Jake Gold
@jacob.gold
Infra eng leader, SF Bay Area. Helped launch and scale Bluesky. Prev: Nuro, Docker, Google, founder.
Currently working on AI codegen.
Obsessed with history, computers, and open systems.
Happy to chat: [email protected]
Currently working on AI codegen.
Obsessed with history, computers, and open systems.
Happy to chat: [email protected]
Pinned
Jake Gold
@jacob.gold
· Nov 11
An unordered / non-exhaustive list of things that helped scale Bluesky's infra efficiently:
+ Exiting the cloud (colocation)
+ HAProxy w/many Node backends
+ Go w/clever code
+ ScyllaDB
+ SQLite w/per user databases
+ Redis w/many instances
+ AMD servers w/many cores
+ Purchasing bandwidth directly
+ Exiting the cloud (colocation)
+ HAProxy w/many Node backends
+ Go w/clever code
+ ScyllaDB
+ SQLite w/per user databases
+ Redis w/many instances
+ AMD servers w/many cores
+ Purchasing bandwidth directly
Reposted by Jake Gold
i'm looking for a new job
Hire Me in Japan — overreacted
I'm looking for a new job.
overreacted.io
November 10, 2025 at 3:31 PM
i'm looking for a new job
Bluesky after all the proprietary social apps fully succumb to the incentives of brainrot and AI slop content:
November 8, 2025 at 4:04 PM
Bluesky after all the proprietary social apps fully succumb to the incentives of brainrot and AI slop content:
So lame.
I still wear an N95 mask on airplanes and trains if they're crowded, but that's it.
I've never had Covid. Haven't had a flu since 2018.
Then again, it might be genetic or something because I did once spend four hours on a sofa with @dholms.xyz talking into my mouth while he had Covid.
🤞
I still wear an N95 mask on airplanes and trains if they're crowded, but that's it.
I've never had Covid. Haven't had a flu since 2018.
Then again, it might be genetic or something because I did once spend four hours on a sofa with @dholms.xyz talking into my mouth while he had Covid.
🤞
Bad: got harassed on the train for wearing a mask
Good: I told him the reason I'm wearing it is I got surgery to replace my mouth with a second butthole, and the power I felt when he looked disgusted and left was intoxicating
Good: I told him the reason I'm wearing it is I got surgery to replace my mouth with a second butthole, and the power I felt when he looked disgusted and left was intoxicating
November 8, 2025 at 3:47 AM
So lame.
I still wear an N95 mask on airplanes and trains if they're crowded, but that's it.
I've never had Covid. Haven't had a flu since 2018.
Then again, it might be genetic or something because I did once spend four hours on a sofa with @dholms.xyz talking into my mouth while he had Covid.
🤞
I still wear an N95 mask on airplanes and trains if they're crowded, but that's it.
I've never had Covid. Haven't had a flu since 2018.
Then again, it might be genetic or something because I did once spend four hours on a sofa with @dholms.xyz talking into my mouth while he had Covid.
🤞
Okay, I’m still in denial about having a cat but it’s getting harder.
He’s spending most of the day in the backyard, I made him a makeshift house, and I’m giving him food.
If this keeps up I’m definitely going to have a cat.
He’s spending most of the day in the backyard, I made him a makeshift house, and I’m giving him food.
If this keeps up I’m definitely going to have a cat.
November 6, 2025 at 11:31 PM
Okay, I’m still in denial about having a cat but it’s getting harder.
He’s spending most of the day in the backyard, I made him a makeshift house, and I’m giving him food.
If this keeps up I’m definitely going to have a cat.
He’s spending most of the day in the backyard, I made him a makeshift house, and I’m giving him food.
If this keeps up I’m definitely going to have a cat.
Seconded!
The big cloud providers are an expensive-but-reasonable choice for many things but the way they overcharge for bandwidth is an obscene rip off.
Was mentally preparing to build out a CDN for Bluesky before we discovered @bunny.net!
The big cloud providers are an expensive-but-reasonable choice for many things but the way they overcharge for bandwidth is an obscene rip off.
Was mentally preparing to build out a CDN for Bluesky before we discovered @bunny.net!
it has been great working with bunny.net! I recommend them often, and would build on their CDN again in a heartbeat
🧵ICYMI: BlueSky was burning cash on CDN costs. Billions of requests per month. Big companies wouldn't budge on pricing.
Then they found a way to ship video to millions without going broke!
Then they found a way to ship video to millions without going broke!
November 6, 2025 at 6:51 PM
Seconded!
The big cloud providers are an expensive-but-reasonable choice for many things but the way they overcharge for bandwidth is an obscene rip off.
Was mentally preparing to build out a CDN for Bluesky before we discovered @bunny.net!
The big cloud providers are an expensive-but-reasonable choice for many things but the way they overcharge for bandwidth is an obscene rip off.
Was mentally preparing to build out a CDN for Bluesky before we discovered @bunny.net!
Looks like X is juicing web visit numbers by opening a browser WebView in the background whether the user visits the link or not.
They've re-invented pop-under fraud (allegedly).
news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4580...
They've re-invented pop-under fraud (allegedly).
news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4580...
![Tell HN: X is opening any tweet link in a webview whether you press it or not
247 points by stillatit 10 hours ago | hide | past | favorite | 200 comments
Just saw the CEO of Substack celebrating traffic from X/Twitter shooting up thinking they stopped suppressing tweets with links[0]. Actually, this traffic is because now any time you open a tweet with a link, the in-app webview loads in the background, and displays when you press the link.
I run an ecom store that gets a lot of its customers from Twitter. I was also shocked to see my traffic double or triple overnight and thought the algorithm had blessed me and my business. Soon realized what was actually happening. Thought other traffic-monitors might appreciate this explanation.
Meanwhile Nikita Bier is pretending they never suppressed tweets with links to begin with, offering the alternative explanation: "a common complaint is that posts with links tend to get lower reach. This is because the web browser covers the post and people forget to Like or Reply. So X doesn't get a clear signal whether the content is any good"[1]. A bit of a rewriting of history since Elon and his mom both tweeted about how it wasn't fair to use his platform to promote other links/platforms, even banning people who shared profiles of other social networks (including Paul Graham for a period). They suppressed all links shortly after.
[0] https://x.com/cjgbest/status/1985464687350485092
[1] https://x.com/nikitabier/status/1979994223224209709](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:tpg43qhh4lw4ksiffs4nbda3/bafkreia62cq7p2dn2o76cjuuzl5dpwaatnf5m5cl5bm7lmoprsavebgl4q@jpeg)
November 4, 2025 at 4:09 PM
Looks like X is juicing web visit numbers by opening a browser WebView in the background whether the user visits the link or not.
They've re-invented pop-under fraud (allegedly).
news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4580...
They've re-invented pop-under fraud (allegedly).
news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4580...
When I see an annoying post and tap "Mute Account" I want that g'damn post to disappear into the ether!
November 4, 2025 at 4:11 AM
When I see an annoying post and tap "Mute Account" I want that g'damn post to disappear into the ether!
My opinion on where Bluesky is at.
IMHO Bluesky is the first open social network to ever break out, punching way above its weight, and is big enough that it will never go away.
But it’s still waiting for product features (like subcommunities) which will create very high user retention, which is a requirement for it to go mainstream.
But it’s still waiting for product features (like subcommunities) which will create very high user retention, which is a requirement for it to go mainstream.
November 3, 2025 at 9:09 PM
My opinion on where Bluesky is at.
"I oil my teeth twice a day and see a mechanic every six months"
October 31, 2025 at 2:39 AM
"I oil my teeth twice a day and see a mechanic every six months"
Zuck seems to believe Threads users have been sufficiently baited, so now comes the "switch" part of the "bait and switch".
Threads reaches 150 million daily users and is ramping up ads
Threads has grown to 150 million daily active users and is ramping up ads on the text-based platform.
www.engadget.com
October 30, 2025 at 9:16 PM
Zuck seems to believe Threads users have been sufficiently baited, so now comes the "switch" part of the "bait and switch".
What's funny about this is that a week ago @karpathy.bsky.social said that LLM agents are pretty much useless at novel AI development.
This week Sam Altman is saying that is their entire plan!
This week Sam Altman is saying that is their entire plan!
October 30, 2025 at 8:07 PM
What's funny about this is that a week ago @karpathy.bsky.social said that LLM agents are pretty much useless at novel AI development.
This week Sam Altman is saying that is their entire plan!
This week Sam Altman is saying that is their entire plan!
Moving workloads onto cloud providers:
Big cloud providers: "Please submit 47 different quota increase requests, business justifications, then have your rep escalate them so they're not rejected"
Smaller cloud providers: "I just changed the limit integer on your account from 20 to 10,000"
Big cloud providers: "Please submit 47 different quota increase requests, business justifications, then have your rep escalate them so they're not rejected"
Smaller cloud providers: "I just changed the limit integer on your account from 20 to 10,000"
October 30, 2025 at 4:35 PM
Moving workloads onto cloud providers:
Big cloud providers: "Please submit 47 different quota increase requests, business justifications, then have your rep escalate them so they're not rejected"
Smaller cloud providers: "I just changed the limit integer on your account from 20 to 10,000"
Big cloud providers: "Please submit 47 different quota increase requests, business justifications, then have your rep escalate them so they're not rejected"
Smaller cloud providers: "I just changed the limit integer on your account from 20 to 10,000"
More people should be teasing the AI model companies for having official SDKs in just one or two languages.
October 28, 2025 at 5:01 PM
More people should be teasing the AI model companies for having official SDKs in just one or two languages.
Have apparently been adopted by a stray cat.
Went from hanging out in the backyard every few days, to hanging out every day, to expecting a spot on the sofa?
I didn’t sign up for this!
Went from hanging out in the backyard every few days, to hanging out every day, to expecting a spot on the sofa?
I didn’t sign up for this!
October 28, 2025 at 12:19 AM
Have apparently been adopted by a stray cat.
Went from hanging out in the backyard every few days, to hanging out every day, to expecting a spot on the sofa?
I didn’t sign up for this!
Went from hanging out in the backyard every few days, to hanging out every day, to expecting a spot on the sofa?
I didn’t sign up for this!
This is a myth that even technical people believe.
There are datacenters with connectivity all across the globe that anyone can use!
@fly.io and others run global services on their own bare metal with startup-sized budgets/teams.
I'm not saying that Signal *should* DIY but they absolutely could.
There are datacenters with connectivity all across the globe that anyone can use!
@fly.io and others run global services on their own bare metal with startup-sized budgets/teams.
I'm not saying that Signal *should* DIY but they absolutely could.
In short, the problem here is not that Signal ‘chose’ to run on AWS. The problem is the concentration of power in the infrastructure space that means there isn’t really another choice: the entire stack, practically speaking, is owned by 3-4 players. 11/
October 27, 2025 at 9:12 PM
This is a myth that even technical people believe.
There are datacenters with connectivity all across the globe that anyone can use!
@fly.io and others run global services on their own bare metal with startup-sized budgets/teams.
I'm not saying that Signal *should* DIY but they absolutely could.
There are datacenters with connectivity all across the globe that anyone can use!
@fly.io and others run global services on their own bare metal with startup-sized budgets/teams.
I'm not saying that Signal *should* DIY but they absolutely could.
Hey AI, I want my determinism back!
October 23, 2025 at 7:56 PM
Hey AI, I want my determinism back!
The two best days in a Git repo owner’s life are the day they add a submodule and the day they delete it.
time has come when i finally have to use git submodules
October 19, 2025 at 4:23 PM
The two best days in a Git repo owner’s life are the day they add a submodule and the day they delete it.
Bluesky app should insert (highly ranked) posts of blue skies into every feed, in the same way the toxic platforms insert ads.
No one is going to complain. It would sound too silly.
No one is going to complain. It would sound too silly.
We were only supposed to post pictures of the sky on this app. I just pulled up the original design doc. This is a disaster. Please take down the other posts.
October 17, 2025 at 3:41 PM
Bluesky app should insert (highly ranked) posts of blue skies into every feed, in the same way the toxic platforms insert ads.
No one is going to complain. It would sound too silly.
No one is going to complain. It would sound too silly.
Technical interviewing done well:
1. What have you done? (30 minutes)
2. What do you want to do? (30 minutes)
3. Let's solve a problem together (45 minutes)
1. What have you done? (30 minutes)
2. What do you want to do? (30 minutes)
3. Let's solve a problem together (45 minutes)
October 16, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Technical interviewing done well:
1. What have you done? (30 minutes)
2. What do you want to do? (30 minutes)
3. Let's solve a problem together (45 minutes)
1. What have you done? (30 minutes)
2. What do you want to do? (30 minutes)
3. Let's solve a problem together (45 minutes)
🫠 Feels bad to give up on fixing a bug in your code at the end of the day.
☕ Feels great to solve it in 30 seconds the next morning.
☕ Feels great to solve it in 30 seconds the next morning.
October 15, 2025 at 4:22 PM
🫠 Feels bad to give up on fixing a bug in your code at the end of the day.
☕ Feels great to solve it in 30 seconds the next morning.
☕ Feels great to solve it in 30 seconds the next morning.
Reminder to self: test typing new project names quickly at least a few dozen times before committing to them, so you don't end up with a hard-to-type name.
I named a service `seabee` which I like (grandfather was one in WW2) but my brain very much wants it to be spelled `seabea` 😑
I named a service `seabee` which I like (grandfather was one in WW2) but my brain very much wants it to be spelled `seabea` 😑
October 14, 2025 at 4:25 PM
Reminder to self: test typing new project names quickly at least a few dozen times before committing to them, so you don't end up with a hard-to-type name.
I named a service `seabee` which I like (grandfather was one in WW2) but my brain very much wants it to be spelled `seabea` 😑
I named a service `seabee` which I like (grandfather was one in WW2) but my brain very much wants it to be spelled `seabea` 😑
No files, disk full.
In honor of spooky month, share a 4 word horror story that only someone in your profession would understand
I'll go first: Six page commercial lease.
I'll go first: Six page commercial lease.
October 13, 2025 at 6:17 PM
No files, disk full.
What I do is treat large chunks of LLM generated code the same way I treat imported third-party libraries.
I generate actual libraries, briefly scan all of the code, and use tests and interfaces to validate and enforce behavior.
For all of "my own" code, I'm just as obsessively meticulous as ever.
I generate actual libraries, briefly scan all of the code, and use tests and interfaces to validate and enforce behavior.
For all of "my own" code, I'm just as obsessively meticulous as ever.
I'm beginning to suspect that a key skill in working effectively with coding agents is developing an intuition for when you don't need to closely review every line of code they produce. This feels deeply uncomfortable!
October 11, 2025 at 5:16 PM
What I do is treat large chunks of LLM generated code the same way I treat imported third-party libraries.
I generate actual libraries, briefly scan all of the code, and use tests and interfaces to validate and enforce behavior.
For all of "my own" code, I'm just as obsessively meticulous as ever.
I generate actual libraries, briefly scan all of the code, and use tests and interfaces to validate and enforce behavior.
For all of "my own" code, I'm just as obsessively meticulous as ever.
Bashing SQLite is about the quickest way to out yourself as a technically ignorant noob.
The Bluesky PDS reference implementation has service millions of users at less than $0.001/mo per user for years now, with a very high degree reliability.
Self-hosting it requires almost zero maintenance.
The Bluesky PDS reference implementation has service millions of users at less than $0.001/mo per user for years now, with a very high degree reliability.
Self-hosting it requires almost zero maintenance.
Ah yes, the Bluesky infrastructure that famously can't support millions of active users, unlike the alternative implementations 🫠
The kind of shit people say here…
The kind of shit people say here…
October 9, 2025 at 12:40 AM
Bashing SQLite is about the quickest way to out yourself as a technically ignorant noob.
The Bluesky PDS reference implementation has service millions of users at less than $0.001/mo per user for years now, with a very high degree reliability.
Self-hosting it requires almost zero maintenance.
The Bluesky PDS reference implementation has service millions of users at less than $0.001/mo per user for years now, with a very high degree reliability.
Self-hosting it requires almost zero maintenance.