FFmpeg

Kempf defined multimedia as a digital representation of streams for the human senses and said FFmpeg and VLC will eventually handle odour, haptics and brainwaves.

“multimedia is a digital representation of several streams for the human senses. And we will do that”

Lex Fridman Podcast: #496 – FFmpeg: The Incredible Technology Behind Video on the Internet (May 6, 2026) · Listen from 4:13:44

Kempf advised new open-source contributors to work on something they love, and said contributing to FFmpeg is the best programming education available.

“Work on something you love. I am working on VLC because I love movies”

Lex Fridman Podcast: #496 – FFmpeg: The Incredible Technology Behind Video on the Internet (May 6, 2026) · Listen from 1:35:07

Kempf said the core maintainer teams are tiny — about five people for VLC and ten to fifteen for FFmpeg — which is why code quality standards must be uncompromising.

“The core community of VLC is five people. The core community of FFmpeg is 10 to 15”

Lex Fridman Podcast: #496 – FFmpeg: The Incredible Technology Behind Video on the Internet (May 6, 2026) · Listen from 57:40

Kunhya said donations to FFmpeg increased substantially after the public dispute but still do not cover a single full-time developer.

“Donations have increased substantially. They're still not enough to cover even a single full-time developer”

Lex Fridman Podcast: #496 – FFmpeg: The Incredible Technology Behind Video on the Internet (May 6, 2026) · Listen from 1:25:42

Kunhya argued FFmpeg democratized video production, putting individuals and trillion-dollar corporations on the same technology stack.

“I think it's incredible that your home videos, your grandmother's home videos and trillion-dollar corporations effectively are on a level playing field using the same technology stack”

Lex Fridman Podcast: #496 – FFmpeg: The Incredible Technology Behind Video on the Internet (May 6, 2026) · Listen from 36:19