How to use Claude to prototype a Rust video player
The wedeo author used Claude to generate a Rust multimedia experiment with an H.264 decoder and existing playback libraries. Playback was confirmed on M-series Macs, with substantial missing features and slower performance than FFmpeg.
news.ycombinator.com
Suggested prompt
Suggested prompt written by Agents In Use, not the source author. Replace bracketed inputs and review tool permissions first.
Build an experimental Rust video player for [platform] with [codec scope]. Use [reference implementation and specifications], integrate [permitted Rust libraries], and explain generated components. Fix observed playback bugs and report unsupported formats, validation results and performance limitations.
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See placements →Evidence at a glance
Sourced account- Source poster / publisher
- sharifhsn
- Original account
- Read the source ↗
- Published
- Source link checked
- Reported result
- The author reports working playback on M-series Macs and an approximately 30,000-line scalar Rust H.264 decoder. The project remains incomplete and much slower than FFmpeg.
- Human involvement
- The author explicitly did not directly review generated code lines, but confirmed operation on M-series Macs and identified missing capabilities.
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How the agent did it
- Use Claude to generate the Rust multimedia project and H.264 decoder.
- Incorporate existing audio, AV1 and player libraries to enable playback.
- Ask Claude to fix bugs and explain parts of the generated project.
After using Claude Code to rewrite Python tooling in Rust, the author started wedeo as a larger experiment inspired by FFmpeg. They describe the entire codebase as AI-generated and say they have not directly reviewed individual lines, instead asking Claude to fix bugs and explain portions of the project.
The main reported contribution is an H.264 decoder with roughly 30,000 lines in its scalar Rust implementation. The author says it lacks interlacing and 10-bit support, while estimating support for 99% of H.264-encoded video. That compatibility estimate is presented without a testing breakdown.
To reach working playback, the project incorporates existing libraries: symphonia for audio, rav1d and rav1e for AV1, and wgpu and winit for the player. The author has confirmed operation only on M-series Macs. They report that wedeo is much slower than FFmpeg, with optimization limited to some ported assembly and basic multithreading.
The project remains a side project and an experiment in pure LLM usage. Other video codecs and H.264 encoding are among the missing capabilities, and the author invites testing and contributions.
Who it's for: Developers exploring agent-generated multimedia prototypes who can evaluate incomplete codec support and platform limitations.
Prompt
Suggested prompt (written by Agents In Use, not the author's)
Source: Hacker News · sharifhsn
Frequently asked questions
What codec support does the author report?
The project includes H.264 decoding and uses rav1d and rav1e for AV1. H.264 interlacing, 10-bit support and encoding are missing, as are video codecs beyond H.264 and AV1.
Has wedeo been confirmed on multiple platforms?
No. The author says they have confirmed it only on M-series Macs and welcomes testing on other machines.
Did the author manually review the generated code?
The author says all code was AI-generated and that they did not directly review individual lines, other than asking Claude to fix bugs and explain parts of the project.
More details
Remaining steps
- Confirm that the resulting player works on an M-series Mac.
About this account
Claude generated the complete codebase, while the author directed the experiment and requested bug fixes and explanations.
Platform: Hacker News. Attribution: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47601273. Prompt: Suggested (written by Agents In Use, not the author's). Sourced by the Agents In Use pipeline.
Credit: sharifhsn on Hacker News
Source published
Added to Agents In Use
Source checked
Tools and topics
Claude Code · Rust · symphonia · rav1d · rav1e · wgpu · winit
Rust · Video playback · Code generation · Prototyping
Editorial completeness: 100/100. Measures documented fields, not agent performance or verified outcomes.