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A software engineer based in Delft, Alex Strick van Linschoten recently built Ekko, an open-source framework for adding real-time infrastructure and in-transit message processing to web applications. With years of experience in Ruby, JavaScript, Go, PostgreSQL, AWS, and Docker, I bring a versatile skill set to the table. I hold a PhD in History, have authored books on Afghanistan, and currently work as an ML Engineer at ZenML. Beyond the ChatBot Hype: A Deep Dive into Real LLM Success Stories // MLOps Podcast #287 with Alex Strick van Linschoten, ML Engineer at ZenML. // Abstract Alex Strick van Linschoten, a machine learning engineer at ZenML, joins the MLOps Community podcast to discuss his comprehensive database of real-world LLM use cases. Drawing inspiration from Evidently AI, Alex created the database to organize fragmented information on LLM usage, covering everything from common chatbot implementations to innovative applications across sectors. They discuss the technical challenges and successes in deploying LLMs, emphasizing the importance of foundational MLOps practices. The episode concludes with a call for community contributions to further enrich the database and collective knowledge of LLM applications. // Bio Alex is a Software Engineer based in the Netherlands, working as a Machine Learning Engineer at ZenML. He previously was awarded a PhD in History (specialism: War Studies) from King's College London and has authored several critically acclaimed books based on his research work in Afghanistan. // MLOps Swag/Merch https://shop.mlops.community/ // Related Links Website: https://mlops.systems https://www.zenml.io/llmops-database https://www.zenml.io/llmops-database https://www.zenml.io/blog/llmops-in-production-457-case-studies-of-what-actually-works https://www.zenml.io/blog/llmops-lessons-learned-navigating-the-wild-west-of-production-llms https://www.zenml.io/blog/demystifying-llmops-a-practical-database-of-real-world-generative-ai-implementations https://huggingface.co/datasets/zenml/llmops-database --------------- ✌️Connect With Us ✌️ ------------- Join our slack community: https://go.mlops.community/slack Follow us on Twitter: @mlopscommunity Sign up for the next meetup: https://go.mlops.community/register Catch all episodes, blogs, newsletters, and more: https://mlops.community/ Connect with Demetrios on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dpbrinkm/ Connect with Alex on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/strickvl
Hugo speaks with Alex Strick van Linschoten, Machine Learning Engineer at ZenML and creator of a comprehensive LLMOps database documenting over 400 deployments. Alex's extensive research into real-world LLM implementations gives him unique insight into what actually works—and what doesn't—when deploying AI agents in production. In this episode, we dive into: - The current state of AI agents in production, from successes to common failure modes - Practical lessons learned from analyzing hundreds of real-world LLM deployments - How companies like Anthropic, Klarna, and Dropbox are using patterns like ReAct, RAG, and microservices to build reliable systems - The evolution of LLM capabilities, from expanding context windows to multimodal applications - Why most companies still prefer structured workflows over fully autonomous agents We also explore real-world case studies of production hurdles, including cascading failures, API misfires, and hallucination challenges. Alex shares concrete strategies for integrating LLMs into your pipelines while maintaining reliability and control. Whether you're scaling agents or building LLM-powered systems, this episode offers practical insights for navigating the complex landscape of LLMOps in 2025. LINKS - The podcast livestream on YouTube (https://youtube.com/live/-8Gr9fVVX9g?feature=share) - The LLMOps database (https://www.zenml.io/llmops-database) - All blog posts about the database (https://www.zenml.io/category/llmops) - Anthropic's Building effective agents essay (https://www.anthropic.com/research/building-effective-agents) - Alex on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/strickvl/) - Hugo on twitter (https://x.com/hugobowne) - Vanishing Gradients on twitter (https://x.com/vanishingdata) * Vanishing Gradients on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_NafIo-Ku2loOLrzm45ABA) * Vanishing Gradients on Twitter (https://x.com/vanishingdata) * Vanishing Gradients on Lu.ma (https://lu.ma/calendar/cal-8ImWFDQ3IEIxNWk)
Originally recorded 29th April 2019 at SOAS. Produced by Talha Ahsan. You can read more about Dr Strick's work at alexstrick.com and follow him on Twitter @strickvl.
This week I talk to Alex Strick van Linschoten about his experiences learning language from the "usual" romance languages to the more obscure. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/actualfluency/message
Alex Strick van Linschoten and Felix Kuehn‘s An Enemy We Created: The Myth of the Taliban/Al Qaeda Merger in Afghanistan, 1970-2010 (Oxford University Press, reprint edition 2014) offers what is in many ways is an untold, insider’s account of the birth of the Taliban and Al Qaeda during the anti-Soviet jihad, and their subsequent cooperation (or indeed lack thereof) in the pre- and post-9/11 world. By living first in Kabul, and then Kandahar, Afghanistan, the authors gained more privileged access to individuals involved with Afghan history in the 1980s-2000s than perhaps anyone outside of Western intelligence agencies. By speaking with Taliban officials — indeed Van Linschoten and Kuehn’s previous project was editing the memoirs of Taliban senior official Abdul Salam Zaeef – and former “Afghan Arabs”, the authors enriched their research immensely. The result shows in the final product: a nuanced, deeply layered, and meticulously investigative look at a fascinating subject. An Enemy We Createdshould be seen as paradigmatic for future research on militant organizations, and offers up an immense challenge to those experts who would seek to write on such topics from the comfort of Western armchairs.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Alex Strick van Linschoten and Felix Kuehn‘s An Enemy We Created: The Myth of the Taliban/Al Qaeda Merger in Afghanistan, 1970-2010 (Oxford University Press, reprint edition 2014) offers what is in many ways is an untold, insider’s account of the birth of the Taliban and Al Qaeda during the anti-Soviet jihad, and their subsequent cooperation (or indeed lack thereof) in the pre- and post-9/11 world. By living first in Kabul, and then Kandahar, Afghanistan, the authors gained more privileged access to individuals involved with Afghan history in the 1980s-2000s than perhaps anyone outside of Western intelligence agencies. By speaking with Taliban officials — indeed Van Linschoten and Kuehn’s previous project was editing the memoirs of Taliban senior official Abdul Salam Zaeef – and former “Afghan Arabs”, the authors enriched their research immensely. The result shows in the final product: a nuanced, deeply layered, and meticulously investigative look at a fascinating subject. An Enemy We Createdshould be seen as paradigmatic for future research on militant organizations, and offers up an immense challenge to those experts who would seek to write on such topics from the comfort of Western armchairs.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Alex Strick van Linschoten and Felix Kuehn‘s An Enemy We Created: The Myth of the Taliban/Al Qaeda Merger in Afghanistan, 1970-2010 (Oxford University Press, reprint edition 2014) offers what is in many ways is an untold, insider’s account of the birth of the Taliban and Al Qaeda during the anti-Soviet jihad, and their subsequent cooperation (or indeed lack thereof) in the pre- and post-9/11 world. By living first in Kabul, and then Kandahar, Afghanistan, the authors gained more privileged access to individuals involved with Afghan history in the 1980s-2000s than perhaps anyone outside of Western intelligence agencies. By speaking with Taliban officials — indeed Van Linschoten and Kuehn’s previous project was editing the memoirs of Taliban senior official Abdul Salam Zaeef – and former “Afghan Arabs”, the authors enriched their research immensely. The result shows in the final product: a nuanced, deeply layered, and meticulously investigative look at a fascinating subject. An Enemy We Createdshould be seen as paradigmatic for future research on militant organizations, and offers up an immense challenge to those experts who would seek to write on such topics from the comfort of Western armchairs.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Alex Strick van Linschoten and Felix Kuehn‘s An Enemy We Created: The Myth of the Taliban/Al Qaeda Merger in Afghanistan, 1970-2010 (Oxford University Press, reprint edition 2014) offers what is in many ways is an untold, insider’s account of the birth of the Taliban and Al Qaeda during the anti-Soviet jihad, and their subsequent cooperation (or indeed lack thereof) in the pre- and post-9/11 world. By living first in Kabul, and then Kandahar, Afghanistan, the authors gained more privileged access to individuals involved with Afghan history in the 1980s-2000s than perhaps anyone outside of Western intelligence agencies. By speaking with Taliban officials — indeed Van Linschoten and Kuehn’s previous project was editing the memoirs of Taliban senior official Abdul Salam Zaeef – and former “Afghan Arabs”, the authors enriched their research immensely. The result shows in the final product: a nuanced, deeply layered, and meticulously investigative look at a fascinating subject. An Enemy We Createdshould be seen as paradigmatic for future research on militant organizations, and offers up an immense challenge to those experts who would seek to write on such topics from the comfort of Western armchairs.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Alex Strick van Linschoten and Felix Kuehn‘s An Enemy We Created: The Myth of the Taliban/Al Qaeda Merger in Afghanistan, 1970-2010 (Oxford University Press, reprint edition 2014) offers what is in many ways is an untold, insider’s account of the birth of the Taliban and Al Qaeda during the anti-Soviet jihad, and their subsequent cooperation (or indeed lack thereof) in the pre- and post-9/11 world. By living first in Kabul, and then Kandahar, Afghanistan, the authors gained more privileged access to individuals involved with Afghan history in the 1980s-2000s than perhaps anyone outside of Western intelligence agencies. By speaking with Taliban officials — indeed Van Linschoten and Kuehn’s previous project was editing the memoirs of Taliban senior official Abdul Salam Zaeef – and former “Afghan Arabs”, the authors enriched their research immensely. The result shows in the final product: a nuanced, deeply layered, and meticulously investigative look at a fascinating subject. An Enemy We Createdshould be seen as paradigmatic for future research on militant organizations, and offers up an immense challenge to those experts who would seek to write on such topics from the comfort of Western armchairs.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Alex Strick van Linschoten and Felix Kuehn‘s An Enemy We Created: The Myth of the Taliban/Al Qaeda Merger in Afghanistan, 1970-2010 (Oxford University Press, reprint edition 2014) offers what is in many ways is an untold, insider's account of the birth of the Taliban and Al Qaeda during the anti-Soviet jihad, and their subsequent cooperation (or indeed lack thereof) in the pre- and post-9/11 world. By living first in Kabul, and then Kandahar, Afghanistan, the authors gained more privileged access to individuals involved with Afghan history in the 1980s-2000s than perhaps anyone outside of Western intelligence agencies. By speaking with Taliban officials — indeed Van Linschoten and Kuehn's previous project was editing the memoirs of Taliban senior official Abdul Salam Zaeef – and former “Afghan Arabs”, the authors enriched their research immensely. The result shows in the final product: a nuanced, deeply layered, and meticulously investigative look at a fascinating subject. An Enemy We Createdshould be seen as paradigmatic for future research on militant organizations, and offers up an immense challenge to those experts who would seek to write on such topics from the comfort of Western armchairs.”
Om Kandahar, COIN och kulturkänsliga krigare. Amerika och dess allierade ställs nu inför sin största utmaning i Afghanistan: en offensiv i pashtunernas huvudstad Kandahar. Samtidigt blir offensiven den stora prövningen för den nygamla taktiken "counterinsurgency", med ekon från både Vietnam och gamla kolonialkrig. Kommer man att lyckas? Och är counterinsurgency, eller COIN på militärjargong, verkligen det patenterade framgångsrecept som det framställs som? Reportage om nya filmen Human Terrain, samt samtal med experter i Kandahar, Washington och Stockholm. Lyssna på alla avsnitt i Sveriges Radio Play. Efter månader av växande irritation mellan USA och den afghanska ledningen sopades i veckan allt gammal groll under mattan och president Hamid Karzai togs emot i Washington med stora vänskapsbetygelser. Med en pågående truppförstärkning - ytterligare 30 000 amerikanska soldater är på väg till Afghanistan - och en förestående offensiv i Kandahar är Obama och Karzai mer beroende av varandra än någonsin hittills, och av att visa att man har det afghanska folkets bästa som främsta syfte. Från officiellt håll har man därför den senaste tiden tonat ned krigsretoriken och säger nu att det snarare handlar om en "process" än en offensiv i Kandahar. Men vad är detta Kandahar? Vad betyder det för de afghaner som kommer därifrån? En av de mer speciella böcker om Afghanistan som kommit ut under de senaste åren heter My Life with the Taliban. Det är en självbiografi skriven av en högt uppsatt taliban, Mullah Abdul Salam Zaeef, som bland annat var ambassadör till Pakistan när Afghanistan-kriget började 2001 och som 2002 greps av USA och satt i Guantanamofängelset i tre år. Boken har översatts från pashto och redigerats av två europeiska forskare som spenderat de senaste åren i Kandahar. Konflikts Ivar Ekman ringde upp en av dem, Alex Strick van Linschoten, för att höra hur han hamnat i Kandahar, hur boken kom till, och hur läget i staden är idag. Det är i Kandahar Talibanerna har sitt starkaste fäste och de har inte visat några tecken på försvagning, så om USA ska lyckas med sin plan att börja dra tillbaka sina styrkor nästa år lär en större militär insats vara oundviklig. Och lika oundvikligt kommer den att leda till ännu fler civila offer, vilket redan har börjat synas i Pentagons siffror. Vad händer då med den taktik som går ut på att skydda civilbefolkningen och vinna deras förtoende så att motståndsgrupperna inte kan söka skydd hos dem? Counterinsurgency är begreppet på engelska och en bra svensk översättning saknas. Taktiken användes i samband med truppförstärkningen i Irak 2007, under den så kallade surgen - och nu är det mycket i NATO-koalitionens planering i södra Afghanistan som påminner om det man gjorde i Baghdad. En person som var djupt inblandad då var David Kilcullen, som counterinsurgency-rådgivare till General Petraeus. Han har haft ett stort inflytande på hur den amerikanska militärdoktrinen utvecklats under de senaste åren – han har även varit särskild rådgivare åt den dåvarande utrikesministern Condoleeza Rice, och har arbetat i långa perioder i Afghanistan, Irak och Pakistan. Ivar Ekman ringde honom i Washington. Ett av de konkreta inslagen som har utvecklades ur den stratgei som David Kilcullen var med och formulerade är de så kallade Human Terrain Teams - mänskliga terräng-team. I vår tids krig anses inte längre enbart kontrollen över den fysiska terrängen - marken, luftrummet eller havet - att vara avgörande för vem som ska segra. För att kunna vinna ett krig måste man vinna människornas förtroende - "hearts and minds" som man ofta hör amerikanska militärer och politiker tala om. Och åtminstone inom en del av de högre ledarskikten har insikten om att det inte funkar med bullriga soldater som brakar fram i full stridsmundering och knappt syns bakom sina mörka solglasögon. Så för att göra de mer känsliga för den mänskliga miljö de rör sig i rekryterar armén antropologer till de här mänskliga terrängteamen, för att hjälpa till att analysera och förklara hur människorna i området beter sig. Så är det tänkt, men i praktiken återstår många brister och framförallt riktas mycket kritik mot systemet - både inom det militära och bland akademiker som värjer sig mot att deras expertis ska användas för krigföring. Några av de rösterna, men också förespråkare förekommer i den prisbelönade dokumentärfilmen Human Terrain, som har fått stort gensvar där den har visats på dokumentärfilmsfestivaler, nu senast vid HotDocs i Toronto. James Der Derian är professor i internationella studier vid Brown University i Rhode Island och har regisserat filmen tillsammans med David och Michael Udris. Filmen började som ett försök att skildra den den amerikanska militärens strategiska omsvängningen. Men när hans vän och kollega Michael Bhatia, antropolog som ingick i ett av Human Terrain-teamen, miste livet vid en vägbombs-attentat blev det plötsligt också ett personligt projekt. Konflikts Daniela Marquard fick tag på honom under festivalen i Toronto. Gäster i studion för att diskutera detta är Caroline Holmqvist-Jonsäter som just skrivit sin doktorsavhandling på ämnet tjugohundratalets krig vid Kings College i London, och Torbjörn Petterson, Svenska Afghanistankommitténs generalsekreterare, nyss hemkommen från Kabul. Programledare: Daniela MarquardtProducent: Ivar Ekman
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