In this episode, Julian is joined by Asif, a recent computer science graduate and Advanced Python teaching assistant at Northern Arizona University, to talk about building AI that actually delivers real-world value. Asif shares how an early curiosity for automation grew into a passion for machine learning, AI agents, and end-to-end systems that solve real business problems. We explore the gap between training models and deploying useful solutions, including how Asif builds privacy-aware AI agents for things like chatbots, summaries, and business insights that non-technical users can actually understand and use.

The conversation goes deep into what it really takes to move from classroom learning to production-ready AI: failing fast, grinding through technical barriers, thinking about deployment and data privacy early, and focusing on projects that recruiters and businesses can clearly see the value in.

Reach out to Asif on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/asif-p-056530232/

Check out Asif's Portfolio (it's super cool!): https://asifflix.vercel.app/

Follow Asif on Github: https://github.com/Asif-0209

Books mentioned:

The Subtle Art of Not Giving A F*ck -https://pybitesbooks.com/books/yng_CwAAQBAJ

Hope in Action - https://pybitesbooks.com/books/4XZEEQAAQBAJ

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💡🧑‍💻 Want to become a more focused, motivated, and effective Python developer? The Pybites Developer Mindset (PDM) Program helps you build strong habits, deepen your skills, and make real progress in just six weeks. Join us for mentorship, accountability, and a supportive community that keeps you moving forward. Start your PDM journey now! 🌟✅ https://pybit.es/catalogue/the-pdm-program/

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January is the perfect time to take stock, and in this episode we share the most common lessons we've learned from six years of coaching Python developers. Drawing on hundreds of real-world conversations, we break down seven practical fixes that consistently help developers move forward - from stopping endless consumption and actually building, to escaping abandoned GitHub repos, getting proper code reviews, and shifting from scripts to real systems with solid tooling, testing, and version control.

The conversation also dives into mindset: overcoming imposter syndrome, using AI without becoming dependent on it, and why going it alone often makes your journey harder than it needs to be. 

Download the Free 7-Engineering Shifts Guide Here: https://pybit.es/escape-tutorial-hell/

Books mentioned:

Fundamentals of Software Architecture -https://pybitesbooks.com/books/yClOEQAAQBAJ

Before We Say Goodbye - https://pybitesbooks.com/books/GMGhEAAAQBAJ

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💡🧑‍💻 Want to become a more focused, motivated, and effective Python developer? The Pybites Developer Mindset (PDM) Program helps you build strong habits, deepen your skills, and make real progress in just six weeks. Join us for mentorship, accountability, and a supportive community that keeps you moving forward. Start your PDM journey now! 🌟✅ https://pybit.es/catalogue/the-pdm-program/

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Change is unavoidable in software, so how do you make it safe to evolve systems without breaking trust? In this episode, we’re joined by Elmer Bulthuis for a wide-ranging conversation about building software that can adapt over time. We explore how Rust’s ownership model shapes clearer thinking about design, why WebAssembly is becoming a practical way to share complex logic across platforms, and how Elmer has used Rust and WASM in real projects to keep behaviour consistent across TypeScript and .NET without duplicating effort.

We also dig into the everyday practices that make long-lived systems possible: choosing names that work in context, designing abstractions that don’t leak, and treating tests as living documentation rather than a checkbox. Elmer shares thoughtful perspectives on local-first development, keeping CI honest, and using AI as a helpful power tool for refactoring without outsourcing engineering judgement. Along the way, we touch on team culture, ego-free collaboration, and even yoga — because sustainable software is ultimately built by sustainable people.

Connect with Elmer:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elmerbulthuis

Github: https://github.com/elmerbulthuis

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💡🧑‍💻 Want to become a more focused, motivated, and effective Python developer? The Pybites Developer Mindset (PDM) Program helps you build strong habits, deepen your skills, and make real progress in just six weeks. Join us for mentorship, accountability, and a supportive community that keeps you moving forward. Start your PDM journey now! 🌟✅ https://pybit.es/catalogue/the-pdm-program/

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Join us as we catch up in the first Pybites podcast of 2026. We chat about how it feels to build software with AI today. We're moving faster than ever, but are we losing the joy of coding along the way?

Julian shares a recent Django build and how he used AI to ship quickly while still keeping good habits around code quality, testing, and reviews. We talk about why small steps, clear prompts, and staying involved in the code matter more than handing everything over to AI.

We also reflect on the value of taking proper breaks, resetting habits, and the impact of simple weekly rituals. Along the way, we celebrate a community career win and challenge you to choose one meaningful focus that would make 2026 a great year.

If you’ve been feeling overwhelmed by AI or worried about falling behind, this episode is a reminder to slow down, build well, and enjoy the craft again.

Episode Links:

Charlie Marsh tweet - https://x.com/charliermarsh/status/2008665789709382130

Escape tutorial hell guide - https://pybit.es/escape-tutorial-hell/

Tony's New Years Intentions - https://pybites.circle.so/c/open-discussion/new-year-s-intention

Bob's Books:

Vibe Coding - https://pybitesbooks.com/books/ktVcEQAAQBAJ 

From Strength to Strength - https://pybitesbooks.com/books/BKZPEAAAQBAJ

Julian's Books:

The Rose Field - https://pybitesbooks.com/books/vq1a0QEACAAJ 

Pybites Books - https://pybitesbooks.com

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💡🧑‍💻 Want to become a more focused, motivated, and effective Python developer? The Pybites Developer Mindset (PDM) Program helps you build strong habits, deepen your skills, and make real progress in just six weeks. Join us for mentorship, accountability, and a supportive community that keeps you moving forward. Start your PDM journey now! 🌟✅ https://pybit.es/catalogue/the-pdm-program/

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Speed isn’t just a nice-to-have - it affects user experience, cloud costs, and how fast teams can move. In this episode, we chat with Saurabh Misra about making Python performance a continuous habit rather than a last-minute clean-up. He introduces Codeflash, a tool that profiles real code paths, explores optimisation options with LLMs, and only suggests changes that preserve behaviour and deliver measurable speedups.

We delve into how this works, from tracing and line-level profiling to coverage-guided inputs and concolic testing. Saurabh shares real examples, including smarter NumPy usage, avoiding unnecessary global sorts, and using Numba to speed up numeric hotspots. We also talk about fitting performance checks into everyday workflows via the CLI, VS Code, and GitHub Actions.

The big takeaway: performance doesn’t have to slow teams down — with the right tooling, it can be part of shipping well from day one.

Connect with Saurabh at https://www.linkedin.com/in/saurabh-misra/ and find out more about Codeflash via the website https://www.codeflash.ai/.

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💡🧑‍💻 Want to become a more focused, motivated, and effective Python developer? The Pybites Developer Mindset (PDM) Program helps you build strong habits, deepen your skills, and make real progress in just six weeks. Join us for mentorship, accountability, and a supportive community that keeps you moving forward. Start your PDM journey now! 🌟✅ https://pybit.es/catalogue/the-pdm-program/

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In this episode, we talk with Aaron Jorgensen about how JobHive came to life - starting as a small résumé-parsing experiment and gradually growing into a structured, AI-supported interview workflow. Aaron explains how the system handles voice capture, transcription, prompts, and AI avatars, and why he moved toward a multi-agent approach instead of relying on one model to do everything.

We dig into what “fair scoring” actually means, how cross-checking evaluators and confidence levels work, and why it’s important to keep the reasoning behind decisions visible to both employers and candidates.

From the builder’s perspective, Aaron walks through the practical side of developing the platform: shaping an MVP, working with LangChain, choosing AWS tools that reduce overhead, and dealing with the usual setbacks—broken features, unreliable external services, and the moments that test your patience. He also talks about the routines and habits that helped him stay consistent during the harder stretches.

If you’re interested in hiring workflows, AI tooling, or the reality of turning a rough prototype into a functioning product, this conversation covers it all.

To learn more about Aaron's work, check out his websites or reach out to him on socials:

JobHive: https://jobhive.ai

Aaron's Website: https://ajeema.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mraaronjorgensen/

Circle: https://pybites.circle.so/u/22287446

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Book mentioned in ep: https://pybitesbooks.com/books/P3EFa-WuMMkC

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💡🧑‍💻 Want to become a more focused, motivated, and effective Python developer? The Pybites Developer Mindset (PDM) Program helps you build strong habits, deepen your skills, and make real progress in just six weeks. Join us for mentorship, accountability, and a supportive community that keeps you moving forward. Start your PDM journey now! 🌟✅ https://pybit.es/catalogue/the-pdm-program/

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Curious how to build real web apps with AI without turning into a prompt robot? We sit down with developer advocate and author Emma Saroyan to unpack a practical path for using OpenAI APIs and Next.js to turn ideas into shipped projects you actually understand. From smart prompting to project structure, Emma shows how to work with AI as an assistant you guide, not a textbook to copy.

Emma also takes us inside her community work in Armenia, sharing how culture shapes developer communication and adoption. We talk about how to avoid over-reliance on tools, and why accessibility matters—especially for newcomers who can use AI to prototype quickly and then deepen their skills. 

If you’re ready to ship faster without losing your craft, tune in, subscribe for more conversations like this, and leave a comment with the next AI-powered feature you want to build.

Connect with Emma on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/emma-saroyan

Check out Emma's book 'Generative AI for Web Development': https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/979-8-8688-0885-2

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💡🧑‍💻 Want to become a more focused, motivated, and effective Python developer? The Pybites Developer Mindset (PDM) Program helps you build strong habits, deepen your skills, and make real progress in just six weeks. Join us for mentorship, accountability, and a supportive community that keeps you moving forward. Start your PDM journey now! 🌟✅ https://pybit.es/catalogue/the-pdm-program/

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In this episode, we talk with Simen, a senior software engineer and creator of Almost Done, a weekly email newsletter designed for neurodivergent developers and anyone who thinks a little differently. Simen shares how he built a format that supports real attention - short, scannable essays, intentional accessibility choices, and four writing “personas” that shape each issue’s tone.

We explore his creative workflow, why timing matters for engagement, and the “subscriber-first” philosophy that keeps the newsletter personal. Simen also opens up about career growth, simplicity in engineering, and practical systems that help with ADHD traits like hyperfocus and time blindness.

It’s an honest, uplifting conversation about writing, technology, and building a kinder approach to productivity. If the episode resonates, check out Almost Done and share it with someone who’d enjoy it.

Sign up here - https://almostdone.news/

Or view past issues - https://almostdone.news/issues

Reach out to Simen on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/simendaehlin

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💡🧑‍💻 Want to become a more focused, motivated, and effective Python developer? The Pybites Developer Mindset (PDM) Program helps you build strong habits, deepen your skills, and make real progress in just six weeks. Join us for mentorship, accountability, and a supportive community that keeps you moving forward. Start your PDM journey now! 🌟✅ https://pybit.es/catalogue/the-pdm-program/

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What if levelling up your Python career didn’t require a multitude of courses—just one clear commitment? In this episode of the Pybites Podcast, we talk with Kishan Patel, a Dallas-based data engineer who set a single goal: become the best Python developer he could be. That focus led him to ship three real-world projects, publish his first PyPI package, and build a stronger, more decisive developer mindset.

We also discuss how breaking the cycle of perfectionism, using coaching for accountability, and developing a thoughtful, balanced approach to AI can  help you build with more confidence and stay focused on the real skills that move your Python journey forward. 

Kishan's contacts:
Personal site: https://www.kishanpatel.dev/

YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@KPDataDev

Blog: https://kpdata.dev/blog/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kishanpatel789/

Circle: https://pybites.circle.so/u/4fe60026

Chrome extensions mentioned in the ep:
Undistracted: https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/undistracted-hide-faceboo/pjjgklgkfeoeiebjogplpnibpfnffkng?hl=en

Monochrome Mode: https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/monochrome-mode-grayscale/fmiaojphifnoicpdhhcniiekcpfbkidj?hl=en

Books:
Cosmic Python: https://www.cosmicpython.com/
Dune: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dune_(novel)
The One Thing: https://pybitesbooks.com/books/ov23vQEACAAJ

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💡🧑‍💻 Want to become a more focused, motivated, and effective Python developer? The Pybites Developer Mindset (PDM) program helps you build strong habits, deepen your skills, and make REAL progress in just six weeks. Join us for mentorship, accountability, and a supportive community that keeps you moving forward. Start your PDM journey now! 🌟✅ https://pybit.es/catalogue/the-pdm-program/

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Marimo is redefining what a Python notebook can do—bringing structure, version control, and interactivity together. In this episode, we chat with Akshay Agrawal, co-founder and CEO of Marimo, about how their reactive Python notebook fixes hidden state, keeps outputs in sync, and makes reproducible, reviewable code the norm.

Akshay shares Marimo’s origin story, how its reactive DAG turns notebooks into clean, Git-friendly tools, and why teams are ditching Jupyter-to-Streamlit pipelines for simpler, reactive workflows. We also dive into performance, data handling with pandas/Polars via Narwhals, and SQL reactivity with DuckDB.

Join us in this insightful episode as we talk with Akshay about reproducibility, data workflows, and turning prototypes into shareable apps.

For more info on Marimo, reach out to Akshay:

Website: https://www.akshayagrawal.com/

Github: https://github.com/akshayka

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/akshayka/

X: https://x.com/akshaykagrawal

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Start Here with Pybites: https://pybit.es

Developer Mindset Newsletter: https://pybit.es/newsletter 💡

Pybites Books: https://pybitesbooks.com/

Bob LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bbelderbos/

Julian LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliansequeira/

Twitter: https://x.com/pybites

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pybites-podcast/id1545551340

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1sJnriPKKVgPIX7UU9PIN1