The Pragmatic Engineer
Deep-dive interviews and solo reports on software engineering, Big Tech, and startups from a former Uber and Microsoft engineer.
A mix of two formats: long-form interviews with founders and experts in software development, and solo, journalistic deep-dives on current industry trends. The show leverages the host's extensive Big Tech background to analyze topics like engineering culture, CI/CD, AI's impact on coding, and system design with a high degree of technical specificity.
“Unlike general tech news podcasts, this show is by a practitioner for practitioners, focusing on the 'how' and 'why' of engineering. The host's credibility as both a former Big Tech insider and a current industry analyst allows for a level of detail and access that is rare.”
Who hosts this show
Gergely Orosz is a software engineer and author who runs The Pragmatic Engineer, the #1 technology newsletter on Substack. He previously worked as an engineer and engineering manager at companies including Uber, Microsoft, Skype, and Skyscanner. Orosz is the author of several books, including "The Software Engineer's Guidebook" and "Building Mobile Apps at Scale".
Credentials & credits
- Author, The Pragmatic Engineer Newsletter
- Author, 'The Software Engineer's Guidebook'
- Former Engineering Manager, Uber
- Former Software Engineer, Microsoft/Skype
- Former Software Engineer, Skyscanner
- Former Software Engineer, JP Morgan
Other ventures
- The Pragmatic Engineer Newsletter
- The Software Engineer's Guidebook (book)
- Building Mobile Apps at Scale (book)
- The Tech Resume Inside-Out (book)
What kind of podcast
When new episodes drop
- 01Tech interviews with NeetCodeJun 24, 2026 · 1h 30m
- 02Slow down to speed up: AI and software engineeringJun 23, 2026 · 52 min
- 03Feature toggles: "just start with one"Jun 22, 2026 · 29s
- 04Kubernetes clusters out at open seaJun 21, 2026 · 30s
- 05CI/CD with Robert ErezJun 17, 2026 · 1h 16m
- 06Kubernetes and retiring at the top with Kelsey HightowerJun 3, 2026 · 2h 52m
- 07Building OpenCode with Dax RaadMay 27, 2026 · 1h 21m
- 08Why Rust is different, with Alice RyhlMay 20, 2026 · 1h 06m
Notable episodes
- 01Slow down to speed up: AI and software engineering
A prime example of the host's solo, journalistic report on the chaotic impact of AI on engineering culture at Meta, adapted from a conference talk.
- 02Tech interviews with NeetCode
A classic career-arc interview, exploring a creator's journey from Big Tech (Amazon, Google) to building a successful solo venture.
- 03Kubernetes and retiring at the top with Kelsey Hightower
A long-form interview with one of the most influential figures in cloud infrastructure, covering his unconventional career and decision to step back.
What you'll be asked on this show
The host, Gergely Orosz, often opens with a broad, topical question about the state of the industry before delving into a guest's personal story. He frequently follows a chronological path through a guest's career, from their education and early jobs to their current projects. Orosz uses a guest's past controversial statements or 'hot takes' as prompts and isn't afraid to challenge a core technical concept to elicit a more nuanced explanation. Having worked at many of the same companies, he sometimes shares a professional history with his guests, leading to more candid, 'inside-baseball' conversations.
The show alternates between two distinct formats. One is solo, journalistic reports, often adapted from the host's conference keynotes, featuring data-driven analysis of industry events. The other is a long-form interview, typically with a single guest, exploring their career and technical expertise.
Questions the host keeps coming back to
11 cataloguedIf you're going on this show as a guest, expect some version of each of these. Each note explains when the host reaches for it.
origin
2- Q.01
“How did you first get into tech and programming?”
Often asked early on to establish the guest's origin story and personal connection to the field.
- Q.02
“How did your well-known project or company get started?”
A standard question to get the origin story behind the guest's most famous work.
personal
1- Q.01
“You left a major tech company after a short time. What happened there?”
Used to explore pivotal, and sometimes negative, career experiences that shaped the guest's path.
industry
2- Q.01
“How did your experience at [Company A] compare to [Company B]?”
Prompts a direct comparison of engineering cultures at different major tech companies.
- Q.02
“How did [a technology like Kubernetes] become so dominant?”
Asks the guest to provide historical context for a technology's widespread adoption.
process
2- Q.01
“What does it actually take to get promoted at a company like Google?”
Seeks to uncover the practical, and sometimes political, realities of career progression in Big Tech.
- Q.02
“What exactly is [technical term like GitOps]?”
The host asks for a clear definition to ground the conversation for the audience.
future
1- Q.01
“What are you seeing change in [technical field] because of AI?”
A forward-looking question to get the guest's expert opinion on emerging trends.
advice
1- Q.01
“What kind of team would *not* want to adopt this best practice?”
This question pushes back against dogma to find the practical limits and exceptions to a popular idea.
controversy
1- Q.01
“Isn't there a contradiction between [concept A] and [concept B] in your explanation?”
A direct but respectful challenge designed to make the guest defend or clarify a core technical principle.
craft
1- Q.01
“Can you explain your relationship with [a specific technical concept]?”
Invites the guest to share a personal and often opinionated take on a specific, deep-seated technical idea.
Signature segments
- · Solo deep-dive reports on industry trends
- · Chronological career-path interviews
- · Intro montage of guest 'hot takes'
- · Technical concept challenges
Topics covered repeatedly
Who gets booked here
Guests are typically influential software engineers, founders of developer-focused companies, or principal engineers with deep expertise in a specific domain like CI/CD, Kubernetes, or a programming language like Rust.
- Navdeep Singh (NeetCode)on Tech interviews with NeetCode
- Robert Erezon CI/CD with Robert Erez
- Kelsey Hightoweron Kubernetes and retiring at the top with Kelsey Hightower
- Dax Raadon Building OpenCode with Dax Raad
- Alice Ryhlon Why Rust is different, with Alice Ryhl
Where to find this show
Audience & reach
Based on observed sponsors like Antithesis, Sentry, and WorkOS, the show attracts companies selling developer tools and services. The estimated angle is to target a highly technical audience of senior engineers and engineering leaders with purchasing influence.
Subscriber and view counts are pulled live from YouTube and re-verified on a 30-day cycle. Listener estimates for the RSS feed aren't published here unless they're host-verified.
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People also ask
- Who is the host of The Pragmatic Engineer podcast?
- The host is Gergely Orosz, a former software engineer at Uber and Microsoft and the author of the popular newsletter of the same name.
- What is the format of the show?
- It's a mix of two formats: long-form interviews with software engineering experts and solo, data-driven reports on major trends in the tech industry.
- Is The Pragmatic Engineer podcast still running?
- Yes, the podcast is active and releases new episodes on a weekly or bi-weekly basis.
- Who is the target audience for this podcast?
- The podcast is aimed at experienced software engineers, engineering managers, and other leaders working in the tech industry.
- Where can I listen to the podcast?
- The podcast is available as video on The Pragmatic Engineer YouTube channel.
Built from the show's public RSS feed, YouTube, the host's own websites, and the cited sources below. Computed and AI-extracted fields are labelled. Facts only — no private info, no fabrication, no transcripts republished.
Sources & how this page was built
This page is AI-assisted, grounded in the public sources cited below, and host-verifiable. We publish facts only; we do not republish transcripts. If anything here is wrong, the host can claim and correct the page above.Model: gemini-2.5-pro · high confidence
- [01]The Pragmatic Engineer Newsletterpragmaticengineer.com
- [02]Gergely Orosz Author Bioaudible.com
- [03]Gergely Orosz's GitHub Profilegithub.com
- [04]Gergely Orosz Muck Rack Profilemuckrack.com
- [05]Leaving big tech to build the #1 technology newsletter | Gergely Oroszlennyspodcast.com
- [06]Gergely Orosz - Grokipediagrokipedia.com
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