# Engineering at Slack

Hear directly from Slack's engineers about what we build, why and how we build it, and how you can use it.

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## Shipyard: How We Built Slack's Next-Generation EC2 Platform

DevFeed: [Shipyard: How We Built Slack's Next-Generation EC2 Platform](<https://devfeed.tech/articles/shipyard-how-we-built-slack-s-next-generation-ec2-platform-150.md>)

Original publisher: [Read original article](<https://slack.engineering/shipyard-how-we-built-slacks-next-generation-ec2-platform/>)

Author: Archie Gunasekara

Published: 2026-07-14T16:10:08Z

Content type: article

Language: en

Sources: [Engineering at Slack](<https://devfeed.tech/sources/engineering-at-slack.md>)

Topics: [Amazon EC2](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/amazon-ec2.md>)

Tags: [aws](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/aws.md>), [containers](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/containers.md>), [deployment](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/deployment.md>), [infrastructure](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/infrastructure.md>), [migration](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/migration.md>), [platform](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/platform.md>), [slack](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/slack.md>), [uncategorized](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/uncategorized.md>)

### AI overview

Slack describes Shipyard, its next-generation EC2 platform, which uses deployable infrastructure artifacts, service-level deployment primitives, progressive rollouts, and automated safety mechanisms to modernize EC2 operations.

### Source excerpt

Over the past few years, we've been on a journey to modernise how we run Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) instances at Slack. In our first post, Advancing Our Chef Infrastructure, we shared how we moved from a single Chef stack to a resilient, multi-stack setup with versioned cookbook deployments and safer promotion workflows. This...

## Agentic Testing: Where Agents Fit in the E2E Testing Stack

DevFeed: [Agentic Testing: Where Agents Fit in the E2E Testing Stack](<https://devfeed.tech/articles/agentic-testing-where-agents-fit-in-the-e2e-testing-stack-144.md>)

Original publisher: [Read original article](<https://slack.engineering/agentic-testing-where-agents-fit-in-the-e2e-testing-stack/>)

Author: Sergii Gorbachov

Published: 2026-06-11T14:15:28Z

Content type: article

Language: en

Sources: [Engineering at Slack](<https://devfeed.tech/sources/engineering-at-slack.md>)

Topics: [Playwright](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/playwright.md>), [Model Context Protocol](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/model-context-protocol.md>), [large-language-models](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/large-language-models.md>), [User Interfaces](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/user-interfaces.md>)

Tags: [agentic](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/agentic.md>), [agents](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/agents.md>), [automation-testing](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/automation-testing.md>), [browser](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/browser.md>), [code](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/code.md>), [cost](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/cost.md>), [developer-productivity](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/developer-productivity.md>), [e2e-testing](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/e2e-testing.md>), [innovation](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/innovation.md>), [language-models](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/language-models.md>), [large-language-models](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/large-language-models.md>), [mcp](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/mcp.md>), [speed](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/speed.md>), [testing](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/testing.md>), [uncategorized](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/uncategorized.md>), [workflow](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/workflow.md>)

### AI overview

The article examines agent-driven end-to-end testing as an exploratory complement to deterministic tests. Based on more than 200 runs using Playwright MCP, Playwright CLI, and agent-generated Playwright tests, it compares how agents pursue goals through variable UI paths and considers reliability, execution time, and cost.

### Source excerpt

Abstract Agent-driven end-to-end (E2E) tests add a new exploratory layer to testing, but should they replace traditional deterministic tests? We ran more than 200 agentic E2E workflows using the Playwright MCP, Playwright CLI, and agent-generated Playwright tests in test workspaces using non-production data to find out how agentic testing could fit into both our and...

## Slack AI: The Path to Multi-Cloud

DevFeed: [Slack AI: The Path to Multi-Cloud](<https://devfeed.tech/articles/slack-ai-the-path-to-multi-cloud-151.md>)

Original publisher: [Read original article](<https://slack.engineering/slack-ai-the-path-to-multi-cloud/>)

Author: Shaurya Kethireddy

Published: 2026-05-28T14:15:20Z

Content type: article

Language: en

Sources: [Engineering at Slack](<https://devfeed.tech/sources/engineering-at-slack.md>)

Topics: [AI Chat](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/ai-chat.md>)

Tags: [ai](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/ai.md>), [amazon-bedrock](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/amazon-bedrock.md>), [anthropic](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/anthropic.md>), [availability](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/availability.md>), [aws](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/aws.md>), [backend](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/backend.md>), [cloud](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/cloud.md>), [cloud-architecture](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/cloud-architecture.md>), [cloud-computing](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/cloud-computing.md>), [collaboration](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/collaboration.md>), [compliance](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/compliance.md>), [containers](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/containers.md>), [engineering](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/engineering.md>), [enterprise](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/enterprise.md>), [gpu](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/gpu.md>), [iam](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/iam.md>), [infrastructure](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/infrastructure.md>), [innovation](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/innovation.md>), [llms](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/llms.md>), [machine-learning](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/machine-learning.md>), [performance](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/performance.md>), [security](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/security.md>), [slack](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/slack.md>), [software-development](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/software-development.md>), [uncategorized](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/uncategorized.md>), [vpc](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/vpc.md>)

### AI overview

Slack describes evolving its enterprise LLM-serving infrastructure from AWS SageMaker toward multi-cloud, multi-vendor orchestration to improve resilience, capacity management, and access to newer models.

### Source excerpt

In early 2023, Slack faced a foundational challenge: serving Large Language Models (LLMs) at enterprise scale with the security, reliability, and performance our customers expect. Over three years, we evolved from basic infrastructure to orchestrating a sophisticated multi-cloud architecture. We didn't just want shiny new models; we needed a system resilient to regional outages and...

## From SSH to REST: A Security-Driven Modernization of Slack's EMR Data Pipelines

DevFeed: [From SSH to REST: A Security-Driven Modernization of Slack's EMR Data Pipelines](<https://devfeed.tech/articles/from-ssh-to-rest-a-security-driven-modernization-of-slack-s-emr-data-pipelines-146.md>)

Original publisher: [Read original article](<https://slack.engineering/from-ssh-to-rest-a-security-driven-modernization-of-slacks-emr-data-pipelines/>)

Author: Mahendran Vasagam

Published: 2026-05-05T14:00:01Z

Content type: article

Language: en

Sources: [Engineering at Slack](<https://devfeed.tech/sources/engineering-at-slack.md>)

Topics: [Security](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/security.md>), [OpenSSH](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/openssh.md>), [Amazon Web Services](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/aws.md>), [airflow](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/airflow.md>), [DataOps](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/dataops.md>), [Architecture & Design](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/architecture-design.md>), [Kubernetes](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/kubernetes.md>)

Tags: [airflow](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/airflow.md>), [architecture](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/architecture.md>), [aws](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/aws.md>), [big-data](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/big-data.md>), [data-analytics](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/data-analytics.md>), [data-engineering](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/data-engineering.md>), [data-infrastructure](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/data-infrastructure.md>), [kubernetes](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/kubernetes.md>), [modernization](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/modernization.md>), [security](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/security.md>), [ssh](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/ssh.md>), [uncategorized](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/uncategorized.md>)

### AI overview

Slack describes migrating more than 700 SSH-based data pipeline jobs to a REST-based architecture across eight data regions, eliminating SSH access to production AWS EMR clusters without downtime. The article explains the security and operational problems that motivated the modernization, including attack-surface exposure, key-management overhead, resource contention, broken connections, zombie jobs, and unreliable job-status detection.

### Source excerpt

Excerpt By 2024, Slack's data platform had accumulated 700+ SSH-based operators orchestrating critical data pipelines. We're talking daily search indexing that processed terabytes of data, analytics jobs powering business intelligence, the whole shebang. Every single one of these jobs required direct SSH access to production AWS Elastic MapReduce (EMR) clusters. We had a massive security...

## Managing context in long-run agentic applications

DevFeed: [Managing context in long-run agentic applications](<https://devfeed.tech/articles/managing-context-in-long-run-agentic-applications-148.md>)

Original publisher: [Read original article](<https://slack.engineering/managing-context-in-long-run-agentic-applications/>)

Author: Dominic Marks

Published: 2026-04-13T17:17:16Z

Content type: article

Language: en

Sources: [Engineering at Slack](<https://devfeed.tech/sources/engineering-at-slack.md>)

Topics: [long-context](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/long-context.md>), [context window](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/context-window.md>), [Artificial Intelligence](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/ai.md>), [Security](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/security.md>), [Architecture & Design](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/architecture-design.md>)

Tags: [agentic](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/agentic.md>), [agents](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/agents.md>), [ai-agents](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/ai-agents.md>), [article](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/article.md>), [context-window](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/context-window.md>), [development](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/development.md>), [security](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/security.md>), [software-engineering](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/software-engineering.md>), [uncategorized](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/uncategorized.md>)

### AI overview

The article examines how long-running, multi-agent security investigations maintain coherent reasoning across many inference requests. It explains the limits of stateless language model APIs and finite context windows, then introduces three context channels: the Director's Journal, the Critic's Review, and the Critic's Timeline.

### Source excerpt

Excerpt In complex, long-running agentic systems, maintaining alignment and coherent reasoning between agents requires careful design. In this second article of our series, we explore these challenges and the mechanisms we built to keep teams of agents working productively over long time spans. We present a range of complementary techniques that balance the conflicting requirements...

## From Custom to Open: Scalable Network Probing and HTTP/3 Readiness with Prometheus

DevFeed: [From Custom to Open: Scalable Network Probing and HTTP/3 Readiness with Prometheus](<https://devfeed.tech/articles/from-custom-to-open-scalable-network-probing-and-http-3-readiness-with-prometheus-145.md>)

Original publisher: [Read original article](<https://slack.engineering/from-custom-to-open-scalable-network-probing-and-http-3-readiness-with-prometheus/>)

Author: Carlo Preciado

Published: 2026-03-31T17:00:39Z

Content type: article

Language: en

Sources: [Engineering at Slack](<https://devfeed.tech/sources/engineering-at-slack.md>)

Topics: [telemetry](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/telemetry.md>)

Tags: [aws](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/aws.md>), [go](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/go.md>), [golang](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/golang.md>), [http](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/http.md>), [infrastructure](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/infrastructure.md>), [metrics](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/metrics.md>), [monitoring](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/monitoring.md>), [networking](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/networking.md>), [observability](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/observability.md>), [open-source](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/open-source.md>), [prometheus](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/prometheus.md>), [uncategorized](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/uncategorized.md>)

### AI overview

Slack added and open-sourced QUIC support for Prometheus Blackbox Exporter to enable configurable HTTP/3 probes and restore client-side observability for its HTTP/3 endpoints.

### Source excerpt

The Problem: Legacy Tooling and Its Limitations Currently, Slack utilizes a hybrid approach to network measurement, incorporating both internal (such as traffic between AWS Availability Zones) and external (monitoring traffic from the public internet into Slack's infrastructure) solutions. These tools comprise a combination of commercial SaaS offerings and custom-built network testing solutions developed by our...

## How Slack Rebuilt Notifications 📣

DevFeed: [How Slack Rebuilt Notifications 📣](<https://devfeed.tech/articles/how-slack-rebuilt-notifications-147.md>)

Original publisher: [Read original article](<https://slack.engineering/how-slack-rebuilt-notifications/>)

Author: Frances Coronel

Published: 2026-03-19T19:00:54Z

Content type: article

Language: en

Sources: [Engineering at Slack](<https://devfeed.tech/sources/engineering-at-slack.md>)

Topics: [Slack](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/slack.md>), [configuration](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/configuration.md>), [systems](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/systems.md>)

Tags: [android](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/android.md>), [architecture](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/architecture.md>), [backend](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/backend.md>), [complexity](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/complexity.md>), [cross-platform](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/cross-platform.md>), [customer](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/customer.md>), [design](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/design.md>), [features](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/features.md>), [frontend](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/frontend.md>), [ios](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/ios.md>), [mental-models](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/mental-models.md>), [product-launch](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/product-launch.md>), [push-notification](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/push-notification.md>), [scale](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/scale.md>), [slack](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/slack.md>), [sync](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/sync.md>), [ui](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/ui.md>), [uncategorized](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/uncategorized.md>)

### AI overview

Slack describes rebuilding its notification system to reduce overload and make notification behavior calmer, more consistent, and easier to control. The article identifies architectural complexity, conflicting desktop and mobile mental models, coupled preferences, inconsistent synchronization, and hidden advanced controls as sources of user frustration.

### Source excerpt

Introduction 🔔 At Slack, notifications are how teams stay in the loop, but they can also become overwhelming when not designed with intention. Our goal was to make staying informed feel effortless. We set out to rebuild one of Slack's most complicated systems from the ground up by bringing calm, consistency, and clarity to the...

## Streamlining Security Investigations with Agents

DevFeed: [Streamlining Security Investigations with Agents](<https://devfeed.tech/articles/streamlining-security-investigations-with-agents-153.md>)

Original publisher: [Read original article](<https://slack.engineering/streamlining-security-investigations-with-agents/>)

Author: Dominic Marks

Published: 2025-12-01T16:00:42Z

Content type: article

Language: en

Sources: [Engineering at Slack](<https://devfeed.tech/sources/engineering-at-slack.md>)

Topics: [AI Chat](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/ai-chat.md>), [MSP MCP](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/msp-mcp.md>)

Tags: [agents](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/agents.md>), [ai](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/ai.md>), [ai-agents](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/ai-agents.md>), [coding](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/coding.md>), [data](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/data.md>), [design](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/design.md>), [development](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/development.md>), [engineering](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/engineering.md>), [events](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/events.md>), [infrastructure](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/infrastructure.md>), [manifest](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/manifest.md>), [mcp](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/mcp.md>), [mcp-server](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/mcp-server.md>), [performance](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/performance.md>), [security](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/security.md>), [series](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/series.md>), [slack](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/slack.md>), [software-engineering](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/software-engineering.md>), [uncategorized](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/uncategorized.md>)

### AI overview

Slack Security Engineering describes an AI-agent prototype for investigating security alerts. To improve consistency and control beyond prompt refinement, the team decomposes investigations into chained model invocations with defined purposes and output structures, and exposes selected data sources through an stdio MCP server.

### Source excerpt

Slack's Security Engineering team is responsible for protecting Slack's core infrastructure and services. Our security event ingestion pipeline handles billions of events per day from a diverse array of data sources. Reviewing alerts produced by our security detection system is our primary responsibility during on-call shifts. We're going to show you how we're using AI...