Faster & Cheaper on PlanetScale Metal with Sam Lambert

Faster & Cheaper on PlanetScale Metal with Sam Lambert

Author: Software Huddle March 12, 2025 Duration: 1:19:43
Today, we have Sam Lambert back on the show! Sam is the CEO of PlanetScale, and if you follow him on X, you know he’s one of the sharpest voices in the database space—cutting through the hype with deep experience and a no-nonsense approach. In this episode, we dive into PlanetScale’s new Metal offering, which has been battle-tested with PlanetScale’s high-scale cloud business partners and is now GA. Sam also shares why staying profitable is crucial—not just for the business but for the stability and reliability it guarantees for customers. While many cloud infrastructure companies chase the next hype cycle, Sam prefers to keep it boring—delivering rock-solid performance with no surprises Finally, we close with Sam's thoughts on other happenings in the database space -- Aurora DSQL, Aurora Limitless, MySQL benchmarks, and multi-region strong consistency. Tune in for a deep dive into databases, cloud infrastructure, and what it takes to build a sustainable, high-performance tech company. Timestamps 01:34 Start 06:42 PlanetScale Metal 11:15 The problem with separation of storage and compute 15:02 EBS Tax 17:32 How does Vitess handle durability 22:58 Metal recommended for all PlanetScale users? 27:20 The hidden expense of IOPS for cloud databases 37:41 Timeline of creating PlanetScale Metal 41:32 Focus on profitability 47:52 Removal of hobby plan 57:45 Deprecation of PlanetScale Boost 01:00:24 DSQL 01:01:51 Aurora Limitless 01:04:15 AWS as a partner 01:07:00 The spectacle of AWS re:Invent 01:12:22 Benchmarks and benchmarketing 01:15:51 AWS Databases + multi-region strong consistency

Every week on Software Huddle, Alex DeBrie and Sean Falconer sit down with a different expert from across the tech landscape. The conversations are less about quick tips and more about substantive discussions, digging into the real challenges and decisions behind building software, launching products, and navigating the industry's constant shifts. You'll hear from practitioners who have been in the trenches, offering perspectives that blend deep technical knowledge with hard-won business and entrepreneurial experience. Alex brings his specialized expertise as the author of The DynamoDB Book and an AWS Data Hero, while Sean contributes a unique viewpoint shaped by over two decades as an engineer, founder, and marketing executive, recognized as a Snowflake Data Superhero. Together, they create a space where complex topics in software development and technology trends become accessible and genuinely engaging. This podcast is for anyone who wants to move beyond surface-level news and understand the "why" behind the tools and strategies shaping our digital world. Tune in for a thoughtful huddle that feels more like a candid conversation between colleagues than a formal interview.
Author: Language: en-us Episodes: 79

Software Huddle
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