Jamon Holmgren - Infinite Red, Into the Dawn

Quick Overview

Jamon Holmgren, co-founder and CTO of Infinite Red, discusses his long history with game development, starting from programming in BASIC on a 486 computer and later moving to React Native, which he found to be a very effective technology for cross-platform development, contrasting it with older methods like native iOS/Android development.

Key Points: Jamon Holmgren is the co-founder and CTO of Infinite Red, which focuses on building mobile apps using React Native. Holmgren started programming in BASIC on a 486 computer around 1992, initially working on game development. He transitioned to game development consulting, eventually moving into iOS development before shifting focus to React Native. Holmgren notes that working with React Native allows for greater cross-platform consistency compared to maintaining separate native codebases. He mentions that his father, a business owner, instilled a strong work ethic and encouraged him to be entrepreneurial. The company culture at Infinite Red encourages giving competitors invitations to their conferences, operating under a 'rising tide lifts all boats' mentality. Holmgren attributes the success of his company's work to the strong community and open-source contributions within the React Native ecosystem.

Context: Jamon Holmgren, introduced as the co-founder and CTO of Infinite Red, joins the DevTools FM podcast to discuss his career journey, which spans from early programming experiences to leading a company focused on modern cross-platform development tools. The conversation centers on his transition from older development paradigms to embracing technologies like React Native and the culture that supports this work.

Detailed Analysis

Jamon Holmgren, co-founder and CTO of Infinite Red, shares his path in software development, which began with programming in BASIC on a 486 computer around 1992, focusing on game development. He initially worked on custom game projects before transitioning to web development and eventually iOS development. Holmgren credits his father's business ownership experience as influential, instilling a mentality of striving for excellence and having a strong work ethic. His transition to React Native was driven by the desire to create cross-platform applications efficiently, avoiding the complexity of maintaining separate native codebases (iOS and Android). He praises React Native's ecosystem and community for being highly productive and supportive, contrasting it favorably with older, more siloed development approaches. Holmgren emphasizes the importance of community involvement, noting that Infinite Red actively engages with and contributes to open-source projects like Hermes and the React Native Expo ecosystem. He also discusses the positive company culture, characterized by collaboration rather than internal competition, citing the practice of inviting competitors to their conferences as an example of this collaborative spirit.