Show HN Daily Selection (2025-08-19)
- Fractional jobs – part-time roles for engineers
- Whispering – Open-source, local-first dictation you can trust
- We started building an AI dev tool but it turned into a Sims-style game
- I built a toy TPU that can do inference and training on the XOR problem
- Xbow raised $117M to build AI hackers, I open-sourced it for free
- A Minimal Hacker News Reader for Apple Watch Built with SwiftUI
- Chroma Cloud – serverless search database for AI
- ASCII Tree Editor
- OS X Mavericks Forever
- Memori – Open-Source Memory Engine for AI Agents
- Strudel Flow, a pattern sequencer built with Strudel and React Flow
- Typed-arrow – compile‑time Arrow schemas for Rust
- Founderly – an AI cofounder to take you from idea to launch
- Removing AI Traces in Vibe Coding
- RinaWarp Terminal – AI-integrated terminal with sub-second responses"
- SamwiseOS – A web-based, AI-first OS with a Python kernel in Pyodide
- Code Cause Collective – Devs creating solutions for humanity
- Fast360 – A web tool to benchmark open-source OCR models side-by-side
- An Elisp tutorial made to run inside Emacs (constructed by Claude Code)
- Open WhisperScribe – Offline speech-to-text for any app
Fractional jobs – part-time roles for engineers [Business]
91 points, 39 comments
Fractional Jobs connects engineers with part-time, fractional roles by vetting clients and facilitating introductions.
- Helps engineers transition from full-time to independent work
- Vets clients to ensure quality opportunities
- Offers a variety of engineering roles (CTO, AI, full-stack, etc.)
- Facilitates introductions between engineers and interested clients
Discussion Link, Original Link
Whispering – Open-source, local-first dictation you can trust [Audio]
241 points, 63 comments
An open-source, local-first speech-to-text app that prioritizes data privacy and transparency.
- Open-source and local-first, ensuring data stays on your device
- Voice-activated mode for hands-free operation
- Customizable AI transformations with any prompt/model
- Part of a larger project (Epicenter) aiming for interoperable local-first tools
- MIT licensed, encouraging forks and modifications
Discussion Link, Original Link
We started building an AI dev tool but it turned into a Sims-style game [Entertainment]
85 points, 57 comments
A Sims-style game where AI agents interact in a 3D world, evolving from an AI dev tool into an emergent, open-ended simulation.
- AI agents operate in a 3D tile-based environment with real-time interactions
- Customizable rules, prompts, and decision logic without rebuilding
- Tilemap editor for designing puzzles, hazards, and interactive rooms
- Multi-provider routing (LiteLLM) with local model support (Mistral.rs)
- Community sharing for user-created rooms and scenarios
- Emergent gameplay with unpredictable, non-scripted agent behavior
- Supports prompt-injection testing, social engineering, and model comparisons
- Free to play with BYO API keys or starter credits
Discussion Link, Original Link
I built a toy TPU that can do inference and training on the XOR problem [Developer Tools]
41 points, 10 comments
A toy TPU designed for inference and training on the XOR problem, built from scratch without professional hardware experience.
- Built as a learning exercise to understand ML accelerators without relying on existing designs
- Supports both inference and training, unlike many open-source ML accelerators
- Developed with a "hacky" approach to encourage independent problem-solving
- Intentionally avoided using AI tools to foster deeper understanding
- Documentation and explanations emphasize visual learning and fundamental concepts
Discussion Link, Original Link
Xbow raised $117M to build AI hackers, I open-sourced it for free [Developer Tools]
89 points, 13 comments
AI hackers project open-sourced for free after $117M funding.
- Open-source AI hackers project
- Originally funded with $117M
- Free access to the project
Discussion Link, Original Link
A Minimal Hacker News Reader for Apple Watch Built with SwiftUI [Consumer Tech]
59 points, 18 comments
A minimal Hacker News reader for Apple Watch built with SwiftUI.
- Designed for Apple Watch
- Built using SwiftUI
- Minimalist interface
Discussion Link, Original Link
Chroma Cloud – serverless search database for AI [Developer Tools]
13 points, 0 comments
Chroma Cloud is a fully-managed, serverless search database for AI applications, built on the open-source Chroma project.
- Designed for AI-based systems, simplifying production deployment
- Uses latent space for improved AI performance
- Scalable and reliable, written in Rust with object-storage
- Fully-managed cloud offering with Apache 2.0 license
- Used by major companies like Apple, Amazon, and Microsoft
- Fast, cost-effective, and developer-friendly
Discussion Link, Original Link
ASCII Tree Editor [Developer Tools]
27 points, 15 comments
A web-based editor for ASCII file directory trees that simplifies editing and reorganizing tree command output.
- Visual tree editing with drag-and-drop-like operations
- Real-time sync with immediate ASCII output updates
- Keyboard shortcuts for navigation (J/K or arrow keys)
- Auto-saves work to local storage
- AI-assisted development using Claude Code (documented in the repo)
Discussion Link, Original Link
OS X Mavericks Forever [Consumer Tech]
5 points, 0 comments
OS X Mavericks Forever is a project celebrating the legacy of OS X Mavericks.
- Celebrates OS X Mavericks
- Nostalgic focus on the OS version
Discussion Link, Original Link
Memori – Open-Source Memory Engine for AI Agents [Developer Tools]
16 points, 11 comments
Memori is an open-source memory engine for AI agents that enables stateful, human-like memory to improve consistency, recall, and efficiency.
- Adds stateful memory to AI agents, preventing loss of context across sessions
- Supports three memory modes: Conscious (short-term), Auto (long-term), and Combined
- SQL-first architecture with support for SQLite, PostgreSQL, and MySQL
- Features full-text search, versioning, and optimization for production use
- Built on scalable database infrastructure with autoscaling and recovery
- Open-sourced under Apache 2.0 with demo apps (diary assistant, research agent, travel planner)
Discussion Link, Original Link
Strudel Flow, a pattern sequencer built with Strudel and React Flow [Developer Tools]
5 points, 0 comments
A pattern sequencer built with Strudel and React Flow.
- Combines Strudel and React Flow for sequencing
- Enables pattern creation and manipulation
- Interactive and visual approach to sequencing
Discussion Link, Original Link
Typed-arrow – compile‑time Arrow schemas for Rust [Developer Tools]
3 points, 0 comments
Compile-time Arrow schemas for Rust to enhance type safety and eliminate runtime errors.
- Schemas declared at compile time using Rust’s type system
- Prevents runtime schema errors
- Zero runtime overhead—checks and generation handled by the compiler
- Ideal for stable schemas not dynamically defined at runtime
Discussion Link, Original Link
Founderly – an AI cofounder to take you from idea to launch [Business]
6 points, 2 comments
Founderly is an AI cofounder platform that helps founders turn ideas into launched products by providing domain-specific guidance.
- Acts as an AI cofounder with specialized agents for tech, design, marketing, and legal
- Guides users from idea to actionable plan, MVP, and launch
- Targets founders lacking technical cofounders or resources
- Offers early access with a waitlist for interested users
Removing AI Traces in Vibe Coding [Developer Tools]
4 points, 1 comments
Removing AI traces in Vibe Coding for cleaner, more authentic coding experiences.
- Removes AI-generated artifacts
- Enhances coding authenticity
- Improves code readability
Discussion Link, Original Link
RinaWarp Terminal – AI-integrated terminal with sub-second responses" [Developer Tools]
5 points, 2 comments
AI-integrated terminal with sub-second responses.
- AI integration for enhanced functionality
- Sub-second response times for efficiency
- Terminal-based interface for developers
Discussion Link, Original Link
SamwiseOS – A web-based, AI-first OS with a Python kernel in Pyodide [Developer Tools]
6 points, 0 comments
SamwiseOS is a web-based, AI-first operating system with a Python kernel in Pyodide, offering a persistent, interactive environment in the browser.
- Runs entirely in-browser with a Python kernel powered by Pyodide (WebAssembly)
- Features an AI-powered shell with natural language commands (e.g.,
gemini,forge) - Includes 100+ POSIX-like commands and a functional terminal environment
- Supports GUI apps like a text editor (
edit), ASCII art editor (paint), and games (adventure) - Persistent storage via IndexedDB for sessions, files, and user data
- Multi-user system with permissions and
sudocapabilities - Self-contained and works offline
Discussion Link, Original Link
Code Cause Collective – Devs creating solutions for humanity [Developer Tools]
4 points, 0 comments
A non-profit community for developers to collaborate on projects that benefit humanity.
- Online community hosted on Discord for collaboration
- GitHub organization to host and manage projects
- Focus on building solutions for social good
- Open for contributions and feedback from developers
Discussion Link, Original Link
Fast360 – A web tool to benchmark open-source OCR models side-by-side [Developer Tools]
4 points, 1 comments
Fast360 is a web tool for benchmarking open-source OCR models side-by-side to quickly determine the best one for converting PDFs to clean Markdown.
- Compares 7 leading open-source OCR models in parallel
- No login/signup required for frictionless testing
- Provides side-by-side results for easy comparison
- Built with Next.js/React, Node.js/Express, and Python with Redis/BullMQ
- Free to use with a public GitHub repo for feedback and tech details
Discussion Link, Original Link
An Elisp tutorial made to run inside Emacs (constructed by Claude Code) [Education]
5 points, 0 comments
An interactive Elisp tutorial designed to run within Emacs, created using Claude Code.
- Runs directly inside Emacs for seamless learning
- Interactive format for hands-on Elisp practice
- Built using Claude Code for content generation
- Designed to teach Emacs Lisp efficiently
Discussion Link, Original Link
Open WhisperScribe – Offline speech-to-text for any app [Audio]
5 points, 1 comments
Open-source offline speech-to-text tool for macOS that works in any app with a simple hotkey.
- Runs fully offline with no data leaving your machine
- Works seamlessly in any app (code editors, terminal, etc.)
- Fast, lightweight CLI tool using OpenAI’s Whisper model
- Simple setup (under 5 minutes) with automated installation
- Open-source (Apache 2.0 license)