John Brandon Rodriguez

Father • Texan • Veteran

[Greg Cello @gregcello]

https://t.co/rTGNoSu6Ek

[The White House @WhiteHouse]

USA! USA! USA! 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

[Elon Musk @elonmusk]

Evidence of exceptional ability and asking how they solved hard problems down to the brass tacks level is what matters.

Those who actually deserve credit know the details of the solution, because it was so hard it got seared into their brain. The phonies and posers who falsely claim credit will flounder at the second or third level of detail.

[Ryan Oksenhorn @ryanzip]

don't head out into that storm, we've got this

[John Brandon Rodriguez @jbrandonr_]

The most important work is often the work no one sees.

At Zipline, we’re hiring UAS Technicians, with priority hiring in DFW, and openings in Phoenix, Austin, Houston, and San Antonio.

For the people who care about the details, who take pride in doing things right, and who know that reliability matters — this role matters.

If you have a background in aviation, maintenance, or simply think you have what it takes, and you want to be part of something groundbreaking and deeply meaningful, I’d love to connect.

In my last 18 months here, I’ve seen just how special it is to work on something that blends innovation, purpose, and real-world impact.

[Keller Cliffton @Keller]

Take a tour of Zipline’s maintenance hub for autonomous aircraft in Dallas. This hub will service thousands of aircraft by end of the year, and we’re replicating it in Houston and Phoenix this month 📈

[staysaasy @staysaasy]

Think different

[lcamtuf @lcamtuf]

Moltbook debate in a nutshell

[SpaceWeatherNews @SunWeatherMan]

Between this and the penguin I’m f***ing amped right now

[Michael Foster @thisisfoster]

Here’s something you’ll eventually realize, but if I do my job here, maybe I can help you get a little ahead of me.

The most difficult, stressful years of your life, the years when you’re buried under little kids, trying to buy a house, scrambling for resources, climbing the ladder at work, the years when there’s never enough time and you’re running around like a chicken with its head cut off… those years, believe it or not, are some of your golden years. Some of your best memories will come from there.

I remember being driven by one main goal: just get through. Survive these years. Make it to the other side, where things are easier.

And don’t get me wrong, it is good to be able make ends meet with some ease. It’s good not to live on the edge of financial disaster. It’s good to have some margin and some free time.

But that busy, crowded, stretched-thin season of life is full of blessings. And you usually don’t see how many until they’re gone.

I’ve heard a lot of people in their 20s and 30s talk about how mediocre their parents were, but how great they are as grandparents. A lot of that comes from regret. It’s the realization that you didn’t really enjoy what was right in front of you.

Every little step. Every first word. Their small victories... on the field, on the mat, in the classroom. Becoming a grandparent gives people a second taste of what they didn’t fully appreciate the first time.

Now, I don’t know that you can ever fully appreciate anything while you’re in it. But there are ways not to miss it.

One thing I started doing was rehearsing in my head the things my kids care about, the things they love. I try to meet them there. I try to connect with them along those lines. And then, as simple as it sounds, I try to enjoy them enjoying things.

Athan loves planes and wrestling. Gal loves art. Caed loves politics and debate. Cedar loves hanging out with her two friends (they refer to themselves as “the triplets”). Cyp loves Legos. Cyrene is in that “I’m a princess” stage. Foxe wants to do dangerous things.

There is more to my kids. So much more. But those are areas where I can check in:

“What’s the latest in the world, Caed?”
“Does anyone have a shot at state on your team, Athan?”
“Cyp, show me what you’ve built recently.”
“Gal, how’s your comic coming? Can I see?”
"Cedar, what have the triplets been up to?"

There are little doors into their lives. Some of their responses will be golden memories you treasure for the rest of your life.

That’s one of the quiet arts of fatherhood: learning to take real pleasure in someone else’s joy.

Here’s a practical tip. Set an alarm on your phone that says, “Ask one of my kids about their thing or their day. Then listen and ask follow-up questions.”

This will go fast. You can't even comprehend it. You will just have to trust me.

[John Brandon Rodriguez @jbrandonr_]

Incredible things are happening here…
To the moon 🚀

[Zipline @zipline]

2,000,000+ commercial deliveries.
New cities unlocked.

See where we’re taking off next

[Peter Girnus 🦅 @gothburz]

Last quarter I rolled out Microsoft Copilot to 4,000 employees.

$30 per seat per month.

$1.4 million annually.

I called it "digital transformation."

The board loved that phrase.

They approved it in eleven minutes.

No one asked what it would actually do.

Including me.

I told everyone it would "10x productivity."

That's not a real number.

But it sounds like one.

HR asked how we'd measure the 10x.

I said we'd "leverage analytics dashboards."

They stopped asking.

Three months later I checked the usage reports.

47 people had opened it.

12 had used it more than once.

One of them was me.

I used it to summarize an email I could have read in 30 seconds.

It took 45 seconds.

Plus the time it took to fix the hallucinations.

But I called it a "pilot success."

Success means the pilot didn't visibly fail.

The CFO asked about ROI.

I showed him a graph.

The graph went up and to the right.

It measured "AI enablement."

I made that metric up.

He nodded approvingly.

We're "AI-enabled" now.

I don't know what that means.

But it's in our investor deck.

A senior developer asked why we didn't use Claude or ChatGPT.

I said we needed "enterprise-grade security."

He asked what that meant.

I said "compliance."

He asked which compliance.

I said "all of them."

He looked skeptical.

I scheduled him for a "career development conversation."

He stopped asking questions.

Microsoft sent a case study team.

They wanted to feature us as a success story.

I told them we "saved 40,000 hours."

I calculated that number by multiplying employees by a number I made up.

They didn't verify it.

They never do.

Now we're on Microsoft's website.

"Global enterprise achieves 40,000 hours of productivity gains with Copilot."

The CEO shared it on LinkedIn.

He got 3,000 likes.

He's never used Copilot.

None of the executives have.

We have an exemption.

"Strategic focus requires minimal digital distraction."

I wrote that policy.

The licenses renew next month.

I'm requesting an expansion.

5,000 more seats.

We haven't used the first 4,000.

But this time we'll "drive adoption."

Adoption means mandatory training.

Training means a 45-minute webinar no one watches.

But completion will be tracked.

Completion is a metric.

Metrics go in dashboards.

Dashboards go in board presentations.

Board presentations get me promoted.

I'll be SVP by Q3.

I still don't know what Copilot does.

But I know what it's for.

It's for showing we're "investing in AI."

Investment means spending.

Spending means commitment.

Commitment means we're serious about the future.

The future is whatever I say it is.

As long as the graph goes up and to the right.

[John Brandon Rodriguez @jbrandonr_]

I’m on the road 2-4 hours a day, and my robot drives 99% of it for me so that I can continue to work on more important things or simply rest.
cybertruck is the best robot out there.

[jack @jack]

cybertruck is the best robot out there

[Chris Combs (iterative design enjoyer) @DrChrisCombs]

Never bet against Skunkworks

[mr fundman @mrfundman]

Crazy that so many people still don’t know that this is the best vehicle you can own right now. There is nothing even remotely close.

[Founders Seminary @FoundersSem]

We are saddened to inform friends that our dear brother, Voddie Baucham, Jr., has left the land of the dying and entered the land of the living. Earlier today, after suffering an emergency medical incident, he entered into his rest and the immediate presence of the Savior whom he loved, trusted, and served since he was converted as a college student. Please pray for Bridget, their children, and grandchildren.

Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints. – Psalm 116:15

https://t.co/bBebHbwI7s

[Eric Daugherty @EricLDaugh]

🚨 BREAKING - STEPHEN MILLER JUST WENT OFF: "WE are the ones who build, who create, who lift up humanity. You thought you could KILL Charlie Kirk? YOU HAVE MADE HIM IMMORTAL!"

"They cannot IMAGINE what they have AWAKENED! They cannot conceive of the army they have arisen in all of us!"

"And now millions will carry on his legacy! And we will devote the rest of our lives to FINISHING the causes for which Charlie gave his last measure of devotion."

"We stand for what is GOOD, virtuous and NOBLE. And to those trying to incite violence against us? ... What do YOU HAVE? You have NOTHING, you are nothing. You are wickedness, you are jealousy, you are hatred, YOU ARE NOTHING. You can build nothing, produce nothing, create nothing."

"You cannot defeat us, slow us, stop us - we will carry Charlie and Erika in our heart every single day and fight that much harder because of WHAT YOU DID TO US."

"You have no idea the dragon you awakened...how determined we will be."

[The White House @WhiteHouse]

This is the turning point. 🇺🇸

[Turning Point USA @TPUSA]

A Life of Faith, A Legacy That Endures: Remembering Charlie Kirk