I am Yongli Chen, the creator of Shifu Framework, a next-gen Kubernetes-native open-source IoT development framework. Ask me anything!

Submitted by saiyan86 t3_za9odv in IAmA

Hello all! I'm Yongli Chen, the creator of Shifu Framework, the next-generation Kubernetes-native open source IoT development framework. I used to work at Microsoft AKS - Azure Kubernetes Service for a few years. Before that, I worked at Azure Container Networking and was in charge of Azure CNI - Container Networking Interface.

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When Microsoft pivoted its strategy from "mobile first, cloud first" to "intelligent cloud and intelligent edge", I started to wonder why and did my research on intelligent edge. Intelligent edge is essentially edge computing. Coincidentally, working at AKS and Kubernetes has become the de facto standard in cloud computing. I started to wonder if we can leverage the power of Kubernetes in edge computing as well. The blocker for edge computing is that it's time-consuming and challenging to develop IoT apps. That's where Shifu comes in...

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Shifu framework makes developing an IoT app as simple as developing a Web app. The high extensibility of Shifu allows it to integrate almost all devices and protocols. Once a device is integrated, Shifu generates a digital twin of the device as a microservice in the system and opens up device data and capabilities in the form of APIs. In this way, traditional IoT application development is simplified to web development, which greatly improves the efficiency, quality and reusability of IoT application development.

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You can learn more about Shifu Framework here: github, and join Discord if you have any further questions.

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Ask me anything about IoT, Kubernetes, Edge Computing, Open Source, and startups. :)

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Proof: Imgur: The magic of the Internet , Twitter, Github

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AxolotlVirus t1_iykwzn4 wrote

Just had a glance, so is Shifu an enhancement to some of the K8s features?

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RachelZhang0922 t1_iykxdwz wrote

I wonder what protocols and devices does Shifu currently support? just some or all of it?

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MrLeea t1_iykxfsm wrote

Hello, Yonny Chen. I am very very interested in IoT and I would like to know why Shifu used golang instead of rust or other languages?

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saiyan86 OP t1_iyl09ye wrote

Replying to RachelZhang0922 (#843,977)

Looks like you are the expert of IoT! The main difference between shifu and EdgeX is k8s native. Being k8s native, shifu is inherently highly available and distributed. This is also one of the main reasons shifu is being used in multiple production scenarios.

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sir322 t1_iyl0lta wrote

Interesting… Did you leave microsoft to start your own project? What do you feel about start a company in the current economy?

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PeanutSalsa t1_iyl294i wrote

What are the common trends you find between startups that are successful vs. ones that aren't?

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AxolotlVirus t1_iyl2ioo wrote

Replying to saiyan86 (#843,885)

So which means it can endow Kubernetes with the ability it would otherwise not have, to manage both devices and upper layer applications in the same infrastructure, right?

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luisapet t1_iyl3fv7 wrote

I always dread being the old person in the mix, but I'm also incredibly curious about technology...Can someone please eli5 (or 50)?

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saiyan86 OP t1_iyl4rij wrote

Replying to PeanutSalsa (#844,091)

The successful ones always focus on the market. It's impossible to create a market from thin air. As entrepreneurs, we need to stay close to the customers, and listen to them.

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saiyan86 OP t1_iyl54kf wrote

Replying to luisapet (#844,135)

Let me give it a try! We are trying to make developing IoT solutions as simple as developing an App. Think of iOS/Android, if you develop your App on those platforms, you don’t need to worry about the hardware underneath. Shifu is the iOS/Android of IoT era.

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factorsofhappiness t1_iyoz178 wrote

How does your average daily routine look like? How do you combat failure in your profession? Where do you get your grit from?

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saiyan86 OP t1_iyqsjxu wrote

Replying to factorsofhappiness (#849,575)

>1. How does your average daily routine look like?
>
>TBH, there's no so-called work-life balance for a startup founder. I'm "on vacation" right now, but I still work everyday.
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>2. How do you combat failure in your profession?
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>Luckily I'm pretty chill. The pressure is huge, and you have to find away to release it. The key is to focus on what you CAN influence, and forget about the rest.
>
>Where do you get your grit from?
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>You have to set an ambitious goal. A big one. This way you will always be motivated.

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