# Ready, Set, Cloud! Tech blog, podcast, and newsletter by Allen Helton on modern cloud development, developer experience, and tech leadership. There's a little something for everybody! Author: Allen Helton Canonical site: https://www.readysetcloud.io Plain text index: https://www.readysetcloud.io/index.txt Full LLM context: https://www.readysetcloud.io/llms-full.txt RSS feed: https://www.readysetcloud.io/index.xml ## Site Sections - [Authors | Ready, Set, Cloud](https://www.readysetcloud.io/authors/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/authors/index.txt) - [Legal](https://www.readysetcloud.io/legal/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/legal/index.txt) - [Posts](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/index.txt) - [Ready, Set, Cloud Newsletter](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/index.txt) - [Ready, Set, Cloud Podcast!](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/index.txt) - [Talks, Podcasts, and Presentations](https://www.readysetcloud.io/talks/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/talks/index.txt) - [Topics](https://www.readysetcloud.io/topics/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/topics/index.txt) ## Topic Hubs - [AI Agents](https://www.readysetcloud.io/topics/ai-agents/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/topics/ai-agents/index.txt): Practical writing on building, securing, caching, and operating AI agents in production. - [API Design](https://www.readysetcloud.io/topics/api-design/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/topics/api-design/index.txt): API design guidance for humans, automation, and AI agents. - [AWS Lambda](https://www.readysetcloud.io/topics/aws-lambda/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/topics/aws-lambda/index.txt): AWS Lambda articles about architecture, performance, networking, layers, and practical serverless design. - [Caching](https://www.readysetcloud.io/topics/caching/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/topics/caching/index.txt): Caching patterns for AI agents, APIs, serverless systems, and content delivery. - [MCP](https://www.readysetcloud.io/topics/mcp/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/topics/mcp/index.txt): Model Context Protocol articles covering API exposure, security, observability, and agent integration. - [Serverless APIs](https://www.readysetcloud.io/topics/serverless-apis/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/topics/serverless-apis/index.txt): Serverless API articles covering API Gateway, HTTP APIs, direct integrations, auth, performance, and event-driven systems. ## Recent Blog Posts - [PSA: That probably doesn't need to be SaaS](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/that-probably-doesnt-need-to-be-saas/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/that-probably-doesnt-need-to-be-saas/index.txt): Before you build the pricing page, ask yourself whether your project really needs users. - [Your agent is repeating itself](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/your-agent-is-repeating-itself/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/your-agent-is-repeating-itself/index.txt): So much of agent traffic is repetitive. By adding in caching layers, you can both improve your user experience and decrease your bills in one fell swoop. - [Local agents scare me](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/local-agents-scare-me/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/local-agents-scare-me/index.txt): I built an AI agent with its own identity, MFA, and scoped credentials. It's still not safe. Here's why local is the wrong place to run it. - [Your AI agents are a security nightmare](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/your-ai-agents-are-a-security-nightmare/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/your-ai-agents-are-a-security-nightmare/index.txt): AI agents often run with more access than they should. Here's how moving to session-based identity changed how I design and trust autonomous systems. - [Postman might be my new favorite IDE](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/postman-might-be-my-new-favorite-ide/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/postman-might-be-my-new-favorite-ide/index.txt): AI can generate APIs quickly, but maintaining structure is harder. Here’s how I used Postman to enforce contracts, tests, and CI across the API lifecycle. - [When serving images from S3 stopped being good enough](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/blog-cdn/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/blog-cdn/index.txt): Serving images from S3 worked for years, until it didn't. Here's how I moved image optimization out of my workflow and made performance the default. - [Road to re:Invent Hackathon: How Not to Build a Serverless App](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/road-to-reinvent/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/road-to-reinvent/index.txt): I built a deliberately overengineered serverless hackathon project with agents, event-driven choreography, and what not to do... on purpose. - [Cognitive Dissonance](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/cognitive-dissonance/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/cognitive-dissonance/index.txt): "Do as I say, not as I do" applies hard with MCP. We talk a lot about the problems and not enough about practical solutions. The comic is a nudge to shift from critique to construction. - [Multi-Agent Collaboration](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/multi-agent-collaboration/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/multi-agent-collaboration/index.txt): Multi-agent collaboration sounds great in theory, but the game of telephone between agents can produce unpredictable results. The comic is a reminder to design clear roles, shared context, and guardrails. - [Trust will make or break AI agents](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/trust-will-make-or-break-ai-agents/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/trust-will-make-or-break-ai-agents/index.txt): Why trust—not hype—will determine the future of AI tools. Without authority, adoption stalls. Here's what we need to move forward. - [Observability for MCP servers with Kestra](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/kestra/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/kestra/index.txt): Learn how to track tool usage, success rates, and latency in your MCP server using Kestra workflows, Momento Cache, and the Postman visualizer—no backend code required. - [Your API might be someone else's model](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/your-api-might-be-someone-elses-model/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/your-api-might-be-someone-elses-model/index.txt): Should we pump the brakes on MCP? Maybe not—but we do need a CORS-like mechanism to protect APIs from unauthorized model wrapping. - [I'm back!](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/im-back/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/im-back/index.txt): I start back at work today after a couple of months off and I have a request. - [AppSync Events Are Great, But Did You Really Need Serverless WebSockets?](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/appsync-events/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/appsync-events/index.txt): A real-world look at AppSync Events through the lens of hard-earned WebSockets mistakes. What managed real-time actually means, what's still missing, and what most teams really want. - [Okay, Gitpod Flex is actually pretty cool](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/gitpod-flex/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/gitpod-flex/index.txt): I recently tried out Gitpod Flex and I feel like it's going to change the way I approach open-source software - [Scaling community growth with code](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/scaling-community-growth-with-serverless/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/scaling-community-growth-with-serverless/index.txt): Learn about how I helped scale the Believe in Serverless community and grow the brand presence with a little bit of automation. - [July cancer update](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/july-cancer-update/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/july-cancer-update/index.txt): It's been two months since I shared that my daughter has leukemia. Let's talk about how it's going. - [AWS Step Functions vs Temporal: A Practical Developer Comparison ](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/step-functions-vs-temporal/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/step-functions-vs-temporal/index.txt): A practical comparison of AWS Step Functions and Temporal, looking at workflow modeling, operational complexity, and how each fits different system designs. - [A personal update](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/a-personal-update/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/a-personal-update/index.txt): It's been a minute since you've heard from me. Let's catch up a bit. - [This is the best new feature from POST/CON](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/postcon-2024/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/blog/allen.helton/postcon-2024/index.txt): Postman made lots of announcements at their conference, but I'm especially excited for this one. ## Recent Newsletter Issues - [Show your work](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/225/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/225/index.txt): In an age where software is cheap and human-written content is scarce, I want to remind you to share what you learned! - [AI is just a tool](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/224/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/224/index.txt): Here's your reminder that AI is just a tool, not a viable candidate for your replacement. - [MicroVMs as GitHub runners? Yes, and it works.](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/223/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/223/index.txt): Lambda MicroVMs have landed and the community is already putting them to creative use. Plus, Claude Sonnet 5 analysis, serverless email architecture, and re:Invent planning. - [Voice-controlled humanoid robots 😱](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/222/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/222/index.txt): The time is here where we actually can control fleets of humanoid robots by our voice. What's next?! - [Finally, native S3 metadata that works!](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/221/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/221/index.txt): AWS launched S3 annotations last week, a new way to store mutable, queryable data on your objects. Hooray! - [Filling the AI Experience Gap](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/220/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/220/index.txt): AI has changed everything. What does that mean for the next generation of software developers? - [MCP with a user interface](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/219/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/219/index.txt): A cool emerging part of the MCP standard allows you to return UI components to clients as part of your answer, leading to richer experiences. - [Zipping 15GB of S3 files in Lambda in 215 seconds](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/218/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/218/index.txt): You can do a whole lot more in Lambda than you realized with proper memory management. - [Agent development has changed... again.](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/217/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/217/index.txt): In the past two years, tech has seen an incredibly fast cycle on how we build AI agents. Things have changed again, but in a good way. - [Think again about running agents locally](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/216/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/216/index.txt): Are you running an AI agent on your dev machine to do work for you? You may have some security issues. - [Using AI to Create Music](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/215/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/215/index.txt): Have you ever wanted to create your own music but felt a little overwhelmed? Just use AI! - [Goodbye, Amazon Q Developer](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/214/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/214/index.txt): AWS announced end of support for Amazon Q Developer in favor of Kiro. You have another year to make the switch. - [The Modern Architecture Trinity](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/213/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/213/index.txt): This week we discuss process intelligence, event-driven architecture, and agentic AI as the foundational pillars of modern architecture. - [Lessons from 500K Agent Deployments](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/212/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/212/index.txt): Take it from the people who've done it time and time again - agent development is normalizing with some hard-learned lessons. - [S3 as a filesystem!?](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/211/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/211/index.txt): AWS released S3 files, letting you add a layer on top of S3 to treat objects as files. It's about time! - [Build your own AI film crew](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/210/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/210/index.txt): We have great content on using AWS to build your own personal film crew to edit videos. - [Let's get serious about AI agents](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/209/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/209/index.txt): It's no secret agentic AI has taken over. While there's still much to learn, major optimizations are starting to pop up. - [Is MCP already broken?](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/208/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/208/index.txt): We all know about MCP. But now the community is asking hard questions about whether it was the right call. - [The devil's in the details](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/207/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/207/index.txt): Taking your system from good to great takes attention to detail, not major architectural shifts. - [Builders are taking their platforms back](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/206/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/newsletter/206/index.txt): We're seeing a rise in developers building their own content platforms with custom features. Have you built one yet? ## Podcast - [Becoming a full-time serverless content creator with Yan Cui](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/season-2/9/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/season-2/9/index.txt): Join Yan Cui as he recounts his journey to serverless greatness while sharing tips and tricks to boost engagement and make your content world-class. - [All about the Believe in Serverless community](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/season-2/8/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/season-2/8/index.txt): You've probably seen some posts lately about the Believe in Serverless community. Tune in to hear what it is, where it's been, and where it's going. - [The life-changing tech boom in Nigeria with Tobenna Nwokike](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/season-2/7/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/season-2/7/index.txt): Tech is booming all around the world - even in Africa. And it's having a profound impact well beyond cool new gadgets. - [Let's get together. In person. Today. With Raphael Manke](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/season-2/6/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/season-2/6/index.txt): Don't underestimate the value of meeting your friends, peers, and like-minded-soon-to-be-best-friends in person. - [Everything you didn't know about EDA with James Eastham](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/season-2/5/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/season-2/5/index.txt): Learn about the world of event-driven architectures in an easily approachable way with James Eastham and Allen Helton. - [You need CI/CD in your life with Johannes Koch](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/season-2/4/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/season-2/4/index.txt): Learn about the world of modern CI/CD and why you need to include it in all your side projects with resident expert Johannes Koch - [Learning by fire: taking your side project to production with Luc van Donkersgoed](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/season-2/3/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/season-2/3/index.txt): Computer science is a field where you fall behind quickly if you aren't constantly learning? What's the best way to learn? Take your side projects to production, of course! - [How math can change the way we write software forever with Jeremiah Dunham](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/season-2/2/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/season-2/2/index.txt): Back in school we were taught math is a fundamental concept for developers but many of us don't use it. Or do we? - [Moving into a post serverless era with Jeremy Daly](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/season-2/1/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/season-2/1/index.txt): Join Jeremy Daly and Allen Helton as they discuss what cloud development looks like 5 years down the road when nobody is talking about serverless anymore. - [How IoT is Perfectly Serverless With Rohan Desai](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/season-1/24/) - [text](https://www.readysetcloud.io/podcast/season-1/24/index.txt): Ever wondered how pressing a button on your phone can make your lights turn on? Join Rohan Desai as he explains how massive IoT systems are built at scale.