Roundup May 2025
Roundups
Hi there! Welcome to the May 2025 roundup. This month has been packed with exciting developments from major tech conferences like Google I/O and Microsoft Build, along with significant updates in the tools and libraries we use daily. I’m always on the lookout for innovations that can enhance our development processes and deliver better user experiences. Let’s get into it!
Google I/O 2025
Google I/O 2025 showcased AI-driven innovation, with the Gemini 2.5 Pro model boasting significant performance improvements. It also introduced Google Beam, an AI-first video platform offering 3D experiences and speech translation features. Android XR glasses debuted, offering augmented reality with live language translation. For developers, updates to Flutter and Dart promise enhanced cross-platform development capabilities.
Read More:
https://developers.googleblog.com/en/stitch-a-new-way-to-design-uis/
Flutter: https://medium.com/flutter/dart-flutter-momentum-at-google-i-o-2025-4863aa4f84a4
Microsoft Build 2025
Microsoft Build 2025 focused on empowering developers with new tools and AI capabilities. Key announcements included the open-sourcing of the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL), allowing for greater community collaboration, and open-sourcing the GitHub Copilot Chat Extension, which brings AI-powered coding assistance directly into VS Code. Additionally, TypeScript Native Previews were unveiled, offering a significant performance boost by compiling TypeScript to native code.
Read More:
https://code.visualstudio.com/blogs/2025/05/19/openSourceAIEditor
TypeScript Native Previews https://devblogs.microsoft.com/typescript/announcing-typescript-native-previews/
Expo SDK 53
Expo SDK 53 supports React Native 0.79, React 19, and React Native Web 0.20.0, ensuring compatibility with the latest frameworks. The New Architecture is now enabled by default, with 74.6% adoption in SDK 52 projects. Features like edge-to-edge display support for Android and the new expo-background-task module (replacing expo-background-fetch) streamline development for modern devices. The stable expo-audio library and alpha expo-maps package add powerful multimedia and mapping capabilities. The update brings up to 25% faster Android build times and reduced app launch times.
Read More:
Webflow makes GSAP 100% free
Webflow has made the GreenSock Animation Platform (GSAP) completely free, a huge win for web developers. GSAP is a powerhouse for creating smooth, complex animations, and its 3.13 release introduces new features for even more dynamic effects. By removing the cost barrier, Webflow is empowering developers and designers to craft engaging, interactive websites without budget constraints. Free access to GSAP is a big deal for anyone building user-focused web experiences.
Read More:
Mantine v8 Release
Mantine v8 is here. Known for its accessibility and customization, this release introduces new components and enhancements, making it easier to build polished, user-friendly interfaces. Some new components added:
ColorPicker: A fully-featured component for selecting colors, supporting multiple formats (HEX, RGB, HSL). It’s customizable and accessible, ideal for apps requiring user-driven color selection, like design tools or customization dashboards.
DateInput: A new input component for date selection, replacing the older DatePickerInput in some use cases. It offers a simpler API and better integration with Mantine’s form system.
TimeInput: A dedicated component for time selection, supporting 12/24-hour formats. It’s useful for scheduling or time-based form inputs.
Skeleton: A new component for loading states, providing customizable placeholders for content. It enhances UX by visually indicating data is loading, especially in data-heavy apps.
Read More:
Material 3 Expressive
Google’s Material 3 Expressive update brings more dynamic and engaging features to its design system. These enhancements allow developers and designers to create interfaces that are both visually appealing and intuitive, aligning with modern UX trends.
As someone who values design in tech, I appreciate Material 3’s push toward more expressive UIs. These updates can help create apps that feel fresh and user-centric, which is crucial for user retention.
Read More:
Rslib - Library Development Tool
Rslib is a new tool designed to streamline library development, built on Rsbuild. It aims to reduce boilerplate and improve efficiency for developers maintaining libraries, especially in open-source projects. Rslib looks promising for simplifying library maintenance.
Read More:
Zod v4
Zod v4 introduces a range of enhancements, addressing long-standing limitations and adding features requested by the community. Some highlighted updates:
7x Faster Object Parsing: Zod v4 optimizes schema parsing, particularly for complex, nested objects, achieving up to 7x faster runtime performance compared to v3. Benchmarks show z.string().parse is 14.71x faster (24.674 ns vs. 363 µs in v3).
100x Fewer TypeScript Instantiations: Schema compilation reduces TypeScript compiler instantiations (e.g., extend operations drop from 25,000 to 1,100), speeding up build times.
57% Smaller Core Bundle: The core bundle size is reduced by 57%, making it ideal for frontend projects where load times are critical.
JIT Compilation: Zod v4 uses new Function for JIT-optimized validation, boosting performance for repeated schema use but slowing schema creation slightly (6 ops/ms for one-off schemas)
@zod/v4-mini Variant: A new sister library, @zod/v4-mini, mirrors Zod’s API but is optimized for tree-shaking with a functional approach (more functions, fewer methods). It achieves an 85% smaller gzipped bundle size (1.88kb vs. 12.5kb in v3)
Built-in JSON Schema Conversion: Zod v4 adds native z.toJSONSchema() for converting schemas to JSON Schema, eliminating the need for third-party libraries like zod-to-json-schema
Localization and Error Pretty-Printing: zod supports 34 languages for error messages via z.config(z.locales.<language>()) (e.g., z.locales.en() by default). Community contributions are expanding language support. Zod v4 also adds z.prettifyError for user-friendly error formatting, improving on third-party solutions like zod-validation-error
Read More:
Personal Discoveries
Readings
The Art of Accessibility: A collection of articles on making software inclusive, offering practical tips for developers | https://playfulprogramming.com/collections/art-of-accessibility
https://vercel.com/blog/ios-developers-can-now-offer-commission-free-payments-on-web
https://bell.bz/im-getting-fed-up-of-making-the-rich-richer/
React Render and Commit: https://react.dev/learn/render-and-commit
Problem with Disabled Buttons: https://adamsilver.io/blog/the-problem-with-disabled-buttons-and-what-to-do-instead/
Mobile
Instant apps and clips are transforming how users interact with mobile apps
Examples:
Apps / Toolings / Platforms
Design System
Misc
Conclusions
May 2025 has been a month of significant advancements in technology, with major updates from industry leaders and exciting new tools for developers. From AI innovations at Google I/O to Microsoft's developer-focused announcements, there's a lot to be enthusiastic about. I’m excited to try those into my projects and see where they take us. Check out the links for more details, and let’s keep pushing the boundaries of what’s possible.