Bringing Jetpack Compose to Instagram for Android
Article Summary
Instagram just migrated to Jetpack Compose. But when you're operating at Meta scale, you can't just import some AARs and start coding.
In this Meta Tech Podcast episode, Pascal Hartig talks with Summer, a software engineer on Instagram's large-scale migrations team. They walk through the intricate, phased approach Instagram took to introduce Jetpack Compose while maintaining strict performance goals and developer experience.
Key Takeaways
- Performance goals, design systems, and existing integrations complicate framework adoption
- Large-scale migrations require coordination between product and infrastructure teams
- Instagram uses phased rollouts to balance innovation with stability
- Infrastructure teams must maintain multiple implementations during transitions
Critical Insight
Adopting a new UI framework at Instagram's scale requires thoughtful migration phases that balance developer experience with performance constraints and existing infrastructure.
