React 19 Shakes Up Front-End Development

Hello!

I’m excited to share some big developments that caught my attention this week. The long-awaited React 19 just had its stable release, electrifying developers worldwide, AWS made scaling databases more affordable with price cuts as big as 50%, and Eventbrite is setting the bar for frontend performance. 

Alongside these, you’ll find practical tips on 3 skills any tech lead needs, and a look into the future of tech in 2025.

Grab your coffee, get comfortable, and enjoy the articles I’ve picked for this edition of Frictionless.

Also in the Queue

• Challenges Slowing AI Development

• New ChatGPT 200$ Subscription

• Did We Lose Our Critical Thinking Skills Because of AI?

• Sanity CMS Best Use Cases

• Supreme Court Upholds TikTok Ban

Reduce Friction

3 Main Soft Skills a Tech Lead Needs to Develop

Taking the time to listen, showing empathy for your team’s challenges, and communicating clearly can make all the difference in building trust and fostering collaboration. It’s these human connections that drive the success of entire enterprises. 

AI Obesity: Are We Losing Our Critical Thinking Skills?

AI tools have become second nature for many of us, but have you noticed how easy it is to let them do all the thinking? It's worth considering how this reliance might affect our ability to think critically and solve problems independently.

How Teaching Made Me a Better Engineer and Manager

Teaching can make you better at engineering on any skill or experience level. Explaining concepts to others sharpens your understanding, improves communication, and builds empathy, skills that are as important as technical expertise.

Grifters, Believers, Grinders, and Coasters

Software engineers often fit into one of four archetypes, which you should learn to recognize: Grifters, who navigate organizational dynamics to succeed; Believers, who hold firm to high standards and core values; Coasters, who focus on maintaining a balanced workload; and Grinders, who consistently deliver results through sheer effort. 

Deepen Your Expertise

The 70% Problem: Hard Truths About AI-Assisted Coding

Addy Osmani, an engineering leader at Google, reveals why 70% of software projects fall short: misaligned goals, poor communication, and weak testing. Addy shares practical advice to turn these failures into successes.

React v19

React 19 is finally here, and it was worth the wait! The update completely transforms modern web development with server components that boost performance and deliver smoother user experiences. Actions simplify state management for cleaner, more intuitive workflows, while useOptimistic makes handling UI updates easy, while keeping your apps responsive and efficient. 

How To Improve INP: React⚛️

Focusing on Interaction-to-Next-Paint (INP) can make a huge difference in how your React app performs. Using startTransition() to prioritize updates, <Suspense> for faster hydration, and optimizing input handling help create a smoother experience.

🎧 Sanity CMS Best Use Cases: Enterprise Websites, Media Platforms, E-Commerce & More

In the third episode of Frictionless Development, Jakub Dakowicz and I talk about Sanity CMS, which projects can benefit from it the most, and why. We’ve worked with Sanity on websites requiring complex content structures and massive datasets, and it always delivers exactly what’s needed for global organizations.

Tech Predictions for 2025 and Beyond

Looking ahead to 2025 we have a lot of exciting trends to look forward to - like advances in clean energy for sustainable tech, AI tools to counter disinformation, and intention-driven systems that prioritize meaningful user engagement.

Increase Scalability

How Eventbrite Is Scaling Development with a Distributed Frontend Architecture

Eventbrite transitioned to a distributed frontend architecture, Valkyrie, to boost development speed and performance. This shift reduced team dependencies, improved Core Web Vitals, and enabled faster, more efficient scaling.

AWS Cuts Database Prices Almost 50% and Adds Distributed Scaling Capabilities

AWS just made scaling databases easier and more affordable. DynamoDB prices dropped by up to 67%, Aurora DSQL now handles large-scale workloads with ease, and MemoryDB’s new multi-region support ensures low-latency performance across geographies.

Why Sanity Is the Best CMS for the Healthcare Industry

Sanity CMS stands out when it comes to tackling the challenges of managing content in healthcare. Its flexible workflows help meet strict compliance standards, and real-time collaboration helps to keep teams on the same page.

Three Software Development Challenges Slowing AI Progress

AI development faces difficulties like ensuring high-quality data, scaling infrastructure efficiently, and integrating AI into existing systems. Unlocking AI’s full potential without disrupting operations or escalating costs won’t be possible without overcoming these challenges. 

Just Cool

OpenAI Confirms New $200 Monthly Subscription, ChatGPT Pro, Which Includes Its o1 Reasoning Model

OpenAI’s new $200/month ChatGPT Pro plan offers unlimited access to advanced AI tools, including enhanced reasoning models and GPT-4o.

Appeals Court Upholds U.S. Ban of TikTok

A federal appeals court has upheld a law mandating that ByteDance, TikTok's Chinese parent company, divest its ownership of the app by January 19, 2025, or face a U.S. ban. The court ruled that national security concerns justify this action, dismissing TikTok's claims of First Amendment violations.

Let’s Stay in Touch! 📨 

Do you have any comments about this newsletter issue or questions you want to ask? Drop me a message or book a meeting.