DevRelCon a look back

By CKEGELMAN 5 min read

Day 1 – Thursday, July 17, 2025

Venue: Industry City, Brooklyn, NY
Title: From Code to Community: My First Steps into DevRel at DevRelCon NYC

I’ve been building things for over a decade—full-stack apps, internal tooling, scrappy prototypes, polished production releases. But this week? This was different. DevRelCon NYC was my official plunge into the world of developer relations—and day one didn’t just meet my expectations, it challenged how I think about impact beyond the codebase.

First Impressions: Code Meets People

Industry City was buzzing by 8:45. The crowd wasn’t just developers—it was advocates, storytellers, educators, and community leaders. I knew I was stepping into something bigger than tools and frameworks. This was about connection.

The opening keynote from Angie Jones was electric. She didn’t just talk about representation—she showed how technical storytelling moves people, not just products. As someone who’s led plenty of workshops and demos, I found myself nodding constantly. It wasn’t new territory—but it reframed everything.

Session Highlights

Here’s what hit hardest:

  • “AI in DevRel” (Uttam Tripathi) – This wasn’t just another GPT pitch. He showed how AI can amplify DevRel efforts—from instant code examples to content planning. I already use GPT in my workflow, but this leveled it up: not automation, but acceleration.
  • “Storytelling for Engineers” (Anna Filippova) – Look, I’ve been telling stories through code and docs for years. But this session broke down how to structure stories that drive developer action, not just attention. I left with a new outline in my head for a talk I’ve been meaning to give on internal tooling at scale.
  • “Funnels and Metrics” (Stephen Chin) – Real talk: this was gold. As a longtime dev, I track page loads, errors, coverage. But tracking community conversion? That’s new muscle—and I’m ready to build it.
  • “Demo with a Punch” (Anthony Dellavecchia) – As someone who’s presented to clients, teams, and execs, I appreciated how he nailed structure, timing, and the unexpected. Think “live code meets cold open.” This wasn’t fluff—it was tactical.

The Sponsor Hall

I spent a lot of time with Instruqt, and it wasn’t just for the swag. Their browser-based lab tech feels like a natural fit for DevRel: no setup, just learning. I also had a great conversation at the Devpost booth about measuring hackathon outcomes, something I’d only loosely tracked in past internal dev events.

Evening Mixer

By 6 PM, the Industry City courtyard turned into a low-key after-hours mixer. I met folks from startups, legacy teams, open-source foundations. The vibe? Collaborative, not competitive. Everyone here wants developers to succeed—not just use their tool.

Day 2 – Friday, July 18, 2025

Title: Tactics, Tools, and What Comes Next: DevRelCon Day 2

With the buzz of day one still in the air, day two went deeper—more tactics, more hallway chats, and some big takeaways about where DevRel is going next.

Lightning Talks

Some standout rapid-fire moments:

  • “Hackathons as Onboarding” – I’ve run internal challenges for years, but this flipped the perspective. Use short sprints as on-ramps to real adoption. Smart, replicable, and impactful.
  • “AI-Engineered Optimization (AEO)” – This one hit me like a freight train. Optimizing content not just for Google, but for AI agents reading docs? Welcome to the new SEO—and it’s squarely DevRel territory.

Open Source Panel

I’ve contributed to and maintained open source, but governing it? Building community around it? That’s the next frontier. Panelists covered onboarding friction, documentation, and how to build welcoming contributor funnels. I walked away thinking: we don’t just ship code—we shape culture.

What I’ll Be Bringing Back

  • Funnels for community – I’m mapping user journeys like I map architecture diagrams. Acquisition, activation, retention—it’s not just product, it’s people.
  • Dev-first content strategy – Clear, direct, technical—but with empathy. The next tutorial I write is going to have a stronger story arc and a CTA, not just an install command.
  • Tools like Instruqt, Orbit, and Common Room – Already brainstorming how I can build a self-guided workshop for onboarding to our internal SDK.

Closing Thoughts & Rooftop Wrap-Up

The day ended with a sunset rooftop hang in Brooklyn, complete with East River views, tacos, and deep conversations. I swapped ideas with a startup DevEx lead from Berlin and a senior advocate from Twilio. One question we kept circling: What’s the “hello world” moment for your community?

Final Reflection

At 37, after 16 years as a developer, DevRel isn’t a pivot—it’s an extension. I’m still building things. I’m still writing code. But now I’m thinking bigger: How do we teach this? How do we scale this? How do we invite more people in?

DevRelCon NYC didn’t hand me all the answers—but it gave me the questions, the frameworks, and the community to start exploring them.

If you’re a senior dev wondering where to grow next, DevRel might be your next evolution—not a change of pace, but a broadening of purpose.