Julia Dispatch

In this episode of the Julia Dispatch, hosts Christopher Rackauckas and Michael Tiemann dive into the world of machine learning and compiler engineering with core developers Billy Moses and Avik Pal.We pull back the curtain on the future of high-performance computing in Julia, tracking the evolution of revolutionary compiler tools like Enzyme.jl and Polygeist into their latest groundbreaking collaboration: Reactant.jl. Billy shares how his journey from writing quick-and-dirty Python-to-Java source rewriters in high school eventually led to a PhD at the MIT Julia Lab and a professorship at UIUC. Avik recounts how his background in Google Summer of Code and scientific machine learning (SciML) exposed the structural fragility of language-level neural network optimization—and how Reactant stepped in to solve it.The group explores how Reactant breaks the traditional boundaries of Domain-Specific Languages (DSLs) to automatically optimize generic, loop-heavy, and mutating Julia code directly into MLIR subgraphs, paving the way for next-generation hardware acceleration.Hosts: Chris Rackauckas & Michael TiemannEditor: StaziOfficial Website: https://juliadispatch.fmGitHub Repository: https://github.com/JuliaDispatch/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JuliaDispatchListen via RSS: https://anchor.fm/s/fc63539c/podcast/rss#JuliaLang #MachineLearning #Compilers #SciML #Reactant #Enzyme #OpenSource #TechPodcast

In this episode, we welcome back Leticia Madureira, a PhD student at Carnegie Mellon University, to explore her journey into quantum chemistry, her passion for Julia, and her work in computational chemistry. Leticia shares her experiences as a PhD student, her contributions to the Julia ecosystem, and her vision for the future of quantum chemistry simulations.Leticia Madureira is a PhD candidate in Chemistry at Carnegie Mellon University, specializing in computational quantum chemistry. Her work focuses on electronic structure methods to study chemical processes like polymerization and photodegradation. She collaborates with the Julia Lab to develop open-source, high-performance tools for quantum chemistry, including packages like BasisSets.jl and OohataHuzinaga.jl (under the HartreeFoca organization).Leticia aims to make computational chemistry accessible through teaching and open-source development, believing that education empowers scientists and fosters innovation in the field.Recorded on: 2025/10/10Hosts: Chris Rackauckas, Michael TiemannEditor: StaziFind us everywhere:https://juliadispatch.fmhttps://github.com/JuliaDispatch/https://www.youtube.com/@JuliaDispatchhttps://anchor.fm/s/fc63539c/podcast/rssWe apologize for how late this is but we had technical issues.
Sincerely the editor
Stazi

Happy New Year! In this episode, we welcome back Leticia Madureira, a PhD student at Carnegie Mellon University, to explore her journey into quantum chemistry, her passion for Julia, and her work in computational chemistry. Leticia shares her experiences as a PhD student, her contributions to the Julia ecosystem, and her vision for the future of quantum chemistry simulations.

Leticia Madureira is a PhD candidate in Chemistry at Carnegie Mellon University, specializing in computational quantum chemistry. Her work focuses on electronic structure methods to study chemical processes like polymerization and photodegradation. She collaborates with the Julia Lab to develop open-source, high-performance tools for quantum chemistry, including packages like BasisSets.jl and OohataHuzinaga.jl (under the HartreeFoca organization).Leticia aims to make computational chemistry accessible through teaching and open-source development, believing that education empowers scientists and fosters innovation in the field.

Recorded on: 2025/10/10
Hosts: Chris Rackauckas, Michael Tiemann
Editor: Stazi

Find us everywhere:
https://juliadispatch.fm
https://github.com/JuliaDispatch/
https://www.youtube.com/@JuliaDispatch
https://anchor.fm/s/fc63539c/podcast/rss

Merry Chrismas to all who observe! Today, we dive into the world of Makie.jl with its core developers, Simon Danisch and Julius Krumbiegel. We explore the origins of Makie, its unique design philosophy, and its role in shaping the future of visualization in Julia. Simon and Julius share their journeys into Julia, the challenges of building a flexible and performant visualization framework, and their vision for Makie’s future—including ray tracing, higher-level APIs, and integration with the broader Julia ecosystem.

Simon Danisch began his studies in Cognitive Science at the University of Osnabrück in 2010, specializing in computer vision and machine learning. In 2012, he discovered Julia as a language that combined high performance for interactive computing, seamless GPU integration, and an elegant alternative to object-oriented programming for mathematical applications. Julia has been his primary language ever since. While working with C++ on machine learning projects in 2011, Simon identified a need for interactive, user-friendly tools for data visualization and model parameter manipulation. This inspired his Bachelor’s thesis, where he developed an early predecessor to Makie.jl—some of which remains in use today. Since then, he has made significant contributions to Julia’s graphics, GPU, and plotting infrastructure, and is the author of numerous related packages.

Julius Krumbiegel joined the Makie project in 2019, where he developed its layout system (GridLayoutBase.jl) and many of the GUI objects originally part of the standalone MakieLayout.jl package. With a background in psychology and vision science, his work focuses on 2D plots, visual quality, and usability, including Makie’s default themes, plot recipes, text and figure layouting, and vector graphics output via CairoMakie.jl. He is also the author of several widely used Julia packages, including Chain.jl, DataFrameMacros.jl, ReadableRegex.jl, Animations.jl, and SankeyMakie.jl.

Makie's website: https://makie.org/website/

Recorded on: 2025/11/25
Hosts: Chris Rackauckas, Michael Tiemann
Editor: Stazi

Find us everywhere:
https://juliadispatch.fm
https://github.com/JuliaDispatch/
https://www.youtube.com/@JuliaDispatch
https://anchor.fm/s/fc63539c/podcast/rss

Join Chris Rackauckas and Stefan Kastanov for an in-depth discussion of recent developments in the Julia programming language community, with a special focus on JuliaCon 2025 and exciting technical advances.
🎤 JuliaCon 2025 Recap
The unique grassroots nature of JuliaCon and why it's different from typical academic conferences
How the community-driven approach fosters collaboration over competition
The impact of geopolitical issues on attendance and the rise of JuliaCon Local events
JuliaCon Local Paris registration now open!
💻 Technical Deep Dives
State of Julia talk: The famous "slide deck karaoke" featuring 20+ core contributors
Cody's work on trim and compilation tooling for deploying Julia to real devices
Sparse arrays developments and ecosystem highlights
Fixed-size arrays and why they represent the future of Julia's array interface
🤖 AI-Powered Development in Julia
Chris shares his extensive experience using Claude for repository maintenance across 200+ packages
Best practices for sandboxing AI tools (including the "justme_claude" GitHub account approach)
How to safely incorporate AI into your Julia development workflow
Setting up effective agent instructions for code maintenance
🔬 Automatic Differentiation Updates
Mooncake.jl emerging as a strong contender to replace Zygote
Support for mutation in AD while maintaining high-level Julia code
Comparison of different AD approaches in the Julia ecosystem
🎮 Game Development in Julia
Entity-Component System (ECS) frameworks coming to Julia
Rex game engine development
Commercial game development with Julia on Steam
📝 This Month in Julia Newsletter: https://discourse.julialang.org/t/this-month-in-julia-world-2025-06-07/131412
🎟️ JuliaCon Local Paris Registration: [Link to be added]
🔧 Mentioned Tools & Packages:
Mooncake.jl - Modern automatic differentiation
SandboxJL - Safe sandboxing for AI tools
Rex - Game engine in Julia
Fixed-size arrays
00:00 - Introduction & Welcome00:33 - JuliaCon 2025 Overview - Grassroots Community Nature01:34 - Quality of JuliaCon Talks vs Academic Conferences02:18 - Community Collaboration & Interoperability03:11 - Growth of JuliaCon Local Events & Visa Issues04:03 - JuliaCon Local Paris Registration Open04:25 - JuliaCon Talk Highlights Discussion04:46 - Focus on Language, Compiler & Type System Topics05:36 - State of Julia Presentation - Slide Deck Karaoke06:13 - Behind the Scenes of State of Julia Creation07:26 - Cody's Work on Trim & Compilation Tooling39:53 - AI Tools in Julia Development - Claude for Repository Maintenance40:29 - Setting Up Agent Files & Instructions41:47 - Sandboxing AI Tools - The "justme_claude" GitHub Account43:01 - Safe Practices for Using AI in Development43:42 - Entity-Component Systems (ECS) Framework Discussion44:23 - Game Development in Julia44:51 - Commercial Game on Steam with Julia46:44 - Mooncake.jl for Automatic Differentiation46:48 - Wrap Up & Future Episodes47:22 - FerriteCon Copenhagen & Contributing to Newsletter48:02 - Closing Remarks
Chris Rackauckas is a Research Affiliate and Co-PI of the Julia Lab at MIT, VP of Modeling and Simulation at JuliaHub, and Lead Developer of the SciML Open Source Software Organization.
Stefan Kastanov is a Julia community contributor and regular co-host of Julia Dispatch.
🌐 Julia Language: https://julialang.org💬 Julia Discourse: https://discourse.julialang.org🐙 JuliaHub: https://juliahub.com🔬 SciML: https://sciml.ai
📚 New to Julia? Check out our beginner-friendly episodes and tutorials on the channel!
👍 If you enjoyed this episode, please like, subscribe, and share with fellow Julia enthusiasts!
#Julia #JuliaLang #JuliaCon #Programming #ScientificComputing #OpenSource #MachineLearning #AutomaticDifferentiation #GameDev
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