863: 20 Years of Things with Werner Jainek
Summary
Steven Robles and David Sparks interview Werner Jank, CEO of Things, discussing the app’s 20-year history and design philosophy. Jank explains their independent status, custom sync engine, and rigorous team culture focused on whimsical, intuitive animations. The conversation covers the upcoming Siri AI integration, challenges with Apple’s schema, and future plans for Model Context Protocol support to enhance third-party AI connectivity.
Topics discussed
Introduction and Werner's background with Things
The origins of Things and Werner's switch to Mac
Design philosophy, whimsy, and team culture
Animation details and independence from VC funding
Siri AI integration and new input methods
Spotlight integration and AI vs. human development
MCP support and custom sync engine
Werner's personal productivity workflow and tools
European dev scene and WWDC experiences
Feature requests, App Store strategy, and pricing
Building taste, Things 4 roadmap, and app soul
Favorite apps, window management, and privacy tools
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