121: Chrome DevTools Gets AI Superpowers

Nov 10, 2025

Discover the latest in web development as new AI features enhance Chrome DevTools, aiding performance analysis. HTMX leaps to version 4 alpha, focusing on streamlined updates like fetch switching. Explore the innovative AnalogJS 2.0, with improved routing and rendering. Delve into Apple's potential use of Gemini for Siri and GitHub's shift to enforce secure token creation for npm. Plus, check out the intriguing Neo home robot concept! And don’t miss out on what’s bringing joy to the hosts this week, including a fun game and a lighthearted novel.

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INSIGHT

Performance Traces Are Prime For AI Help

The performance panel is a promising AI use case because traces are complex and benefit from guided explanations.
Automated analysis there can reveal nuanced browser-level behavior harder to parse manually or via generic chat tools.

INSIGHT

HTMX Rewrote Internals For Fetch And Streaming

HTMX jumped from v2 straight to v4 alpha after internal rewrites and switching from XHR to fetch.
The move enables streaming, SSE, explicit attribute inheritance, and opt-in history restoration via network requests.

ADVICE

Upgrade HTMX Only If You Need New Features

Keep using HTMX v2 if it meets your needs; upgrade only when you need fetch, streaming, or the new features.
The v4 release timeline targets early-to-mid 2026 with gradual rollout to default by 2027.

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This week is a news roundup while cohost Jack is away for a hackathon in SF.

First up, is how Chrome DevTools has added AI to its panels. Now users can ask Gemini to explain console errors, make CSS changes via in the elements tab, and explain traces collected in the performance panel.

HTMX has also jumped from v2 to v4 (alpha), rebuilding the internals after 5 years of maintaining the project. Upgrades include: going from XMLHttpRequests to fetch, explicit attribute inheritance, and improved history caching.

Angular’s meta-framework AnalogJS also just launched 2.0 which offers file-based routing, better Vite ecosystem support, and unified SSR, SSG, and islands-style hydration in one cohesive setup.

Rumor has it that next year Apple will be using Gemini to drive Siri, as it continues to try and get Apple Intelligence to work reliably.

GitHub has officially disabled classic token creation for npm publishing in an effort to reign in the supply chain attacks we’ve reported on for the last few months.

And last but not least, a company called NEO has a home assistant robot available for preorder now. The robot can clean, fold laundry, do dishes, and so on, but here’s the kicker: it’s a human piloting it remotely. Is this really the robot enhanced future we imagined?

Timestamps:

1:16 - Chrome DevTools gets a bunch of AI features
8:39 - htmx v4 alpha
14:25 - AnalogJS 2.0
17:09 - Apple allegedly to use Gemini to drive Siri
22:13 - GitHub disables classic token creation for npm
27:38 - NEO home robot
35:58 - What’s making us happy

News:

Lightning News:

What Makes Us Happy this Week:

Paige - The Survivalists novel
TJ - Pokemon Legends Z–A game

Thanks as always to our sponsor, the Blue Collar Coder channel on YouTube. You can join us in our Discord channel, explore our website and reach us via email, or talk to us on X, Bluesky, or YouTube.