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Functional programming: videos Hacker News recommends
Functional programming: Haskell, OCaml, Clojure, Erlang, Elixir, Scala, Lisp, Scheme, immutability, monads, purity, pattern matching, Rich Hickey, Simon Peyton Jones. Below: every video in this topic that at least three HN users linked with real commentary, in at least three different months (176 talks, 14 demos, 12 lectures), best-scored first, with the comments on each video page.
- Programming language design 193
- C, C++, Rust, Go & systems languages 163
- Python, Ruby & scripting languages 120
- Web development 160
- Software architecture & design 177
- Software performance & optimization 123
- Compilers, interpreters & program analysis 98
- Testing, debugging & developer tools 155
- Software practice, open source & careers 154
- Software (other) 36
- 17 HN recommenders 18 months 2013–2026HN recommends it repeatedly as one of the best and most entertaining programming talks, and as the talk that makes the Y combinator click, even for people who do not use Ruby.
- 16 HN recommenders 14 months 2019–2024It is HN's favorite pitch for Elixir and the BEAM, credited with convincing many people to adopt them.
- 14 HN recommenders 14 months 2022–2026HN treats it as the canonical talk on software complexity, shared constantly and recommended to every programmer regardless of language.
- 9 HN recommenders 13 months 2017–2026HN repeatedly recommends it as a talk that changed how people model data, with ideas that apply well beyond Elm to any typed language.
- 11 HN recommenders 12 months 2017–2026HN repeatedly recommends it as an amazing talk that derives the essence of Lisp and shows miniKanren-style program synthesis.
- 10 HN recommenders 11 months 2014–2023HN commenters cite it as the talk that convinced them of immutability and functional programming.
- 12 HN recommenders 12 months 2019–2025M Metosin · talkHN treats it as the standard answer to why FP isn't mainstream and why languages succeed.
- 14 HN recommenders 11 months 2018–2025HN commenters send people to it whenever nulls, Maybe/Option or static typing come up, as a thoughtful dissent from the type-system orthodoxy that changes how some people model data.
- 10 HN recommenders 11 months 2019–2025C Clojure/north · talkHN repeatedly recommends it as a fantastic demonstration of procedural, OOP and FP approaches to the same problem, and of functional core and imperative shell.
- 10 HN recommenders 10 months 2019–2026HN people recommend the SICP lectures as a deeper, livelier route into the book and a formative course even for seasoned programmers.
- 11 HN recommenders 10 months 2010–2024Recommended whenever APL or array languages come up as the quickest way to see why the paradigm is so striking.
- 11 HN recommenders 9 months 2012–2024Seen as a classic and often the moment programming 'clicks'; commenters praise Abelson's opening that computer science is not about computers.
- 10 HN recommenders 10 months 2017–2026HN's go-to link in typing debates and for talk lists, and several call it their favorite programming talk even for non-Clojure users.
- 6 HN recommenders 10 months 2014–2022The go-to talk showing how Erlang let a tiny team run a massive messaging system.
- 12 HN recommenders 11 months 2014–2024HN returns to it constantly as permission and method for thinking deeply before coding, and as an antidote to always-working anxiety.
- 9 HN recommenders 10 months 2014–2024HN repeatedly names it among the best programming talks, loved for its craftsmanship message that complex tooling can hide simpler solutions.
- 9 HN recommenders 10 months 2012–2024HN repeatedly recommends it as the clearest and most correct beginner explanation of monads, with several commenters saying it finally made them click.
- 8 HN recommenders 9 months 2015–2024HN recommends it as the canonical presentation of 'functional core, imperative shell' and a practical answer to unit versus integration testing.
- 8 HN recommenders 8 months 2015–2024HN repeatedly cites it as a striking example of Common Lisp used to push the frontier of science, and as one of the most inspiring tech talks.
- 9 HN recommenders 8 months 2021–2026It is one of HN's most frequently recommended programming talks, cited whenever people debate complexity, simplicity and abstraction, and valued well beyond Clojure.
- 10 HN recommenders 9 months 2016–2024HN returns to it in every versioning and API stability debate as a challenging, contrarian talk worth watching.
- 11 HN recommenders 9 months 2016–2026B Bartosz Milewski · lectureHN commenters repeatedly name it as the friendliest entry point to category theory for working programmers.
- 10 HN recommenders 9 months 2013–2025HN recommends it as a key Hickey talk on system design that changes how people think about distributed state and interfaces.
- 7 HN recommenders 8 months 2017–2023HN commenters recommend it whenever someone asks how to read type-system or CS notation in papers.
- 5 HN recommenders 7 months 2016–2021HN repeatedly recommends it as the talk that made data-oriented, REPL-driven bottom-up design click.
- 4 HN recommenders 8 months 2016–2022E European Lisp Symposium · talkHN commenters recommend it as a brilliant talk on Julia's design and how it is or isn't a Lisp.
- 10 HN recommenders 8 months 2014–2025HN returns to it constantly as a witty, still-accurate diagnosis of why software is bloated and messy, and as a go-to recommendation in any thread on modules, package managers or software quality.
- 7 HN recommenders 8 months 2021–2024It is the favorite recommendation for understanding Moore's minimalist, low-power multi-core designs and stack machines.
- 9 HN recommenders 8 months 2022–2025HN returns to it constantly as the talk on live programming and what modern tooling is missing, though a few found it too much.
- 7 HN recommenders 7 months 2020–2023HN treats it as the best introduction to Unison, with commenters finding hash-addressed immutable code mind-blowing.
- 9 HN recommenders 7 months 2014–2022A repeatedly recommended introduction to functional JavaScript that explains currying and why data should come last.
- 8 HN recommenders 8 months 2015–2024HN recommends it as an alternative or companion to 'Simple Made Easy', and quotes its ideas about simplicity, complexity and 'hairballs' in discussions of frameworks, JSON and data design.
- 6 HN recommenders 6 months 2013–2023HN repeatedly recommends it as a delightful talk that makes music theory click and introduces Clojure and Overtone.
- 6 HN recommenders 7 months 2018–2024HN people recommend it as an eye-opening talk whose domain-modeling ideas carry over to other languages and make a strong compiler feel like a coding partner.
- 4 HN recommenders 6 months 2019–2024HN recommends it as the primary source for understanding LiveView's advantages and its middle ground between multipage apps and SPAs.
- 8 HN recommenders 7 months 2013–2022Repeatedly offered as the quickest, most convincing demo of structured editing and why Lisp programmers love paredit.
- 6 HN recommenders 6 months 2013–2025HN loves it as a funny, shorter sequel and even uses it to introduce Erlang in university classes.
- 5 HN recommenders 7 months 2017–2025HN people point to it for rrb-trees, text editor data structures and bringing Clojure-style persistent structures to C++.
- 6 HN recommenders 6 months 2015–2023It is the go-to answer to whether Prolog is used for real-world work, praised as a survey of its uses, advantages and drawbacks.
- 5 HN recommenders 6 months 2018–2025Recommended as a practical demonstration of how functional thinking improves design without going off the deep end.
- 6 HN recommenders 7 months 2016–2026HN uses it in debates about what OOP originally meant, since Kay's message-passing view lines up with Erlang's processes.
- 5 HN recommenders 5 months 2019–2024F Fullstack Academy · lectureRepeatedly recommended as one of the most approachable introductions to lambda calculus and combinators.
- 6 HN recommenders 6 months 2014–2025HN treats it as the original and definitive explanation of transducers, recommended whenever the concept comes up.
- 5 HN recommenders 5 months 2015–2025HN recommends it as the best video introduction to the actor model, straight from its inventor, and revisited it after Hewitt's death.
- 6 HN recommenders 6 months 2015–2020B Bruce Hauman · demoIt is the canonical demo HN people cite for live interactive development and hot reloading, as proof the workflow is real and not smoke and mirrors.
- 7 HN recommenders 6 months 2020–2025C Chris McCord · tutorialHN points people to it as the demo that shows why LiveView and Elixir are worth a look.
- 5 HN recommenders 5 months 2020–2026F Fred Overflow · talkCited as the classic rant on maps versus objects in discussions of data modeling and OOP.
- 7 HN recommenders 6 months 2015–2023Recommended as the clearest explanation of Elm's design thinking and of making functional languages mainstream, plus a popular monad explanation clip.
- 5 HN recommenders 5 months 2014–2026HN people point to it as the clearest explanation of what FRP actually means and how its flavors differ.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2015–2022Strongly recommended as a beautiful demonstration that APL can be read and reasoned about step by step.
- 5 HN recommenders 6 months 2013–2017HN commenters recommend it, alongside Rich Hickey's talk, for its precise definition of simple versus easy and its implications for code design.
- 5 HN recommenders 5 months 2013–2023Seen as the definitive explanation of why traditional concurrency is hard and how Clojure's model addresses it, with some commenters crediting it with changing their careers.
- 5 HN recommenders 5 months 2014–2025HN recommends it as the best introduction to Factor and concatenative programming, with commenters saying it impressed them with the engineering.
- 2 HN recommenders 5 months 2015–2024It is the standard recommended introduction to Shen, pointed to whenever Shen or its type system comes up.
- 4 HN recommenders 5 months 2018–2023Recommended for its practical strategy for preserving state on ephemeral containers, and for the live demo.
- 4 HN recommenders 5 months 2023–2025G Groxio · talkHN recommends it as a rare real-world look at a large fault-tolerant Erlang/Elixir system with no downtime in healthcare.
- 6 HN recommenders 6 months 2021–2025Recommended as the clearest explanation of why immutable data need not be slow, and as the introduction to Roc.
- 5 HN recommenders 5 months 2017–2025HN commenters point to it whenever Excel, spreadsheets or functional programming come up, as a fun and serious take on spreadsheets as real programming.
- 4 HN recommenders 5 months 2015–2022HN recommends it as a fascinating explanation of queues, flow control and overload that applies well beyond Clojure.
- 5 HN recommenders 5 months 2016–2025S Scala World · talkHN recommends it as a talk that changes how you think about system design, and links it whenever constraints, abstraction or least power come up.
- 4 HN recommenders 5 months 2021–2026Z Zhang Jian · talkRecommended as one of the best explanations of why Clojure and a functional, immutable approach to state exist.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2013–2019Strongly recommended in lambda calculus and Y-combinator threads as a mind-expanding half hour that clarifies the ideas.
- 5 HN recommenders 5 months 2014–2024HN points to it as the original talk that explains the motivation behind React, Flux and Redux, and that sold some commenters on React.
- 5 HN recommenders 5 months 2014–2024K Kalman Reti · demoThe go-to demo whenever HN discusses what Lisp machines were like and what modern shells and editors lack.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2019–2021P PyCon 2019 · tutorialHN calls it a brilliant, mind-bending introduction to lambda calculus for programmers.
- 5 HN recommenders 5 months 2017–2024C Churchill College, University of Cambridge · lectureRecommended as a funny, accessible history of Haskell that is valuable even for people interested in language design in general.
- 4 HN recommenders 5 months 2016–2023Recommended as a fantastic talk on code-driven CAD and custom keyboard design, linked in threads on OpenSCAD and keyboards.
- 5 HN recommenders 5 months 2013–2025K Kostiantyn Kostin · talkCited again and again as Carmack's key public statement on functional programming and purity in game development, plus his remarks on garbage collection.
- 5 HN recommenders 5 months 2020–2026Recommended as the approachable way into a precise definition of language expressiveness for language-design arguments.
- 5 HN recommenders 5 months 2022–2026HN commenters recommend it as a mind-expanding talk on rethinking programming, and cite it in threads on propagators, constraints and brittleness.
- 5 HN recommenders 5 months 2015–2022HN points to it as a clear explanation of immutable data structures such as tries, and of the case for immutability with React and Flux.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2018–2021R Reaktor · talkHN commenters love it as a witty and insightful tour of design anti-patterns, applicable to DSLs, OOP and API design.
- 5 HN recommenders 5 months 2010–2017N nuACM · talkRecommended as a fascinating look at easy parallelism abstractions, though other commenters note the approach never beat sequential C by much.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2020–2024B Bay Area Haskell · talkHN recommends it as the fastest way to learn lenses by example, with far-out examples later on.
- 5 HN recommenders 4 months 2014–2016M Matt Marenghi · talkRecommended as a clear, mind-changing introduction to observables and async programming from engineers using Rx in production.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2019–2025Recommended as the argument for code colocation and delaying abstraction.
- 3 HN recommenders 4 months 2020–2026K KanDDDinsky · talkHN treats it as the canonical, approachable example of domain-driven design with types and 'make invalid states unrepresentable'.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2019–2022R ReasonConf · talkHN recommends it as the best introduction to Reason's motivations, straight from React's creator.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2012–2020HN points people to it as the clearest account of why Datomic is designed the way it is and of the problems with conventional database architecture.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2019–2023Recommended as the best demo of interactive, compiler-assisted dependently typed programming in action.
- 2 HN recommenders 3 months 2019–2021HN commenters call it a beautiful, brilliant demonstration of APL's expressiveness and a model of clear narration.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2015–2023HN recommends it as a talk that changed how people debug, worth rewatching periodically.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2019–2021HN recommends it as the best beginner-friendly introduction to monoids, monads and other FP vocabulary.
- 6 HN recommenders 4 months 2018–2019HN recommends it as the original LiveView announcement and demo, a compelling argument for server-side rendering as an alternative to JavaScript front ends.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2014–2015W Wolfram · demoCommenters point to it as a compact, impressive demo of what the language can do.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2017–2023HN points to it as a clear lesson that algebraic properties like associativity unlock parallelism, applicable in any language.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2014–2026R Red Martian · demoHN cites it as a startling example of how advanced Lisp machine interactive graphics were, often in Lisp and REPL-driven development discussions.
- 3 HN recommenders 4 months 2018–2023Cited as the more accessible companion to the paper, and as the most interesting treatment of AD via compiling to categories.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2013–2026U uncertainyesterday · demoA beloved classic that HN recommends as the quickest way to see why Erlang is special.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2016–2026Recommended as the best introduction to property-based testing and cited for its examples of bugs found in the CAN standard.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2018–2022HN people recommend it as a reading list of historical CS ideas worth knowing, and as a favorite among Armstrong's talks, especially after his death.
- Ron Pressler - Pull Push: Please stop polluting our imperative languages with pure concepts-Curry On3 HN recommenders 4 months 2015–2024Recommended as the case for blocking code and virtual threads over monads and async/await.
- 3 HN recommenders 4 months 2014–2024HN recommends it in literate programming threads as a rare look at applying the idea to a huge, complex codebase, though some find it meandering.
- 3 HN recommenders 3 months 2015HN commenters recommend it as the lead ClojureScript developer's own account of Om's evolution, one-way data flow and single-state design.
- 4 HN recommenders 4 months 2018–2022Recommended in incremental computation and reactive UI threads as the best conceptual overview of Incremental and incr_dom.
- 3 HN recommenders 4 months 2011–2025HN remembers it as the memorable explanation of restarts and multiple dispatch, referenced whenever those features come up.
- 2 HN recommenders 4 months 2020–2023K Konfy · talkCommenters point to it as a clear take on why functional languages stall outside niches, and its lessons are seen as applying to any technology trying to go mainstream.
- 5 HN recommenders 4 months 2018–2024HN points to it as a good introduction to Idris 2 and a striking demonstration of what dependent types enable.
- 3 HN recommenders 3 months 2014–2025HN commenters call it a fantastic introduction to Clojure and the thinking behind its design.
- 3 HN recommenders 3 months 2019–2026HN recommends it for getting the inventors of major concurrency models together, disagreements included.
Showing the 100 best-scored of 225. Use search to find the rest.
Questions
What is the most recommended functional programming video on Hacker News?
Ruby Conf 12 - Y Not- Adventures in Functional Programming by Jim Weirich by Confreaks: HN recommends it repeatedly as one of the best and most entertaining programming talks, and as the talk that makes the Y combinator click, even for people who do not use Ruby.
How is this functional programming list ranked?
By HackerTube's score: the number of distinct months in which an HN comment recommended the video, plus half a point for every month with a strong recommendation. One viral thread counts less than steady recommendations over years.
Where do the videos come from?
From every Hacker News comment between 2007 and 2026 that linked a YouTube video, labeled by an AI model as a recommendation, a citation, a joke or a criticism. The list is published by HackerTube under ODC-By 1.0; this edition adds indexable pages and the comment context.
Video list and Hacker News comment labels from HackerTube (prompted by @karpathy), released under ODC-By 1.0, built on the open-index/hacker-news archive. Hacker News data is provided by Y Combinator; comments remain the work of their authors. Video titles, channel names and thumbnails belong to their creators and are shown via YouTube. HackerTube Watch is an unofficial edition. Data export of 2026-10-31.