HTML All The Things - Web Development, AI, and Developer Careers

2026 is shaping up to be a strange time to be an engineer. AI is evolving rapidly, competition is higher than ever, and many developers are trying to figure out how to stay relevant and valuable in an increasingly crowded field. In this episode, we break down what we think actually makes an engineer stand out today. Instead of chasing every trend or trying to learn every new framework, we focus on...

In this edition of the Web News, Matt and Mike break down the growing conversation around Project Glasswing, a new cybersecurity initiative from Anthropic. At the center of the discussion is a next-generation AI system referred to as a “Mythos-level” model - a step beyond their previous top-tier models. Instead of releasing it publicly, Anthropic is using Glasswing to test how this model interacts...

Web development isn’t just about clean code and perfect logic-it’s a deeply human process. In this episode, Matt and Mike explore the creative, messy, and often unpredictable side of building websites and web apps. From client-developer back-and-forth to real-world trade-offs, shifting requirements, and the motivations behind why projects exist in the first place, this episode dives into the parts...

In this edition of the Web News, Matt and Mike dive into the surprising return of keyboard phones. With devices like the Titan 2 Elite and Clicks Communicator gaining traction, physical keyboards are suddenly back in the spotlight. But this isn’t just nostalgia. As digital minimalism grows, more people are pushing back against endless doomscrolling and touchscreen fatigue. Could keyboard phones of...

Everyone online is bragging about running 50, 100, even 500 AI agents at once - but is any of that actually making the work better? In this episode Matt and Mike unpack the growing trend of “agent overload” and why more AI doesn’t always mean better results. From losing context in your codebase to creating fragile, overcomplicated systems, we explore how chasing scale with AI can quietly hurt your...

Microsoft says it’s listening. After years of complaints about Windows 11 - from missing features to a growing focus on AI integrations like Copilot—Microsoft has published a new blog post committing to improving the core Windows experience. But is this a real shift, or just another promise? In this edition of the Web News, Matt and Mike break down what Microsoft actually said, what it means for d...

AI coding tools are evolving incredibly fast - but the user experience may not be keeping up. In this episode, Matt shares his first experience trying Codex on Windows and how a simple attempt to generate a classic Snake game quickly turned into a confusing experience filled with permission prompts, unclear setup steps, and rapidly draining usage credits. This sparks a larger discussion about whet...

In this edition of the Web News, Matt and Mike take a look at a rare piece of good news in the tech industry - software engineering job postings are on the rise. After years of layoffs, hiring freezes, and constant speculation about AI replacing developers, this shift feels like a breath of fresh air. But how meaningful is it? Are companies actually hiring again, or are more job postings simply cr...

Are websites dead? Is SEO even worth it anymore? With AI-generated answers, Google’s AI overviews, and tools that can build entire sites in seconds, it’s easy to think the traditional web is on its way out. But is that actually what’s happening? In this episode, Matt sits down with agency owner Nat Miletic to talk about what they’re seeing firsthand in the world of web development and client work....

AI tools can now write code, scaffold entire apps, and even manage parts of the development process - but if building software is easier than ever, why aren’t we seeing a flood of wildly successful new products? In this episode Matt and Mike explore the idea that writing code was never actually the biggest bottleneck in building software. Instead, the real challenges lie in figuring out what to bu...

AI coding tools are evolving quickly - and the latest generation of “agentic” development tools are changing how developers interact with their codebases. In this edition of the Web News, Mike introduces Matt to Claude Code for the first time. While Matt already uses tools like ChatGPT to assist with coding, he hasn’t yet adopted the newer workflow where AI agents can plan, generate, and modify en...

A lot of developers say you should learn a framework from its official documentation - but is that actually a good way to learn React when you’re still a beginner? In this episode, Matt breaks down his experience working through the official React docs, including the Quick Start guide, the Tic-Tac-Toe tutorial, and the “Thinking in React” section. Along the way, he talks about where React starts t...

Working with clients is a normal part of running a web development agency - but every once in a while you encounter a client who refuses to budge, even when their approach is actively hurting their own project. In this edition of the Web News, Matt Lawrence and Mike Karan discuss one of the most frustrating realities of agency life: stubborn clients who become convinced they’ve already diagnosed t...

The web development industry has felt pretty turbulent lately - AI disruption, layoffs, hiring freezes, and endless doom-scrolling. So in this episode, we’re flipping the script. There’s actually some genuinely good news happening in web development right now. From developer job numbers quietly ticking back up, to Nvidia’s internal AI experiment showing productivity gains without eliminating roles...

Block just laid off nearly 4,000 employees - cutting its workforce almost in half - and CEO Jack Dorsey says it’s not because the company is struggling. In this edition of the Web News, we break down Jack’s X post explaining the decision and what it signals about AI-driven productivity, flatter teams, and the future of tech companies. Is this a one-off restructuring - or the beginning of a major s...

As I dive deeper into React and AI-assisted development, I’ve realized something uncomfortable - my JavaScript fundamentals weren’t as solid as I thought. In this episode Matt and Mike revisit ES6 and modern JavaScript concepts like let vs var, const and mutability, arrow functions, this binding, destructuring, and more. We also explore how frameworks and AI tools can add layers of abstraction tha...

Are mobile apps really “dead”? With the rise of AI-generated micro apps and vibe coding tools like Google Opal, some believe users will stop downloading traditional apps and instead generate exactly what they need on demand. But is that realistic? In this edition of the Web News, Matt breaks down the growing narrative around AI-generated apps and questions whether everyday consumers actually want...

AI tools are becoming a core part of modern development workflows—but they come with serious risks most developers aren’t thinking about. In this episode, Matt and Mike break down five AI security threats that are already happening in the real world. From prompt injection attacks and rogue AI agents with access to your email, to runaway API bills and poisoned models slipping into your stack - thes...

The pace of AI model releases is becoming almost impossible to follow. In just two weeks we saw GPT-5.3-Codex, GPT-5.2 updates, Gemini 3 Deep Think upgrades, Claude Opus 4.6 with a 1M context window in beta, Qwen3-Coder-Next, GLM-5, MiniMax M2.5, Cursor Composer 1.5, and even Kimi 2.5 just outside the window. This isn’t a quarterly product cycle anymore - it’s a daily arms race. In this episode Ma...

Most website project delays aren’t caused by bad code - they’re caused by communication and decision-making issues. In this episode, Matt and Mike flip the script and talk about how clients can be better partners to their web developers. From vague feedback and false urgency to scope creep and decision-by-committee, we break down the most common developer pet peeves, why they matter, and what smal...

As AI tools and instant search become more embedded in our daily workflows, it’s getting easier to outsource our thinking instead of working through problems ourselves. In this edition of the Web News, Matt and Mike discuss whether AI is making us lazier thinkers, how constant access to answers is changing problem-solving habits, and why struggling with a problem might still be an important skill...

In this episode Mike and Matt discuss how code review is becoming one of the most important developer skills as AI takes on more of the actual code writing. With AI generating larger and denser pull requests, reviewing code effectively has become harder - and more critical - than ever. They break down the real cognitive limits humans face when reviewing code, including how many lines can realistic...

AI is still in its “build at all costs” phase, but the pressure to turn a profit is growing fast. With reports suggesting OpenAI could burn through billions in 2026, the question becomes clear: how does AI actually make money? We dig into subscriptions, potential future monetization models, and the looming threats of regulation, copyright, and data access. Show Notes: https://www.htmlallthethings....

Site owners are seeing traffic to their websites drop considerably as users begin asking AI questions, instead of searching for solutions on individual sites. Value-based websites seem to be getting hit with the worst of it, as tutorials and listicles are easily presented right inside an LLM's chat window. This leaves many site owners with a dilemma - should they continue to chase SEO trends, or s...

In this edition of the Web News, Matt and Mike discuss Ryan Dahl's recent comments regarding software engineers in the world of AI. Ryan recently shared his viewpoint via a post on X where he stated that he thinks the era of humans writing code is over - meaning that SWEs may still have work to do, but that writing syntax won't be it. We unpack this viewpoint and further discuss the world of softw...