MVP should be rethought. Mentioned in podcastTuomas Artman: x.com/artman / github.com/artmanLinearScaling the Linear Sync EngineRethinking the startup Mvp: Building a competitive productUnexpected benefits of going local-first - Tuomas Artman (Local-First Conf)Links: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmThank you to PowerSync and Rocicorp for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episode is Matthew Weidner, a computer science PhD student at Carnegie Mellon University focussing on distributed systems and local-first software. Matthew has recently published an extensive blog post about architectures for central server collaboration which is explored in depth in this conversation comparing different approaches such as CRDTs and event sourcing.Mentioned in podcastMatthew Weidner: x.com/MatthewWeidner3 / mattweidner.comArchitectures for Central Server CollaborationTRVE Data projectShapiro 2011 paperCarlos Baquero papersCRDT paper (the "very theoretical" one)Collabs: Docs / PaperJupiter collaboration system from the 90sBuilding on QuicksandImmutability Changes EverythingInk & Switch's Upwellinglist-positionsFractional indexingLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmThank you to Expo and Rocicorp for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episode is Maggie Appleton, a designer, anthropologist and developer who has recently explored the world of local-first by giving the closing keynote at the last local-first conf. This conversation will dive into the topics of her talk including home cooked software, the idea behind barefoot developers and how AI complements local-first software development. Mentioned in podcastMaggie Appleton: x.com/Mappletons + maggieappleton.comHome-cooked Software and Barefoot Programmers: Maggie Appleton (Local-First Conf)Home-Cooked Software and Barefoot DevelopersLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmThank you to Expo and Rocicorp for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episode is James Pearce, the author of Tinybase, a reactive data store library for local-first apps. This conversation will explore how Tinybase works including its custom query system, the various persistence and syncing integrations as well as James’ plans for the future. Mentioned in podcastJames Pearce: x.com/jamespearce + scoutsailing.comTinyBaseTinyHubLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmLocal-First Conf 2024Thank you to Expo and Rocicorp for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episode is Adam Wiggins, who is the founder of Heroku and one of the co-authors of the local-first essay by Ink & Switch. As Adam is also a co-organizer of the first local-first conference, this conversation will reflect on the event, share our learnings and discuss a couple of key topics such as a new definition of local-first software. Mentioned in podcastAdam Wiggins: x.com/_adamwiggins_ + adamwiggins.comBrowsertech Digest Trip Report: Local First ConfAlice and Bob in wonderland. Bootstrapping identity and authority in a world without servers.Links: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmLocal-First Conf 2024Thank you to Expo and Rocicorp for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episode is Matt Wonlaw, a prolific local-first tool builder who’s behind projects such as Vlcn, cr-sqlite and Materialite. Most recently Matt also joined Rocicorp to work on their new product. This conversation will go deep on his projects covering CRDTs, SQLite and incremental view maintenance.Mentioned in podcastMatt Wonlaw: x.com/tantaman + github.com/tantamanRemoteStorageownCloudThe Virtual Table Mechanism Of SQLiteTowards a General Database Management System of Conflict-Free Replicated RelationsMaterialite benchmarkLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmLocal-First Conf 2024Thank you to Expo and Rocicorp for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episode is Dax Raad, who is using local-first in multiple projects including the serverless deployment tool SST.dev, a healthcare app and an upcoming personal finance app. This conversation will explore how local-first simplifies app development, the UX and data patterns he used on and how self-hosting could empower local-first apps.Mentioned in podcastDax Raad: x.com/thdxr + thdxr.comSST.devRethinking the startup MVP: Building a competitive product.Links: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmLocal-First Conf 2024Thank you to Expo and CrabNebula for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episode is Pirijan Ketheswaran, the creator of the Kinopio, a playful, canvas-based tool for thought. He is also the co-creator of the online IDE Glitch. This conversation will go trough his journey as a creative including his time at Fog Creek and later building Kinopio as a solo developer.Mentioned in podcastPirijan Ketheswaran: x.com/pketh + pketh.orgMastodon: @[email protected] Four Years of Glitch Kinopio: Building Offlineare.na/kinopioLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmLocal-First Conf 2024Thank you to Expo and CrabNebula for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episode is James Long, the creator of local-first app called Actual Budget and the absurd-sql project which helped to pave the way to bring SQLite back to the browser. This conversation will explore his journey of building Actual Budget including implementing a syncing solution from scratch and expanding from an Electron app to mobile and the web while re-using most of the code. Mentioned in podcastJames Long: x.com/jlongster + jlongster.comJames Long: Where Have I Been?Actual Budget on GitHub actualbudget.orgHybrid Logical ClocksNodejs-mobileabsurd-sqlLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmLocal-First Conf 2024Thank you to Expo and CrabNebula for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episode is Rasmus Anderson, who helped to build many monumental products such as Spotify, Dropbox and Figma and is now working on Playbit, a local-first operating system built from scratch. This extended conversation will go deep on software quality, the tradeoffs of different data models and the importance of the web for modern applications. Mentioned in podcastRasmus Andersson: x.com/rsms + rsms.mePlaybitLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmLocal-First Conf 2024Thank you to Expo and CrabNebula for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episode is Kyle Matthews, who, in the past, founded Gatsby JS and is currently delving into local-first software. In the conversation, Kyle shares his experiences in building some small-scale local-first apps for his personal use and discusses how the utilization of a data syncing engine liberates significant development time.Mentioned in podcastKyle Mathews: x.com/kylemathews + bricolage.io bricolage.io/some-notes-on-local-first-developmentbricolage.io/build-notes-micro-apps-time-distributionelectric-sqlLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmLocal-First Conf 2024Thank you to Expo and CrabNebula for supporting the podcast.

The guest of this episode, Martin Kleppmann, is one of the authors of the original local-first essay. Martin has been exploring local-first software and CRDTs for over 10 years, which has led to the creation of Automerge, which we discuss in depth in this episode. This episode is also exploring the ideas of generic sync servers and the impact this technology could have on local-first software in the future.Mentioned in podcastMartin Kleppmann: martin.kleppmann.com + x.com/martinkl + bsky.app/profile/martin.kleppmann.com + nondeterministic.computer/@martinInk & SwitchBlueskyAutomerge CRDTsThe original CRDT paperOur JSON CRDT paperOur design for rich text in AutomergeHow Bluesky worksLinks: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmLocal-First Conf 2024Thank you to Expo and CrabNebula for supporting the podcast.

In this episode we talk about Geoffrey's background in malleable software and how relational databases can be leveraged to build better web apps and improve data ownership. A topic he extensively investigates through the Riffle research project.Mentioned in podcastGeoffrey Litt: x.com/geoffreylitt + www.geoffreylitt.com Ink and Switch Cambria (2020) Riffle essay (2022) Riffle paper (2023)Links: Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmThank you to Expo and CrabNebula for supporting the podcast.

In this episode we talk about Aaron's history in local-first, which goes back to 2008 with the release of Google Gears – the first time sqlite was added to the browser - and his perspective on where we're at now and why local-first is finally happening.Mentioned in podcast:Aaron: x.com/aboodman + aaronboodman.comen.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gears_(software)rocicorp.devreplicache.devreflect.netLinks:Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmThank you to Expo and CrabNebula for supporting the podcast.

In this inaugural episode, I'm speaking to Peter van Hardenberg, who helped to coin and popularize the term Local First. As the director of the Ink & Switch Research Lab, he's been on the forefront of this work for the better part of a decade. My conversation with him today starts with the basics of what Local First is and why you, an application developer, should care about it.Mentioned in podcast:Peter: x.com/pvh + pvh.cainkandswitch.com/local-firstinkandswitch.comautomerge.orgLinks:Website: localfirst.fmX/Twitter: x.com/localfirstfmYouTube: youtube.com/@localfirstfmThank you to Expo and CrabNebula for supporting the podcast.