Ask HN: What Are You Working On? (April 2026)

I believe that AI-powered software development means we need to fundamentally rethink how we preserve code quality.

Model output volumes mean that code review only as a final check before merge is way too late, and far too burdensome. Using AI to review AI-generated code is a band-aid, but not a cure.

That's why I built Caliper (http://getcaliper.dev). It's a system that institutes multiple layers of code quality checks throughout the dev cycle. The lightest-weight checks get executed after every agent turn, and then increasingly more complex checks get run pre-commit and pre-merge.

Early users love it, and the data demonstrates the need - 40% of agent turns produce code that violates a project's own conventions (as defined in CLAUDE.md). Caliper catches those violations immediately and gets the model to make corrections before small issues become costly to unwind.

Still very early, and all feedback is welcome! http://getcaliper.dev

I'm building free immigration software for DIY applicants [1]

It's a free USCIS form-filling web-app(no Adobe required). USCIS forms still use XFA PDFs, which don’t let you edit in most browsers. Even with Adobe, fields break, and getting the signature is hard.

So I converted the PDF form into modern, browser-friendly web forms - and kept every field 1:1 with the original. You fill the form, submit it, and get the official USCIS PDF filled.

I found out SimpleCitizen(YC S16) offers a DIY plan for $529 [2]

So, a free (and local-only) version might be a good alternative

[1] https://fillvisa.com/demo

[2] https://www.simplecitizen.com/pricing/

I made a thing to watch YouTube like it's 2000s cable tv.

I'm working to make it better right now.

https://channelsurfer.tv/

I’ve been building quantum photonics experiments. Repeating the Bell inequality tests that won the 2022 Nobel, quantum erasers, etc.

I just published a fun interactive 3D demo of SPDC, one of the most common and accessible ways to create entangled pairs of photons. I'm hoping to publish a series of articles on other cool learnings about doing quantum photonics in the lab.

https://paulg.info/2026/04/10/spdc/

I'm building my ideal backend for small projects and hobby stuff. It's inspired by PocketBase, but built around Lua scripting instead of built-in endpoints or usage as a Go library.

Like PocketBase, it's made in Go, has an admin panel, and compiles down to one executable. Here, you write your endpoints as Lua scripts with a simple API for interfacing with requests and the built-in SQLite database. It's minimal and sticks close to being a bare wrapper around the underlying tech (HTTP, SQL, simple file routing), but comes with some niceties too, like automatic backups, a staging server, and a code editor inside the admin panel for quick changes.

It comes from wanting a server that pairs well with htmx (and the backend-first approach in general) that's comfy to use like a CMS. It's not exactly a groundbreaking project, and it still has a ways to go, but I think it's shaping up pretty nicely :)

link: https://github.com/ksymph/mogo