korrents
David Heinemeier Hansson

What David Heinemeier Hansson thinks about Microsoft

@dhh · 747 positions · 10 changes of mind · On ppll ↗

Creator of Ruby on Rails, CTO of 37signals, and creator of Omarchy.

David Heinemeier Hansson did not write this page.

We collected these quotes from things they published elsewhere, and every quote links to where it was said. They have no account here and have not endorsed this site. Quotes are word for word; the short line under each one is our own restatement, not their wording. Their own site. Is this you? Claim it or ask us to remove it. Or tell us what is wrong here.

Filter Microsoft · Newest first
Topic
All 747Microsoft 6Apple 46management 36Europe 30ambition 27coding agents 27agency 26America 26design 26
104 more topics
open source 26politics 25behavioural science 24happiness 23optimism 22the cloud 22hiring 21Linux 20startups 20motivation 19SaaS 19AI and jobs 17social media 17government 16AI agents 15creativity 15humility 15LLMs 15simplicity 14capitalism 13censorship 13immigration 13family 12Ruby 11product management 9team size 9Anthropic 8cybersecurity 8infrastructure 8software quality 8vibe coding 8Google 7remote work 7Ruby on Rails 7taste 7benchmarks 6developer tools 6health and fitness 6JavaScript 6patience 6Psychotherapy 6war 6energy 5innovation 5Omarchy 5religion 5attitude change 4code generation 4courage 4data centers 4education 4empathy 4Hyprland 4ideas vs execution 4investing 4market efficiency 4Russia 4self-driving cars 4software performance 4AI alignment 3Arch Linux 3climate change 3democracy 3libertarianism 3privacy 3semiconductors 3venture capital 3AGI 2AI and human skill 2AI slop 2AI writing 2aviation 2compilers 2crypto 2demographics 2discipline 2electric vehicles 2friendship 2Japan 2Silicon Valley 2solar 2video games 2Addiction 1batteries 1China 1CSS 1curiosity 1gender equality 1journalism 1mathematics 1MCP 1metascience 1Nix 1OpenAI 1permitting 1personal websites 1physics 1Python 1racism 1scaling laws 1stock market 1sustainability 1TypeScript 1writing 1
Sort
NewestOldest

Only David Heinemeier Hansson on Microsoft. See everyone on Microsoft

6 dated positions, 2024 to 2026, in their own words. Our reading of what David Heinemeier Hansson has said — not written or endorsed by them.

  1. Our readingSoftware lock-in is breaking, because rewriting just the 5% of an application you personally use is now within one person's reach.

    Their wordsAnd maybe you won't get to 100% coverage, but this is the old joke about Microsoft Office. "I only use 5%." Yeah, well, we all use a different 5%. Well, what if we all just build our own 5%? What if I just took the functionality that I need and just did that? That is a completely different challenge and one agents are incredibly capable of doing right now, today, and I've done it a lot of times over.

    ↗DHH: Future of Programming, AI, Agentic Engineering, Vibe Coding & Linux | Lex Fridman Podcast #501youtube.com 7th of 41 in this recording

  2. 14 months earlier

  3. Our readingA big switch to desktop Linux is coming, at least among developers, because there is enough dissatisfaction with both Apple and Microsoft.

    LinuxApple

    Their wordsI don't know when we'll literally get "The Year of Linux on the Desktop", but I've never been as convinced that its coming as I am now. There's enough dissent in the water. Enough dissatisfaction with both Apple and Microsoft.

    ↗Omarchy is outworld.hey.com

  4. 14 months earlier

  5. Our readingCompanies can suddenly lose goodwill

    Their wordsMicrosoft's reputation and good standing suddenly evaporated seemingly overnight once enough critical stories had accumulated about its behavior

    ↗Hating Apple goes mainstreamworld.hey.com 2nd of 2 in this piece

  6. 2 months earlier

  7. Our readingA company can change fundamentally with new leadership

    Apple

    Their wordsnothing will fundamentally change at Apple until they have the kind of leadership transition that unlocked so much value at Microsoft

    ↗Apple is in its Ballmer eraworld.hey.com

  8. 7 weeks earlier

  9. Our readingApple is repeating Microsoft's monopoly mistakes

    Apple

    Their wordsBut the red mist of vindictiveness is blinding Apple's view of history, and making them repeat the mistakes it took Microsoft two decades to undo

    ↗Microsoft taught Apple nothingworld.hey.com 1st of 2 in this piece

  11. Our readingMicrosoft's brutish tactics turned developers against them

    Their wordsAnd the bill for that didn't come due until Windows Phone. Nobody, and I mean nobody, wanted to lift a finger to help Microsoft gain a foothold in mobile

    ↗Microsoft taught Apple nothingworld.hey.com 2nd of 2 in this piece