Syntax - Tasty Web Development Treats
Wes Bos & Scott Tolinski - Full Stack JavaScript Web Developers
- 57 minutes 59 seconds976: Pi - The AI Harness That Powers OpenClaw W/ Armin Ronacher & Mario Zechner
Wes and Scott talk with Armin Ronacher and Mario Zechner about PI, a minimalist agent harness powering tools like OpenClaw. They unpack why Bash is “all you need,” the risks of agents, workflow adaptability, and where AI coding agents are actually headed.
Show Notes
- 00:00 Welcome to Syntax!
- 03:28 What is Pi, and why does it matter?
- 05:54 What do we actually mean by “agents”?
- 11:04 Prompt injection: how LLMs get tricked
- 14:19 Is Claude Cowork actually secure?
- 22:01 How Armin and Mario use agents day to day
- 26:37 Brought to you by Sentry.io
- 27:25 Memory and search: teaching agents to remember
- 33:04 Do coding agents even need memory?
- 34:36 “Bash is all you need”
- 37:21 Adding power: how agents learn new tricks
- 47:02 Tools and models Armin and Mario are using right now
- 54:15 Sick picks + shameless plugs
Sick Picks
- Mario: Cards for Ukraine
- Armin: Pro-Ject Audio Turntable
Shameless Plugs
Hit us up on Socials!
Syntax: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
Wes: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
4 February 2026, 12:00 pm - 50 minutes 58 seconds975: What’s Missing From the Web Platform?
Scott and Wes run through their wishlist for the web platform, digging into the UI primitives, DOM APIs, and browser features they wish existed (or didn’t suck). From better form controls and drag-and-drop to native reactivity, CSS ideas, and future-facing APIs, it’s a big-picture chat on what the web could be.
Show Notes
- 00:00 Welcome to Syntax!
- 00:39 Exploring What’s Missing from the Web Platform
- 02:26 Enhancing DOM Primitives for Better User Experience
- 03:59 Multi-select + Combobox.
- 04:49 Date Picker.
- 07:18 Tabs.
- 08:01 Image + File Upload.
- 09:08 Toggles.
- 10:23 Native Drag and Drop that doesn’t suck.
- 12:03 Syntax wishlist.
- 12:06 Type Annotations.
- 15:07 Pipe Operator.
- 16:33 APIs We Wish to See on the Web
- 18:31 Brought to you by Sentry.io
- 19:51 Identity.
- 21:33 getElementByText()
- 24:09 Native Reactive DOM. Templating in JavaScript.
- 24:48 Sync Protocol.
- 25:52 Virtualization that doesn’t suck.
- 27:40 Put, Patch, and Delete on forms.
- 28:55 Text metrics: get bounding box of individual characters.
- 29:42 Lower Level Connections.
- 29:50 Bluetooth API.
- 30:47 Sockets.
- 31:29 NFC + RFID.
- 34:34 Things we want in CSS.
- 34:40 Specify transition speed.
- 35:24 CSS Strict Mode.
- 36:25 Safari moving to Chromium.
- 36:37 The Need for Diverse Browser Engines
- 37:48 AI Access.
- 44:49 Other APIs
- 46:59 Qwen TTS
- 48:07 Sick Picks + Shameless Plugs
Sick Picks
- Scott: Monarch
- Wes: Slonik Headlamp
Shameless Plugs
- Scott: Syntax on YouTube
Hit us up on Socials!
Syntax: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
Wes: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
2 February 2026, 12:00 pm - 46 minutes 11 seconds974: Clawdbot (Moltbot), Agents and the Age of Personal Software
Wes and Scott talk about building hyper-specific personal software with AI. They explore personal agents, home automation, JSON-as-a-database, and how LLMs unlock fast, custom apps that reduce friction and replace bloated SaaS.
Show Notes
- 00:00 Welcome to Syntax!
- 01:53 What is personal software (and why it matters)
- 04:49 Using AI agents to build hyper-specific apps for yourself
- 13:43 Supercharging your dev workflow with Tailscale
- 19:06 Privacy when working with LLMs
- 21:39 Brought to you by Sentry.io
- 22:21 Real-world personal app ideas
- 39:14 Sick Picks + Shameless Plugs
Sick Picks
- Scott: FTPManager
- Wes: Roku Streaming Stick
Shameless Plugs
Hit us up on Socials!
Syntax: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
Wes: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
28 January 2026, 12:00 pm - 48 minutes 59 seconds973: The Web’s Next Form: MCP UI (with Kent C. Dodds)
Scott and Wes sit down with Kent C. Dodds to break down MCP, context engineering, and what it really takes to build effective AI-powered tools. They dig into practical examples, UI patterns, performance tradeoffs, and whether the future of the web lives in chat or the browser.
Show Notes
- 00:00 Welcome to Syntax!
- 00:44 Introduction to Kent C. Dodds
- 02:44 What is MCP?
- 03:28 Context Engineering in AI
- 04:49 Practical Examples of MCP
- 06:33 Challenges with Context Bloat
- 08:08 Brought to you by Sentry.io
- 09:37 Why not give AI API access directly?
- 12:28 How is an MCP different from Skills
- 14:58 MCP optimizations and efficiency levers
- 16:24 MCP UI and Its Importance
- 19:18 Where are we at today with MCP
- 24:06 What is the development flow for building MCP servers?
- 27:17 Building out an MCP UI.
- 29:29 Returning HTML, when to render.
- 36:17 Calling tools from your UI
- 37:25 What is Goose?
- 38:42 Are browsers cooked? Is everything via chat?
- 43:25 Remix3
- 47:21 Sick Picks & Shameless Plugs
Sick Picks
- Kent: OneWheel
Shameless Plugs
Hit us up on Socials!
Syntax: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
Wes: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
26 January 2026, 12:00 pm - 38 minutes 29 seconds972: These Things Make Your App Feel Like Crap on Mobile
Wes and Scott talk about why mobile web apps often feel “janky” compared to native—and how to fix it. They cover input zooming, accidental horizontal scroll, pointer/user-select quirks, frame rate consistency, full-page refreshes, and more.
Show Notes
- 00:00 Welcome to Syntax!
- 01:11 Brought to you by Sentry.io
- 02:57 Zooming inputs
- 06:11 Horizontal scrolling
- 08:49 Proper use of pointer-events: none, and user-select: none
- 11:27 Allowing zoom on everything
- 16:37 Cleaning up the “jank”
- 19:48 Full page refresh
- 24:05 Slow loading times
- 29:50 Cumulative layout shift
- 32:47 Address bars and viewport units
- 35:34 Full-width scroll traps
Hit us up on Socials!
Syntax: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
Wes: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
21 January 2026, 12:00 pm - 46 minutes 27 seconds971: Stackoverflow and Firefox are Dead?
Is Stack Overflow actually dying, and what does that mean in an AI-driven dev world? Scott and Wes break down the latest web dev news, from Firefox’s AI crossroads and Apple’s browser engine changes to new tools, docs, and spicy browser updates.
Show Notes
- 00:00 Welcome to Syntax!
- 02:36 Stack Overflow is Officially Dead
- 05:40 AI’s Impact on Software Development
- 07:56 Brought to you by Sentry.io
- 08:20 Micro QuickJS for Embedded Systems
- 13:03 Open Workers: A Cloudflare Alternative
- 20:09 React Aria has new Docs
- 24:12 Firefox and the AI Dilemma
- 31:11 Apple’s Browser Engine Changes
- 36:12 Fractured JSON for Better Readability
- 37:45 New Chrome Permissions Dialogue
- 41:15 Sick Picks & Shameless Plugs
Sick Picks
- Scott: TRMNL E-Ink Display
- Wes: ACEBOTT
Shameless Plugs
- Scott: Syntax on YouTube
Hit us up on Socials!
Syntax: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
Wes: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
19 January 2026, 12:00 pm - 45 minutes 10 seconds970: Why Did Anthropic Buy Bun?
Wes and Scott answer your questions about whether Git GUIs beat the terminal, balancing accessibility with experimental web projects, blocking malicious traffic, smart home setups, why Anthropic bought Bun, navigating tricky team dynamics, and more!
Show Notes
- 00:00 Welcome to Syntax!
- 00:51 Why did Anthropic buy Bun?
- 07:33 Should you use Git GUIs or the terminal?
- 12:54 How to make better coding videos
- 20:31 How do you handle a difficult dev teammate?
- 24:16 Brought to you by Sentry.io
- 24:41 Creative and experimental code vs accessible code
- 31:51 Smart home setups we actually use
- 35:37 How do you block bad bots and ISPs?
- 38:02 What is SAP UI and why is it everywhere?
- 41:28 Sick Picks + Shameless Plugs
Sick Picks
- Scott: Inside Archaeology
- Wes: ProfessorBoots
Shameless Plugs
Hit us up on Socials!
Syntax: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
Wes: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
14 January 2026, 12:00 pm - 55 minutes 4 seconds969: This guy is nuts (TypeScript Doom)
Scott and Wes sit down with Dimitri Mitropoulos to explore the wild edges of TypeScript—from running Doom in the type system to building tools like Typeslayer. They dig into Turing-complete types, performance limits, and what the future might hold for TypeScript and programming languages as a whole.
Show Notes
- 00:00 Welcome to Syntax!
- 00:27 Dimitri Mitropoulos Introduction
- 01:29 What is Doom in TypeScript?
- 03:10 TypeScript Types and Turing Completeness
- 04:06 Project Overview and Challenges
- 04:57 ASCII Art and Visual Representation
- 06:50 Performance Issues with TypeScript
- 09:27 Brought to you by Sentry.io
- 09:51 Typeslayer Tool Introduction
- 16:19 Building in Tauri
- 20:54 Challenges around packaging
- 24:03 Future of TypeScript and AI
- 27:40 Is the Go-based compiler significantly faster?
- 30:23 Should there be something to follow Typescript?
- 36:27 Staying up to date with WASM.
- 37:08 SquiggleConf Overview
- 38:26 Hosting a conference
- 40:45 What are your thoughts on Zig?
- 45:07 Vibe coding as an end goal
- 50:01 Sick Picks & Shameless Plugs
Sick Picks
- Dimitri: pullfrog
Shameless Plugs
- Dimitri: Michigan TypeScript on YouTube
Hit us up on Socials!
Syntax: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
Wes: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
12 January 2026, 12:00 pm - 33 minutes 36 seconds968: Habits and Changes We Want to Make in 2026
Wes and Scott talk about setting realistic goals for the new year, building habits through small, sustainable changes, creating systems that actually stick, and why incremental progress beats big resolutions every time.
Show Notes
- 00:00 Welcome to Syntax!
- 00:26 Wes: Stand more
- 06:55 Wes: Learn to wake up early
- 10:04 Scott: Embrace daily TODOs
- 14:18 Brought to you by Sentry.io
- 14:43 Wes: Better email management
- 19:14 Scott: Become more minimal
- 22:13 Wes: Get faster at typing
- 26:55 Scott: Listen to more self-help books
- 30:18 Scott: Track long-term habits
- 31:36 Scott (and Wes): Ship more things
Hit us up on Socials!
Syntax: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
Wes: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
7 January 2026, 12:00 pm - 48 minutes 9 seconds967: What’s Going to Happen in Web Dev During 2026
Wes and Scott talk about their bold predictions for web development in 2026, from WebGPU-powered design and modern CSS breakthroughs to JavaScript standards, AI-driven tooling, security risks, the future of frameworks, workflows, and more!
Show Notes
- 00:00 Welcome to Syntax!
- 00:49 WebGPU and 3D experiences will finally take off
- 01:30 Web design will make a comeback
- 04:03 Light mode returns (yes, really)
- 07:06 Modern CSS standards are about to have a huge year
- 13:15 Will the Temporal API finally ship everywhere in 2026?
- 14:18 The rise of the standard stack
- 16:18 Are we headed toward standardized RPC?
- 19:41 What’s next (and what’s not) for React
- 21:07 Why we’ll see more security failures in web dev
- 22:35 SvelteKit 3 lands in 2026
- 22:53 Where developer tooling is headed next
- 26:44 More big acquisitions
- 28:02 2026: the year of durable compute
- 30:57 Frameworks will matter less as AI gets better
- 33:34 End-to-end AI workflows become the norm
- 36:04 Brought to you by Sentry.io
- 37:21 Personalized software for everyday people
- 39:11 MCP and MCP UI will pop
- 42:24 Developer skills will fall off
- 46:20 Crappy software will continue
Hit us up on Socials!
Syntax: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
Wes: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
31 December 2025, 12:00 pm - 56 minutes 26 seconds966: A Look Back at Web Dev in 2025
Wes and Scott revisit their 2025 web development predictions, grading hits and misses across AI, browsers, frameworks, CSS, and tooling. From Temporal and AI coding agents to React, Vite, and vanilla CSS, they reflect on what actually changed, what stalled, and what it all means heading into 2026.
Show Notes
- 00:00 Welcome to Syntax!
- 01:26 Temporal API will ship in the browser
- 03:33 On-device AI becomes common
- 06:14 WebGPU unlocks fast local machine learning
- 07:10 Models will plateau
- 10:32 Is there an actual use case for video and photo gen AI?
- 13:27 Text to UI tools get really good
- 16:25 Framework choice will matter less
- 18:53 Web components in Standard Stack, Web Awesome takes off
- 21:37 AI browsers and Copilot Workspace-style tools will become normal
- 22:56 AI browsera will become inevitable, OpenAI will launch a browser
- 27:51 Relative color will feel fully “safe to use”
- 29:02 Vanilla CSS will make a comeback
- 30:33 Brought to you by Sentry.io
- 30:58 CSS mixins and functions spec solidifies
- 33:25 Container style queries will ship everywhere
- 35:40 Vertical centering jokes will stubbornly persist
- 36:20 VS Code will reach feature parity with Cursor
- 38:47 More VS Code forks will appear
- 39:46 React Compiler drops Babel
- 40:34 React server components will pop
- 42:17 Remix re-emerges as something new
- 43:17 React Native will have its time
- 44:21 TanStack Start and Tanstack will pop
- 45:46 SvelteKit gets more granular data loading
- 46:06 Local first apps will take off
- 46:43 Bun keeps doing “wild but loved” non-standard features, Bun will launch a platform-as-a-service
- 48:22 Vite stays king
- 51:07 Laravel will release a CMS
- 52:44 Sick Picks + Shameless Plugs
Sick Picks
- Scott: DARKBEAM Flashlight UV Black Light
- Wes: WOOZOO Fan
Hit us up on Socials!
Syntax: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
Wes: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads
24 December 2025, 12:00 pm - More Episodes? Get the App