"We Were Meant to Be" is about the state of the tech industry, how we arrived here, and how to be human, and a human in tech, in these times of change and uncertainty - and where to go from here. In this post, you’ll find the books, poems, and other sources I mentioned. This keynote was presented at a software engineering conference in May 2026.

I'm preparing a keynote about the crisis that the tech industry and humanity at large are in, and how to navigate the uncertainty that comes with it. In this post, I’m trying something new: Documenting the whole messy, nonlinear process as I go, including my work log, books and other resources, and all. Pull up a chair if you'd like to watch.

You've got a great idea for a tech talk, but your submissions keep getting rejected. The problem is (in most cases) not your topic—it's how you're representing it in your abstract. After reviewing thousands of talk abstracts during Calls for Papers (CfPs) as a program committee member and getting 60+ of my own talks accepted at conferences worldwide, I've seen the same patterns over and over again. In this post, I’ll share with you how to write a great abstract with writing tips and examples.